Welcome to “Hospitality Forward” Podcast Episode #7 with Ray Isle, Executive Wine Editor, Food & Wine and Wine & Spirits Editor for Travel + Leisure and Departures. Ray has twice won the IACP Award for Narrative Beverage Writing and the Gold Award from the North American Travel Journalists Association.
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Click here for full transcription.
Tune in as Ray shares practical tips, as well as insights on:
1) How covering wine, spirits and cocktails differ
2) How consumers are sticking to what they know when buying wine at retail during the pandemic
3) Why diversity in the wine industry is an even greater imperative now
4) How technologies, like Zoom, and online delivery services, such as Wine.com, are transforming the wine experience
5) How the personalities behind the wines are what fascinate him and enrich his coverage
6) What are the Do’s and Don’ts for getting his attention
7) How he chooses the wines he recommends to readers and his advice to wine producers who want to be featured in his stories
8) How he balances his coverage between affordable wines that are widely available and those that are more of a stretch
Ray also addresses a listener question from Doreen Winkler, Founder, Orange Glou, a wine subscription service, on whether orange wine is ready for a broader audience.
Connect with Ray on Twitter at @islewine and on Instagram at @rayisle.