A Thanksgiving Letter to My Wine-Loving Community

Happy Thanksgiving wine lovers!

I’m writing this with a glass of something celebratory (okay, it’s Chamagne—are we surprised?) and feeling a bit sappy. If you’d told me back in April that I’d be here in November, writing a Thanksgiving letter to an actual readership, I probably would’ve laughed into my glass. But here we are, and I’m genuinely grateful for all of it.

This spring, I realized I was in a weird place with wine. I’d drifted away from what made me fall in love with it in the first place—that excitement of discovery, the joy of learning something new and immediately wanting to share it. I thought about going back to my WSET studies, which I’d abandoned during a bad breakup. But the more I considered it, the more it felt like preparing for the SATs all over again. Too much memorization (not my forte). Too much “you must know this for the test.” Not enough “holy shit, did you know wine can taste like that?”

So instead of textbooks, I started Vive le Vin to write about wine the way I actually talk about it—with Beyoncé references, relatable metaphors, and absolutely zero gatekeeping. I wanted to celebrate wine, not standardize it.

And then something unexpected happened: you showed up. Especially these last few months, the readership numbers have genuinely shocked me. People are reading about Pinot Gris and wine vessels and Paul Revere’s Madeira habit. You’re sending messages, sharing posts, trying bottles based on my recommendations. It’s wild and wonderful and means more than I can properly express.

The best part? I feel like I’m back where I belong—in that sweet spot where learning about wine feels less like studying and more like discovering. I’m researching regions because I genuinely want to know their stories. I’m tasting wines and immediately thinking about how to describe them so you’ll want to try them too. I’m nerding out over terroir not because there’s an exam, but because this stuff is genuinely fascinating. This is how wine education should feel: curious, excited, connected to real bottles and real experiences.

So this Thanksgiving, I’m raising my glass of Champagne to you—for reading, for engaging, for trusting my recommendations and making this corner of the internet feel like a real community. To the winemakers and producers who’ve shared their stories and let me feature their incredible work. To the wine regions that keep surprising me. And to everyone who’s reached out with questions or just to say hi—you’ve made this so much more fun than I ever imagined.

I’m grateful this exists. I’m grateful you’re here.

Here’s to more wine adventures, more discoveries, and more reasons to celebrate this beautiful, endlessly interesting world we get to explore together.

Happy Thanksgiving! 🍂🍷