10/26-Michael Jordan talks to Lisa Broman Augustine & Ray Signorello

Lisa Broman Augustine - Director of Sales & Marketing, Broman Cellars

Bob Broman has been a winemaker all his adult life. He jokingly tells how he began his winemaking career as a painter after graduating from the University of California at Davis. He says he learned to brush, roll and spray paint as a cellar worker at Martini.

He then moved on to Concannon Winery in Livermore where he was given the opportunity to cut his winemaking teeth, first as assistant winemaker, and later as winemaker. Stags Leap Wine Cellars was his next winemaking position where he stayed for over five years before moving on to Guenoc and then to St. Supery Vineyards and Winery. Additionally, he has practiced his winemaking and management skills by consulting in France, Republic of Georgia, Italy and Chile. Each move, he says, helped heighten, improve and hone his winemaking skills.

It was during his eight plus years at St. Supery that he met Deborah Russell, a Wine Country Realtor. She had hired her mother to do telemarketing for her real estate profession and Bob just happened to be one of her prospecting calls.

Bob didn’t buy from her, but they had a lot in common and immediately clicked. So when he offered to repay her for her work by taking her on a twilight picnic in the vineyards, the rest became history.

Today, Broman Cellars is a family passion, with daughter Lisa also working side by side with Bob at the winery.  Production is a whopping 1,000 cases consisting of small, ultra premium, hand-crafted lots of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc. The goal of Broman Cellars is to grow slowly but remain small enough that Bob can continue to pay individual attention to the wines.

Bob and Deborah, have received their winery permit and are drawing plans for the winery which will be located on the property shared with their home on 11 ½ acres on Deer Park Road in St. Helena.  In the interim, they are remodeling the house and caring for their two acre cabernet vineyard.

Ray Signorello - Proprietor, Signorello Estate Vineyards 

Ray Signorello Jr. began his journey as winemaker and vineyard owner in the Napa Valley during the mid 1980's. Ray, born in San Francisco, California, moved to Vancouver, Canada where the Signorello family continues to maintain a home. Ray divides his time between Napa, San Francisco, Vancouver and business related travel.

Ray's father, Ray Sr., initiated the vineyard project during the mid 1970's by purchasing the 100-acre estate located on the Silverado Trail in the beautiful Napa Valley. Ray Sr. worked side by side with Ray Jr., establishing the winery's reputation for excellence until his passing in the fall of 1998.

10/19-Encore Broadcast Michael Jordan talks with Tommy Lasorda, Charlie Hough and Tim Wallach

Tommy Lasorda - Hall of Fame Dodger Manager
Tommy Lasorda is best known for managing the Los Angeles Dodgers for twenty seasons (1977-1996); he has been a part of the Dodgers organization for over fifty years total (for some time as a pitcher for the team). While Lasorda led the Dodgers, they won 1,599 games, eight National League West titles, four National League pennants, and two World Series. He still works within the organization. 
Tommy Lasorda has once again put together a winning line-up and team with his selection of Italian wines. The Lasorda wines have been carefully selected by Casa Torelli Imports from leading wine producing regions of Italy. Of the first eight varietals to grace American tabletops, Lasorda is so very proud of the Trebbiano and Montelpuciano D'Abruzzo wines. These varietals hail from the homeland of his father, Sabatino Lasorda. The Lasorda wines have also received medals at the Los Angeles International wine competition, receiving a Gold Medal with his Chianti Classico DOCG and a Bronze Medal for his Chardonnay di Sicilia DOC. 
Tommy Lasorda looks forward to sharing his Lasorda branded Italian wines with his family and friends throughout the world; these will be some of the best Italian wines you will ever experience. Sure to be
a hit, actually, "A HOMERUN".

Charlie Hough - Former Major League Baseball Knuckle Baller
Charles Oliver (Charlie) Hough (born January 5, 1948 in Honolulu, Hawaii) is a formerMajor League Baseball knuckleball pitcher. He is currently a senior adviser of player development for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Tim Wallach - Dodgers Third Base Coach
Timothy Charles Wallach (born September 14, 1957), nicknamed "Eli" in reference to actor Eli Wallach, is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played from 1980 to 1996for the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Dodgers, and California Angels.

10/12-Michael Jordan visits with Aron Weinkauf, Miles and Ryan MacDonnell

Aron Weinkauf - Winemaker/Vineyard Manager, Spottswoode Estate Vineyard and Winery

In May of 2011 Aron Weinkauf was named Spottswoode’s Winemaker, assuming the role from Jennifer Williams. Aron grew up in Reno, Nevada before moving to Georgia to study at Berry College. While at Berry he was able to travel and study in Europe, where he first began to learn about wine. Upon returning to the states Aron determined that winemaking would be an extremely rewarding profession, considering his fondness for wine and food and his love of farming and family. He moved to Fresno to study winemaking and graduated with his Viticulture and Enology degree from Fresno State University in 2005. He worked for a local Madera Winery while attending school, and then worked a 2005 harvest internship in Sonoma County.

Aron joined Spottswoode’s production team as Assistant Winemaker in the spring of 2006. He added Vineyard Manager to his title in 2009, and in his dual roles of Winemaker and Vineyard Manager at our small Estate Vineyard and Winery, Aron enthusiastically pursues our commitment to the organic farming of the finest grapes and the crafting of the finest wines, without compromise.

Aron is married, and as of early 2010, he and Claire are the proud parents of a puppy named Cachou.

Miles and Ryan MacDonnell, brother-sister team/owners - Round Pond Estate

Located in the heart of the Napa Valley, for more than a century the Rutherford region has been recognized for producing red wines of incomparable opulence and elegance. Although measuring a mere six square miles, this coveted winegrowing area is home to some of the oldest and most storied wineries in the United States. Within this community, we are neighbored by such acclaimed wineries as Beaulieu Vineyards, Caymus, Cakebread, Honig, Frog’s Leap and Rubicon Estate.

Offering a unique mix of microclimate and soil composition, Rutherford has proven ideal for the cultivation of Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as premium Italian and Spanish olives. Offering abundant sunshine, warm daytime temperatures and only moderate cooling influences, Rutherford yields fruit with ripe, robust character. Adding to this character is Rutherford’s unique alluvial soils deposited over millennia by the Napa and Russian rivers as well as the Conn Creek. These vibrant and diverse soils add to the region’s rich palette of flavors.

Situated at the main Rutherford crossroads, between Beaulieu Vineyards and Caymus Winery, Round Pond has been growing premium winegrapes since the early 1980s. Cultivated with meticulous care, our grapes have been sold to several of the most preeminent wineries in the region. Recognizing our estate’s ecological diversity, we also undertook the planting of several varieties of imported Italian and Spanish olive trees for the production of premium oils. Because we are passionate about offering the finest gourmet items from the gifts nature has given us we constructed a state-of-the art-mill to ensure absolute quality in the production of our artisan oils.

In addition, using a small selection of extraordinary grapes from our vineyard’s 350 planted acres, Round Pond has established an acclaimed estate wine program focusing on world-class Cabernet Sauvignon produced in extremely limited quantities. Made in conjunction with our super-premium estate wines, we also produce prized red wine vinegars using the revered Orleans Method.

About the name Round Pond - As a child, founder Bob MacDonnell spent many summers relaxing and camping by the water near Lake Frederick in West Point, New York. Named Round Pond, this source of idyllic youthful memories became the inspiration for the MacDonnell family’s Napa Valley home. Envisioned as a natural and serene retreat, Round Pond Estate is lovingly cultivated using sustainable methods to ensure its integrity for generations to come.

10/5-Michael Jordan visits with Tommy Lasorda, Charlie Hough and Tim Wallach

Tommy Lasorda - Hall of Fame Dodger Manager
Tommy Lasorda is best known for managing the Los Angeles Dodgers for twenty seasons (1977-1996); he has been a part of the Dodgers organization for over fifty years total (for some time as a pitcher for the team). While Lasorda led the Dodgers, they won 1,599 games, eight National League West titles, four National League pennants, and two World Series. He still works within the organization. 
Tommy Lasorda has once again put together a winning line-up and team with his selection of Italian wines. The Lasorda wines have been carefully selected by Casa Torelli Imports from leading wine producing regions of Italy. Of the first eight varietals to grace American tabletops, Lasorda is so very proud of the Trebbiano and Montelpuciano D'Abruzzo wines. These varietals hail from the homeland of his father, Sabatino Lasorda. The Lasorda wines have also received medals at the Los Angeles International wine competition, receiving a Gold Medal with his Chianti Classico DOCG and a Bronze Medal for his Chardonnay di Sicilia DOC. 
Tommy Lasorda looks forward to sharing his Lasorda branded Italian wines with his family and friends throughout the world; these will be some of the best Italian wines you will ever experience. Sure to be
a hit, actually, "A HOMERUN".

Charlie Hough - Former Major League Baseball Knuckle Baller
Charles Oliver (Charlie) Hough (born January 5, 1948 in Honolulu, Hawaii) is a formerMajor League Baseball knuckleball pitcher. He is currently a senior adviser of player development for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Tim Wallach - Dodgers Third Base Coach
Timothy Charles Wallach (born September 14, 1957), nicknamed "Eli" in reference to actor Eli Wallach, is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played from 1980 to 1996for the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Dodgers, and California Angels.