Blame it on the Nebbiolo.

Over the course of my 13+ years in Texas, Dale Robertson, the longtime Houston Chronicle wine writer and legendary Houston sports writer, became a good friend and well, um, drinking buddy.

And now I’m proud to share the news that he and I have a new podcast: Sporty Wine Guy.

As Dale recounts in the first episode, he first became interested in fine wine while covering the Tour de France.

Later, a visit to Houston by a top Italian winemaker, a Barolo producer, turned him on to the quality and breadth of Italian wine.

It was around that time, in 2007, that he started writing a regular wine column for the Houston Chronicle.

Not only is he one of the nicest people I know in wine writing. He’s also one of the most interesting storytellers in our field. Over the course of his time at the Chronicle, he’s met and tasted with some of the most famous winemakers in the world, from Napa to Barolo to Bordeaux and beyond.

He and I had been mulling over the idea of a podcast for some time when 2020 derailed our plans.

Now that we’re feeling comfortable about gathering again, it seemed the perfect time to launch this project. And I’ve had a lot of fun recording and producing the shows.

Thanks for listening: check it out here. Stay tuned for more!