Wine: 2010 Llamas Family Wine Cabernet SauvignonBIO:Brandi brings over 22 years of experience, awards and recognition in the beauty industry to the beauty industry. She has spent fifteen years proving herself in the highly competitive beauty industry serving Hollywood elites such as Lena Waithe, Cynthia Erivo, Sophia Nomvete and many more. In this image conscious society, Brandi continues to show she can handle any shade and any skin condition for any occasion with confidence, sensitivity and most of all have results. Being the only child of Latinx + Indigenous decent in an entire town as well as a first generation American, has been her driving force for entering the beauty industry to educate and inspire change anyway she can.Website: https://www.lunavibe.co/Instagram 

Wine: Crémant de Loire, Sparkling Cabernet FrancThank you WetStone Wine Bar for hosting Jesse and I during this recordingBIO:Jesse Leon is a social impact consultant to foundations and investors on ways to address issues of substance abuse/addiction, affordable housing, and mental health. He is a native English and Spanish speaker and fluent in Portuguese. He is an alum of UC Berkeley and Harvard and based in San Diego.Born to indigenous working-class Mexican immigrants in San Diego in the 1970s, Jesse Leon’s childhood was violently ruptured. Overlooked by state-sanctioned institutions and systems intended to help victims of abuse, neglected like many other low-income Latinos, Jesse spiraled into cycles of suicide and substance abuse.More infoInstagram

Wine: Seis Soles, 2020 SolTierra Red BlendBIO:Michelle Barrionuevo-Mazzini is a 1st gen Latina, multi-passionate creative entrepreneur and jefa at CASITA MICHI and MB Creative Co. She is passionate about social good, BIPOC representation, and elevating Latina voices. She is no longer ok with just getting a seat at the table, she wants to create one. Last fall, Michelle became the first Latina-owned candle brand to debut at Macy's and at a large retailer for that matter. Her hope is that through her brand's story she can empower our community to be seen and feel seen.Casita Michiinstagram

Wine: Encanto Vineyards, 2017 Sauvignon BlancBIO:Valeria Hernández is a 1st-generation Mexican-American Latina who has a never ending passion for helping women & femmes thrive by stepping into their “Healthy Wealthy Jefy” persona.Valeria is a Life & Health Coach for ambitious women & femmes of color. She specializes in plant-based nutrition, intuitive eating, and wealth building. Valeria loves helping her clients increase their energy with plant based foods and ditch diet culture so they can show up confidently in their life and fuel their dreams!Instagram

Wine: Herencia del Valle 2013 MerlotBIO:Claudia Moncarz is a world traveler, mother, number lover, and great attorney. While admittedly she isn't that humble, She is proud to be a caring friend to her clients. Even though a love of numbers runs in her family (her grandparents were accountants), she always shied away from a career related in any way to finance.That is until one summer when she landed an internship working for a criminal judge in Miami, Florida. He quickly realized that Claudia did not want to practice criminal law and sent her to different divisions to observe other judges.The week she spent in probate court changed her life. She finally learned what she wanted to do with the rest of her professional life: She was going to be a probate lawyer. That fall, she shared her new plan with one of her professors. He advised she take a tax course, a recommendation that she reluctantly followed. Studying tax law was like being in nirvana for Claudia. Her love affair with tax law began from that moment.Website: moncarzlawfirm.comInstagram

Wine: Justicia Wines, Themes Pinot Noir, 2020Bios:Helen Pelayo MasferrerA mother of 3 that at 30 years old completely transformed her life by making a simple promise to sweat for 30 min every day. 2 years laters she lost 100lbs, landed a dream job at a brand new gym, and met her wife. They now own our own gym in Oregon where I get to have the space to empower the community through health and fitness everyday!InstagramJazmin MonteroJazmin Montero is a Costa Rican mama living in the mountains of the midwest. She wears a lot of hats and is a UX designer, illustrator and doula. As a doula she has found a great passion for the postpartum period & menstruation. She founded The Postpartum Revolution Conference in 2019, and now in 2022 she is gearing up to launch The Womb School Podcast. When she is not nerding out on womb health or creating beautiful designs for her community, she is out adventuring with her familia.https://www.wombschoolpodcast.com/Instagram

Wine: Armitage Wines Pinot Noir, 2018BIO:Laura Lara is a Community & Comadre Coach. She is the co-founder of ¡Oye, Comadre! A digital community rooted in comadrismo through radical mothering, conocimiento and Chisme. She is also the CEO of Comadre Coaching. A group coaching program that works with individuals looking to be intentional with the community they curate and serve.Instagram

Wine: 2019 Aldina Vineyards Pinot Noir BIO:Born and raised in Eagle Pass, Texas, Guadalupe García McCall is the award-winning author of several young adult novels, some short stories for adults, and many children’s poems. Guadalupe has received the Prestigious Pura Belpre Award, a Westchester Young Adult Fiction Award, the Tomás Rivera Mexican-American Children’s Book Award, and was a finalist for the William C. Morris Award and the Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy, among many other accolades. She was born in Mexico and moved to Texas as a young girl, keeping close ties with family on both sides of the border. She is a full-time author and abuelita and lives with her husband in South Texas. Find her online at ggmccall.com.Instagram

Wine: Maldonado Vineyards 2020 Napa Valley ChardonnayBIO:Sedale is a certified wine writer, telling stories of wines and winemakers that are not told enough. He is currently a contributor to The Vintner Project and Uncorked and Cultured, focused primarily on BIPOC wines and winemakers. A digital marketer by day, Sedale is passionate about his community and making sure their stories are told and highlighted in the industry. Sedale holds his WSET Level 2 with Distinction and American Wine Expert. He is currently a CSW candidate.InstagramUncorked & Cultured

Wine: RG|NY 2020 Cabernet FrancBIO:Latina. Fierce. Fighter. A San Diego native with a laugh as big as her hair. These are just a few things we would use to describe our Founder and Host of The Wine & Chisme Podcast, Jessica Yañez. But that’s just the beginning.Jessica grew up in the suburbs of San Diego and has always had a curiosity for other people and their stories. As far back as she can remember, she would be the first to approach a new student at school, introduce herself, and want to know all about them. Not much has changed as her curiosity has lent itself well to learning more about the world around her. She specifically created The Wine & Chisme Podcast to amplify voices across communities of color and share their stories on career, love, life and more. All while sipping on a glass of wine.She launched the VERY FIRST directory of Latiné owned wine brands based in the United States and has since expanded into hosting virtual wine tastings that specifically focus on these vintner. She believes that people need to know that our community not only works the land, but owns the brands.

Wine: 2021 Seis Soles White Blend BIO:Patty and Iris are both career women with more than 15 years of experience in the events and tech industry. Festively was built to make it easier for busy moms to discover all the beautiful and custom elements they need to make their celebrations memorable.Patty is an LA native and graduate of UC Santa Barbara with a BA in environmental studies and a background in tech. She is a Dodger fan for life, wife, and proud mom of two boys and step-mom of a wonderful daughter. She loves making custom cocktails and can be found petting cats and dogs everywhere she goes.Iris is from Louisiana and proud of her family ties. She is a graduate of Cal State Dominguez Hills with a BA in communications. She's planned events for family, friends and fortune 200 companies. She's a mom of two boys, wife and loves exploring new recipes while dancing and singing as she cooks.Website: https://festively.com/InstagramFacebook

Wine: Encanto Wines 2017 Sauvignon BlancBIO:Jasmine Ruiz is a Comedian, Writer, and Performer born and raised in the Bronx, educated at Barnard College of Columbia University. She creates content mostly focused on the NYC experience and being Puerto Rican. She has an episodic series Dr. G The Gangsta Therapist and produces a variety of other skits under The Jasmine Show. She cohosts The Rick H. Show, a weekly comedic podcast featuring guests from different industries. Jasmine is currently writing her own show that focuses on the plight of those who are the first in their family to break cycles and achieve socioeconomic mobility.Website https://jasmine.nyc/Instagram

Wine: Seis Soles White Blend, 2020BIO:Natalia Molina is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of American Studies and Ethnicity at the University of Southern California. Her research explores the intertwined histories of race, place, gender, culture, and citizenship. She is the author of the award-winning books, How Race Is Made in America: Immigration, Citizenship, and the Historical Power of Racial Scripts and Fit to Be Citizens?: Public Health and Race in Los Angeles, 1879-1940. Her most recent book is A Place at the Nayarit: How a Mexican Restaurant Nourished a Community, on immigrant workers as placemakers —including her grandmother—who nurtured and fed the community through the restaurants they established, which served as urban anchors. She co-edited Relational Formations of Race: Theory, Method and Practice, and is now at work on a new book, The Silent Hands that Shaped the Huntington: A History of Its Mexican Workers. In addition to publishing widely in scholarly journals, she has also written for the LA Times, Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, and more. Professor Molina is a 2020 MacArthur Fellow.Instagram

Wine: Encanto Vineyards, 2016 Pinot Noir, Carneros Valley BIO:Claudia is an artist, writer, philanthropist, abundance coach, mentor, mother, and wife. During her career as a journalist, she has worked for magazines and television in South America and the US, touching subjects from parenting, forgiveness, and growth to political issues.She started her career on television at 17 years old as an actor, appearing in one the most popular Telenovelas (Soap-opera) called Carmin, airing in over 37 counties as well as mini-series and important advertising campaigns in South America, like Levi's.Soon after, she moved to behind the camera and, at 21, became one of the youngest producers in her country, where she wrote a manual that was later used to train other young producers.Born in Peru, she comes from a culture of taboos and beliefs that had not always empowered her to become what she believed was her calling. In the process of self-discovering, she fell in love with herself again and found her passion for helping others.She is involved in several charities and have a soft spot for immigrant children. She received the Community Ambassador Award in 2017-2018 from the UNLV Boyd School of Law and The kid's Court Program and in 2020 she received the Volunteer of the Year Award from the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation among other recognitions for her involvement in many causes. she is in the College Board of Education, and her Kids' Journal “I AM- My gratitude Journal” is being used in some Magnet schools in Nevada.Contact:Website: www.brighterdaysbook.comInstagram

Wineries Featured Include:
Aldina Vineyards
Bazan Cellars
Ceja Vineyards
Encanto Vineyards
Gallegos Wines
Herencia del Valle
Honrama Cellars
Tierra y Vino 
We also talk to El Coraloense Restaurant, Mike Cano with Latinx Wines, Christina Sanchez, V.P. of Community Engagement for AltaMed.