I spent years working in finance and sustainability trying to make the world a better place. After managing millions of dollars and trying to hold companies responsible for their environmental impacts, I found myself completed depleted from the work. I couldn’t remember what it felt like to feel hopeful about the future.

Wine was always something I enjoyed but never gave myself permission to explore. Until one day, when I found myself applying to work Saturdays at my favorite local winery, pouring their wines and sharing the story of their 6-acre organic vineyard with tourists from near and far.

This experience slowly changed my life. I learned how interconnected wine is with the local economy, environment, and community. How much farmers risk season after season for the chance to have a bountiful harvest. How vineyards everywhere are returning to more natural, cyclical methods of farming. And most of all how people, after hearing these stories in the tasting room, are willing to support this vision of the future by purchasing wine.

Wine was the antidote to much of what had left me disillusioned about the world.

For the past four years, I’ve immersed myself in every facet of the wine world. I made wine in a Paso Robles cellar, traveled to vineyards in Portugal and Italy, and built a thriving community in a downtown SLO wine shop. I’ve helped my best friend choose the wines for her wedding and taught sold-out classes to beginners interested in taking their wine knowledge to the next level.

Wine with Elena started as a platform to document my foray into wine and has grown and evolved alongside me. Thank you for coming along for the ride.