Wine & Chisme

Wine: Justicia Wines, Themes Pinot Noir, 2020 Bios: Helen Pelayo Masferrer A 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! Instagram Jazmin Montero Jazmin 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, 2018 BIO: 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 Chardonnay BIO: 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. Instagram Uncorked & Cultured

Wine: RG|NY 2020 Cabernet Franc BIO: 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/ Instagram Facebook

Wine: Encanto Wines 2017 Sauvignon Blanc BIO: 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, 2020 BIO: 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.com Instagram

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.

Wine: 2021 Beaujolais Nouveau Georges Duboeuf BIO: Yasmín Ramirez is a 2021 Martha's Institute of Creative Writing Author Fellow as well as a 2020 recipient of the Woody and Gayle Hunt-Aspen Institute Fellowship Award. Her fiction/CNF works have appeared in Cream City Review and Huizache among others. She is an Assistant Professor of English, Creative Writing, and Chicanx Literature at El Paso Community College. She stays active in the Borderplex arts community and serves on the advisory board of BorderSenses, a literary non-profit. Her memoir ¡Ándale, Prieta!, by Lee and Low Books, is now available. Website: https://www.yasminramirez.com/ Instagram

Wine: 2017 El Viajero Cabernet Sauvignon by Voces Cellars BIO: ASTRID - Astrid Ferguson is a certified life and business coach, author and poet specializing in helping people navigate through unclear transitions by abolishing internal blocks so they can take control of their work/life balance and get back to having fun. She has written two anthologies Molt and The Serpents Rattle and has a podcast with her sister Alexandra Hodge called Call Your Sister Podcast. ALEX - Alexandra Hodge is a single mom working in the non-profit sector. Together they established a podcast that centers conversations among related and unrelated sisters on topics of motherhood, sisterhood, Latinidad, feminism and sexuality. Their desire is to create a community where women uplift and support each other in all facets of womanhood.

Wine: El Potrillo Pinot Noir, 2017 by Honrama Cellars BIO: Joshua Santiago is a barber from North Philadelphia that provides free haircuts for the homeless. He grew up in a family that either sold drugs, did drugs, or both. He has been able to turn his life around after spending much of his youth in and out of incarceration. His grew up in a home where both of his parents were addicts and his mother has been homeless his life thus far due to drug addition. When he found the opportunity, he ran with it and founded Empowerment Cuts, a nonprofit which allows Josh to go into area of extreme homelessness and cut hair for free. Josh believes that being able to provide a free service to someone that couldn't afford it should mean more then actually receiving money for it. They are working on converting a 32 foot mobile home into a mobile barber with the help of GoFundMe and those who contributed to raise over $50,000. Instagram

Wine: Seis Soles Red Blend BIO: As a young Latina woman, I have many times experienced first hand the daily difficulties that woman face and the struggles they go through when climbing the corporate ladder. My name is Diana, I am from Medellín Colombia and that used to be my reality, just like it probably is for many of you around the world. Only recently I understood the importance of inner strength, self-esteem, answering the call to help others and most importantly female empowerment. We can only nourish the world with our gifts when we have found them within us, and we can only find them when we believe that they exist. Now that I have discovered them I realized that my true vocation is to serve as the vehicle and channel to give that same confidence to as many women as possible. Website Instagram

Wine: La Granja 360 (A Vegan Wine) BIO: Daisy Romero is the founder and owner of El Cholos Kid, a line of purses and bags that are weaved from recycled plastic with care and love, showcasing the beauty of Mexican traditions through traditional weaving perfected through generations. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elcholoskid/ Popshop Live passcode: baaags

Wine: 2020 Seis Soles White Blend BIO: Meg Medina is a Newbery award-winning and New York Times best-selling author who writes picture books, as well as middle grade and young adult fiction. Her works have been called “heartbreaking,” “lyrical” and “must haves for every collection.” When she’s not writing, Meg serves on the Advisory Committee for We Need Diverse Books, the grassroots organization working to produce and promote literature that reflects and honors the lives of all young people. She also works on community projects that support girls, Latinx youth, and/or literacy. She is a board member of the Library of Congress Literacy Awards, a faculty member of Hamline University’s Masters of Fine Arts in Children’s Literature. Meg lives with her family in Richmond, Virginia. Website: https://megmedina.com/ Instagram

Wine: RG|NY White Merlot BIO: Asante Sefa-Boakye, aka, Santé Prince is a local Hip-Hop Artist, Musician, Educator, Mentor, Coach & Philanthropist from San Diego, CA. He has spent the majority of his creative career performing at venues such as the Music Box, House of Blues, the Observatory opening for acts such KRS-One, Slum Village, Black Star, & many others. His passion & performance have found him featured on NBC, both NY and LA Weekly, and several news outlets across the world. His experience has brought him to become the co-founder of his local performing company "Hip-Hop At The Spot" in 2019. Additionally, he has also lived, competed & performed internationally throughout Europe, Spain & Brazil with Water Polo. He now credits his Greatest accomplishment as creating the first Ever Water Polo League and Program in his Homeland of West Africa, Ghana. It is his hope & dream to encourage and inspire as many Africans, African-Americans, & all people of color to engage in a lifestyle of aquatic health & wellness, as well as in Water Safety. Through sport & music, Santé Prince aims to Unite and bring the world closer together. As Aquatics & Water Polo in Ghana continue to thrive, Asante now travels back and forth between his San Diego & African Homes to raise funds & awareness for his newly created non-profit "Black Star Polo".

Wines: 2016 Encanto Pinot Noir & 2015 Encanto Estate Cabernet Sauvignon BIO: Enrique Lopez, Founder and Proprietor of Encanto Vineyards was born in the small Pueblo of El Espiritu, Michoacán México in 1961. As a child Enrique grew up learning his ancestral craft of cultivating agricultural land. He was eleven years old when he first came to America with his family and farmed garlic in the fields of Nevada. That same year he attended St Helena Elementary School while staying with his brother Jesus in Napa Valley. Today Enrique has built his successful vineyard management company farming wine grapes for Shafer, Ballentine, Gallo, and Donum Estate Vineyards. Enrique and his wife Ligia produce several hundred cases of wine a year of their family brand, Encanto Vineyards. Although, Enrique held his agricultural family history in high regard it was important to him that he received his degree in Chemical Engineering. Enrique graduated from the University of Morelia Michoacán in 1986. He continued to keep one foot in agriculture returning to America that same year and settled with family in Napa Valley. He was hired by Warren Winiarski of Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars as a lab technician. In 1987, he accepted a job at Erickson Environmental utilizing his engineering skills. In 2000 Enrique returned to the wine industry and founded, Servin- Lopez Vineyard Management Company. At twenty-two years old, Enrique never forgot a promise to return to Napa and make wine after randomly opening an encyclopedia where he read Napa Valley was a world class grape growing region. Enrique’s promise came true in 2008 when bottling his first vintage of Encanto Vineyards, Cabernet Sauvignon from Rutherford. Website: https://www.encantovineyards.com/ Instagram

Wine: Herencia del Valle, Merlot 2013 BIO: Born in Brazil to parents from Colombia and Bolivia, Juan Medina immigrated to the United States at a young age. He was raised by a single mother and graduated from the University of Delaware with a degree in Economics. He also has an MBA from the University of Chicago. He worked for Amazon for eight years prior to launching Lalo in 2020. Website: lalo.app Instagram

Wine: Seis Soles White Blend BIO: Luz works as a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Consultant. She is a sought-after emotional intelligence expert, speaker and consultant. Through her business, EQ Refined, Luz offers businesses and organizations ways to increase their employees Awareness and Emotional Intelligence in the workplace by attaining self-directing tools, strategies, and training. She uses her proprietary G.A.I.N methods to help clients, institutions and organizations unlock the struggles to engage and retain top talent and high performers. The lack of communication and Emotional Intelligence within the workplace leave a gap in, not just communication, but overall performance. By providing resources and practical steps to enhance individuals' interpersonal and team dynamic skills, EQ Refined raises a company’s competitive advantage, maintaining their overall goal of retention of top talent and increased engagement, creativity, and momentum forward together. Luz currently holds a seat as a Board Member of Project Innovate Newark, which is focused on designing and implementing educational programs for students in Newark, New Jersey by developing curriculums in growing fields, engaging the students, and generating professional opportunities for them.

Wine: Trader Joe's Pinot Noir Reserve, 2016 Bio: Veronica was born in Ensenada and has had the opportunity to live on both sides of the border. She has worked in the hospitality industry for over 20 years and uses her binational experience to curate tours through Valle de Guadalupe, the premier wine country of Mexico, located in Baja California. Through her work with her company All About Wine tasting, she also brings Baja to San Diego with Baja Wine Tastings to celebrate birthdays, client appreciation events, and more. Her private wine trips to Valley de Guadalupe allow her to collaborate with other professionals and for day or weekend getaways. Instagram

Wine: LIBERTÉ, Cabernet Sauvignon Paso Robles 2017 BIO: Mozo Cruz is an Afro Dominicano, born and raised in Brooklyn NYC. He is a father, husband and person who wants to make the world a better place. He is on a mission to turn toxic masculinity into healing masculinity one conversation at a time. Instagram

Wine: 2019 Pinot Noir, Fathia Wines As the host of The Wine & Chisme Podcast, I ask people to share their journey with me. The good. The Bad. The ugly. But I can't expect people to share the various facets of their journey with me if I am unwilling to share mine. As a self-diagnosed eternal optimist, I let that optimism turn into toxic positivity. Once I admitted how scared I was to myself, everything turned around. This episode has been one of the hardest episodes I've recorded and I hope that you find hope in struggle like I did. Website Instagram TikTok

Wine: Scielo NY Tinto 2014 by RG|NY Wines BIO: Born and raised in Los Angeles, Vicky Loza is a Mexican-American entrepreneur, ISSA certified personal trainer and fitness expert who believes that movement can change your life. Since starting her wellness journey in 2013, she has committed herself to a life led by health and fitness. Vicky’s dedication and perseverance have led to her hosting a nationwide, sold-out #VTFCBOOTCAMP tour in major cities that started in 2018, designing and selling thousands of online workout programs during the pandemic, organizing a local charity event to celebrate over fifty Latina small business owners from a diverse array of countries and give back to local Latinx street vendors, and providing countless free resources and content for Black and Brown communities of all fitness levels. Using a combination of Bodybuilding and HIIT style training, Vicky is on a mission to empower people to focus on self-love, health and movement - no matter what size and age they are, or stage of life they’re in. Her unapologetic attitude combined with an encouraging, structured style of coaching have helped her motivate and grow a community of over 100,000 across Instagram and TikTok. Website: https://vickythefitchick.com/ Instagram TikTok

Wines: RG|NY, White Merlot 2018 Scielo NY, Tinto 2019 Scielo NY, Sparkling Riesling 2019 BIO: RG|NY is a family of winemakers with a deep regard for their heritage. Their Mexican roots bring a unique perspective to their business. They value their family's tradition of wine-making and aim to foster the Rivero González legacy as they enter this new chapter. Maria Rivero González is the CEO of RG|NY and RG|MX and believes the most important thing she has learned about the vineyards to become more sustainable is to, "Work the land. Care for the land day in, day out. Add organic material to the ground and keep the vines healthy in a preemptive way is the best way to have a sustainable wine." Website Instagram

Wine: Vesa O Reserva, 2020 Organic Rosé, D.O. Valle de Rapel Chile BIO: Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Julissa Prado is the Founder & CEO of Rizos Curls, a clean hair care line aimed at embracing and celebrating the beauty of curls, coils and waves everywhere! After years of making her own curly cocktail and being the “curl whisperer” within her community, Julissa decided to launch her own hair care line Rizos Curls. The result is a line of products made with quality natural ingredients that works across a variety of curly hair textures. The brand has amassed a global following of #RizosReinas, becoming a favorite among the curly hair community, shipped to over 57 countries and available at Target, Ulta Beauty and Sally Beauty Mexico! Julissa is a leading force in the beauty industry with award wins as one of Cosmopolitan’s 2021 The New C-Suite Winner and named Entrepreneur of the Year in 2020 by Beauty Independent. Julissa is also an active national speaker with speaking roles at Harvard University, The Girlboss Rally, Create & Cultivate, the U.S. Department of State for The United Nations, TED, among others. She also proudly organizes curated events and resources centered on entrepreneurship, including the Rizos Curls Small Business Summit and JEFACON, a collaboration with Smashbox Cosmetics. Julissa holds a Masters in Business from Wake Forest University, is an alumni of UCLA, and has held corporate leadership positions at Nestlé. Website Rizos Instagram Julissa Instagram

This episode is a first and doesn't feature a wine but Mocel Mezcal! BIO: Rosalinda Mendoza is CEO and Co-Founder of Mocel Mezcal, an e-commerce company that delivers ultra-premium artisanal mezcales to your home to create a shared tasting experience. Rosalinda was born and raised in rural Washington to farmworker immigrants from Michoacán, Mexico. Between growing up in the farmlands of Washington State and visiting her grandparents in rural Michoacán, she understood and appreciated the hard work of cultivating and making real food and beverages. Rosalinda and her sister co-founded Mocel Mezcal, which crafts mezcales from Michoacán using 400-year-old artisanal methods with two ingredients – agave and water. Prior to venturing into entrepreneurship, Rosalinda held roles in management and marketing for various organizations including IBM, Starbucks and the Washington State Farmworker Housing Trust, a non-profit working to improve housing conditions for families in rural Washington. Rosalinda also continues to play an active role as mentor in FOSTERing MBA Access, a program she co-founded as an MBA student to recruit students of color and women into UW’s highly ranked MBA program. Rosalinda has an MBA from the University of Washington and a B.A. in Economics from Whitman College. Rosalinda and her boot-wearing, bull-riding husband enjoy spending time in the Yakima Valley, hanging out at rodeos with family and expanding their mezcal collection. Instagram

Wine: Fathia Wines, 2019 Carneros Valley Pinot Noir BIO: Sergio Ortega is on a personal mission to help everybody be mindfully intune with not only themselves, but also with their surroundings. His purpose is to consult the minds of all those willing to take a load of stress off of their plates through breathing techniques, mindful exercises, & I AM affirmations. These mindful techniques will help you speak positivity into your existence and the existence of others! #WINEFULNESS Website: https://winefulness.org Instagram

Wine: 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon, St. Helena, Vinos Unidos BIO: Vinos Unidos came together as a group of friends and neighbors who love wine. They believe in supporting their friends and family and go even further to support our community by creating scholarships for college students pursuing degrees in enology, viticulture and culinary arts. They choose the name, Vinos Unidos or United Wines, to show their connection with wine and each other and to highlight our diverse backgrounds. They hail from Chile, Mexico and the U.S.A.

Wine: 2019 Pinot Noir, Fathia Wines BIO: Rebecca Contreras is the author of Lost Girl – From the Hood to the White House to Millionaire Entrepreneur, which recounts her journey from becoming a welfare-dependent teenage mother to advising a sitting president, to driving a successful 100-person company. Rebecca is a social and business entrepreneur who spent nearly twelve years with the George W. Bush legacy, first in Texas as his Director of HR then in DC in the White House as a Commissioned Officer supporting the Presidential transition. She started her fifteen-year service in government in a welfare-to-work program for Texas icon Ann Richards and achieved tremendous heights in her success. Website Instagram

Wine: 2018 Sauvignon Blanc, Herencia Del Valle BIO: Jorge Narvaez is a father of 3, fatherhood case manager and content creator. For the past couple of years he has been active on and offline to spread his message of Family, Community, Art, Music and most importantly Fatherhood! Instagram

Wine: Armitage Wines, 2018 Pinot Noir BIO: Karina Mora is a professional photographer, speaker, and podcaster devoted to helping people reclaim their cultural legacies. She elevates her native Mexican culture through photography and recently launched guided trips with her to Mexico. Her podcast Elevating la Cultura features stories from first and second-generation Latinas who are working hard, pursuing their passions, and pouring their positive efforts and benefits into the next generations.

Wine: Scielo NY 2018 Tinto BIO: Eva Melgarejo is a Latina Loan Officer dedicated to helping others from the Latiné community achieve the American dream! Her passion is to educate families and help them build wealth for the generations to come. She's been able to help over 200 families in the last 4 years, 98% Latinos! Instagram

Wine: Fathia Wines, 2019 Rosé BIO: Maria Alquicira was born and raised in Mexico where her curiosity for art started. She then studied Arts and Culture in Rome and is currently living in Dallas. Passionate about art and businesses she has developed professionally in the arts and culture sphere through her art practice and in business through her job at one of the biggest movie theater companies in the world. This project is all about a determination to set her life purpose to make art part of our daily lives. Website Instagram

Wine: Cramoisi Vineyards, Pinot Noir 2018 BIO: Christine Vega-Perez was born in Pennsylvania and is of Mexican and Guatemalan decent. She is an RN and Life Coach who has worked in the healthcare setting since 2007 and holds a Master’s of Science in Nursing in Healthcare Systems Management. Being in the healthcare industry for nearly 15 years, she has gained a lot of experience in quality improvement, which is an integrated part of nursing and healthcare - an industry that is always striving to improve because they deal with people’s lives. That got her thinking – why not apply the strategies she's learned to the most important industry of them all – our personal lives? She found herself utilizing these tools more and more because let’s face it, being an adult requires taking risks. We have to make decisions. Important decisions. Stressful decisions. Difficult decisions. And then we can only hope that our choices bring us happiness – however that may look for you. Christine recently moved to Jacksonville, Florida with her Dominican husband and her two boys that keep her on her toes!

Wine: Lagunilla Optimus Rioja, Spain, 2016 BIO: Bianca Alba is a proud first-generation Latina from Cochabamba, Bolivia. She currently resides in San Juan, Puerto Rico and works as a Public Health Analyst for HRSA (the Health Resources and Service Administration Branch). #TeamPublicHealth She is the voice and creator behind the podcast titled, “This Latina Travels!” A travel podcast through the eyes of a First Gen Latina sharing all her travel experiences first hand! As a little girl, living in a single family home, trips/vacations were just a dream so this podcast is more than Bianca just telling you about her experiences, but it’s dreams becoming a reality! Her goal with this podcast is to break barriers so more women who look like Bianca will travel the world too!

Wine: Jose Wine Caves 2015 Mourvedre BIO: Brandi is the Founder of the Operation Growth Institute, a Global Transformational Learning Center where people can accept, heal, grow, and transform into the next iteration of their personal and professional best. For over twenty years, Brandi has honed her skill as a strategist, wellness expert, and coach. She helps clients identify their own solutions and specializes in coaching clients through her signature 12 steps to realize transformational growth. She examines how the barriers of generational baggage, fatherlessness, sexual trauma, single mother/fatherhood, racial identity and bias, and failure keep her clients from living their best life and helps her clients determine the next step. Brandi is a natural coach who has mentored and guided young leaders, honing her skills by providing personal and professional strategic support while leading young professional teams. She is also a certified Holistic Health Counselor by the International Board of African Thinkers, Priest and Healers, a certified Fatherless Daughters Advocate, and a student of the MMS coaching method. Brandi has studied with the Aspen Institute, Kellogg Foundation, Zuckerberg Institute, Iyanla Vanzant and the God Squad, Queen Afua, and Dr. Llaila Afrika. She studied for the International Coaching Federation accreditation with Dr. Cherie Carter-Scott. Website: https://brandirichardthompson.com/ Instagram Facebook LinkedIn

AD: This Episode is Sponsored by Promised Land on ABC. This sexy, sun-drenched, Sonoma-set drama tells the story of two intertwined but warring Latine families vying for land, power and control over the ultra-competitive California wine business. It's the perfect blend of passion, seduction and ambition. Wine: Fathia Wines 2019 Rose of Pinot Noir BIO: Pedro Rodriguez is the Owner and Winemaker of Fathia Wines. He was born and raised in Michoacan, Mexico and immigrated to the United States with his family at the age of six. His dad worked nearly 30 years in the vineyards of Napa Valley and he, along with his three older brothers continue to be part of the wine industry in both Napa and Sonoma. After starting in the wine industry while he attended college, he decided to pursue other interests from 2008-2014 but returned to the industry with curiosity and wanted to better appreciate the industry that had allowed his and his family to thrive. In 2019, Pedro became fascinated with the idea of crafting his own wine and producing under his own label. When the opportunity came to acquire Fathia Wines, Pedro along with his wife, Jenny jumped at the opportunity and continue to carry the torch for first-generation Mexican-American winemakers. Website Instagram

Wine: RG|NY 2018 White Merlot BIO: Alejandra Rojas, is Finance professional, and Money Coach helping modern millenials to be confident with money and create a strong financial foundation with ease. After reaching bottom, when a money burnout re-activated an old sickness threatening her life again, Alejandra designed a method to manage personal finances from within that protects the person’s essence and helps them create wealth. She has since been dedicated to helping others see money in a whole different way, so it’s no longer a barrier to thrive and reach happiness through her coaching, podcast and various public speaking events. Instagram Website

Wine: Seis Soles Sol Tierra 2019 Red Blend BIO: Jasmine Star is a photographer and business strategist from Newport Beach, California. She dropped out of law school and became an internationally recognized creative entrepreneur, later to become the founder of Social Curator, a social media marketing membership for business owners. Harnessing her chutzpah and hustle, Jasmine empowers entrepreneurs to build a brand, market it on social media, and create a life they love. Some days you'll find her featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur, and INC magazine, other days you'll find her going Live on Instagram, hosting Ask Me Anything sessions on Facebook, and empowering business owners to build a life they love on her podcast, The Jasmine Star Show. Website: jasminestar.com Social Curator Website Instagram Facebook TikTok

Wine: Solorio Family Wines Cabernet Sauvignon, 2016

Wine: Javier San Pedro Rioja, Tempranillo 2019 BIO: Francesca is a Mexican- American Fashion and lifestyle blogger born and raised in California. She’s been blogging for over ten years now and works full time sharing her styling and photography tips with her community. She also a huge lover of interior decor and recently started a home decor company with her husband called Casa Brixe which they started during the Pandemic. She has always wanted to find a way to highlight Mexico and show a part of it that a lot of people may not be familiar with. They were able to get in contact with a female run collective in Oaxaca that makes handmade wool rugs and started importing them to sell in the US. She now works full time running both her blogging business and her rug company. Her dream is to eventually grow into a larger home decor company that not only sells rugs, but also showcases other pieces from artisans all over Mexico. Website Casa Brixe Instagram Frank Vinyl Instagram

Wine: Aldina Vineyards, Chardonnay BIO: Cadena is the Spanish word for chain. It is their belief that women are not bound by societal chains or expectations of the roles they should play in the modern age. When women unite like chains, they are stronger, powerful and more resilient. Cadena also happens to be the street name of the home in Mexico, in which owners, Mabel and Alejandra took their first steps and the home they left at the age of six and eight years old, when their mother immigrated to the United States. Their name is a symbol of how life has changed and how moving from Calle Cadena to the United States has given them a world of opportunities. They want to share that opportunity with women who may feel bound by the expectations their family, friends or society has placed on them. Working with women artisans and sharing their talents is a revolution of love, empowerment and the journey towards self-realization. Website: https://www.cadenacollective.com Instagram TikTok

Wine: 2018 Cramoisi Vineyards Pinot Noir BIO: Pedro Chavez is an immigration attorney who grew up in Brownsville, TX and now lives in Tijuana, MX. He is the Founder and Executive Director of Fear of Return, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that helps find refugees attorneys. They are dedicated to finding novel solutions to the refugee crisis through universal representation of asylum seekers. Fear of Return is currently developing a scalable refugee/asylee database that can grow with the needs of asylum seekers and immigration service nonprofits, pro-bono and paid attorneys. The goal of which is the reduction of overall refugee/asylee representation rates. Additionally, Fear of Return creates original and individualized fundraising campaigns to raise funds for individual asylum seekers, where funds are allocated via hashtag performance monitoring. Feel free to reach out for more information - [email protected]. Website: www.fearofreturn.org Instagram

Wine: Aldina Vineyards 2019 Chardonnay BIO:Marissa López is Professor of English and Chicana/o Studies at UCLA, researching Chicanx literature from the 19th century to the present with an emphasis on 19th century Mexican California. She has written two books: Chicano Nations (NYU 2011) is about nationalism and Chicanx literature from the early-1800s to post-9/11; Racial Immanence (NYU 2019) explores uses of the body and affect in Chicanx cultural production. She recently completed a year-long residency at the Los Angeles Public Library as a Scholars & Society fellow with the ACLS where she worked to collaboratively develop a mobile app, “Picturing Mexican America,” that uses geodata to display images of Mexican California relevant to a user’s location. Professor López is past Vice President of the Latina/o Studies Association and the past chair of the Modern Language Association’s prize committee for the best book in Chicana/o and Latina/o Literary and Cultural Studies. She is also past chair of both the MLA’s Executive Committee on Chicana/o Literature and its Committee on the Literature of People of Color of the US and Canada, and a past Director of UCLA’s Chicano Studies Research Center as well as past chair of UCLA’s Committee on Diversity and Equal Opportunity. Website: https://www.picturingmexicanamerica.com/ Instagram Marissa's Instagram

Wine: Reserva Rosé, Valle de Raphael, Chile BIO: Originally from Cuba, Leysa Carrillo is a vibrant hair colorist and Curly hair expert based in Las Vegas, Nevada with over 12 years of experience. She is a nationally recognized industry leader for her hair color transformations on textured hair and continues to pave the way with her artistic flair and creative techniques. As the founder of Forever Curls education and the Global Humanitarian Tour, Leysa is passionate about taking education to the next level in areas such as hair care, trending styles, and the curl movement. When she's not at her salon working with clients, she appears as a respected educator and panelist around the country at some of the most influential beauty industry events and shows. With viral content featured on popular publications such as the INSIDER, Leysa has curated a strong social media presence and strives to use her platform to fuse creativity with technique and inspire others through engaging education. Leysa’s contagious smile and energetic personality has carried her through a successful career with global recognition. She was nominated for the American Influence Award in 2019 and 2017 and has been named Modern Salon’s 2017 Top 100. Additionally, Leysa is the first female to win two Behind The Chair #OneShot awards in one night. Her creative projects inspired by Lacroix and Halo Top Ice Cream led to the publication and features in Allure Magazine, inTouch National, Daily Mail, Yahoo News, Seventeen Magazine, Nylon Magazine, Delish, and Pop Sugar. Today, Leysa is a Brand Ambassador for both Redken and Mizani helping to bring her passion for textured hair to stylists across the country. Leysa Hair & Makeup Instagram Forever Curls Academy My American Vida

Wine: 2019 Aldina Vineyards Chardonnay BIO: Leticia Amaya is the first out of 9 children to attend college and earn a graduate degree. She grew up in Watts, Ca. She is a New York City educator with over 15 years of experience looking to change the world one child at a time. She specializes in teaching reading intervention and working with bilingual children. She is passionate about anything literacy and providing parents with the tools they need to support their children at home. Leticia is married with a son, and since having her son, started blogging and writing about everything education and parenting. Recently, her and her family and made the big move back to California where she is working towards launching her tutoring business and working at a local school. She is focused on the career mom and what does that look like during COVID, as well as teaching race and equity to elementary children. Instagram

Wine: Solorio Family Wines 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon BIO: Liz Hernandez is a Mexican American Emmy-nominated television personality and journalist. As a former radio host and entertainment reporter for Access Hollywood, E! News and MTV, her career is built on words, but no chapter is more meaningful than the one she is currently living with WORDAFUL, a video and live event series that focuses on the importance of how we communicate with others and ourselves. Through WORDAFUL, Liz created a new form of storytelling that she hopes will encourage and connect us to the power of words. Liz believes we can create new realities for ourselves by changing our internal and external dialogue, ones that support more meaningful relationships and lives. “Our thoughts and words from yesterday are what make up our lives." Website: https://wordaful.com Instagram Wordaful Instagram

Wine: Herencia Del Valle Sauvignon Blanc BIO: Yazmin Castañeda was born in Los Angeles, California and grew up in Tijuana, Mexico. This unique experience allowed her to enjoy a bicultural upbringing which helped shape her admiration for her culture and heritage while embracing the opportunities in America. Her unique upbringing was full of challenges that she would later learn to embrace as gifts from the universe. All of these experiences in life taught her the lesson of hope, faith, and the power of a positive mindset. Fast forward 40 years, and she is proud to say she left corporate life to return to the person she was always meant to be. Her role as founder of Origin Mexico is much more of a CEO, it’s about honoring the sacrifices made by your family so you may be part of something that is bigger than yourself. Website: https://originmexico.com Instagram

Wine: Javier San Pedro, Tempranillo Rioja 2018 BIO: Kristin Quiroz Bayona is a podcasting expert who teaches business owners the strategies and action steps for creating a highly engaged podcast in order to turn listeners into customers. She is the Executive Producer and Host of two podcasts, Explorer in You and Podcast & Amplify. As a Latina, she believes it's time for women of color to grab the mic and share their stories and she uses her platform to help them do that. Ms. Quiroz Bayona is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Cruz with a B.A. in Literature and a Minor in Art History. She has over 15 years of experience in corporate communications. Website: Instagram