Skurnik Unfiltered

No reservations required—listening to these conversations feels like you've been invited to pull up a chair and share a glass with some of the most remarkable dinner guests, giving you a level of access that was previously gatekept for those in the know. Skurnik Unfiltered is a weekly podcast that curates deep conversations with some of the finest winemakers, distillers, and industry leaders about the world of wines, spirits and hospitality. The show is hosted by Harmon Skurnik of Skurnik Wines & Spirits, a leading importer and distributor of the finest terroir-driven beverages crafted at a human scale. Episodes are guest-hosted by sommeliers and experts in the subfields of wine, spirits, sake, and specialty beverages. Skurnik Unfiltered is recorded at Skurnik Wines & Spirits headquarters in the Flatiron District of New York City.

Skurnik Unfiltered is a arts podcast hosted by Skurnik Wines & Spirits, with 37 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Skurnik Wines & Spirits hosts Skurnik Unfiltered, a arts show with 37 episodes published.

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  Episode #37

  Tasting Lebanon with Sami Ghosn of Massaya

  Aug 16, 202627 minS1

  "Massaya means twilight. It's 'el masa.' When you are walking in the street in a village in Lebanon or in Beirut, you say 'masa el-kher,' evening of grace, good wishes, to a passing by person." – Sami Ghosn The story of Lebanese wine is a story of perpetual revival. One of the oldest wine regions in the world, this well-protected and resource-rich section of the Levant has been producing and trading wine for millennia—as a global currency by the Phoenicians, in secret by persecuted Christians under Ottoman rule, and in spite of violent times today. Sami Ghosn relies on his ancestors to sustain his beloved culture. After fleeing the outbreak of civil war in 1975, he returned to the Beqaa Valley in the early 1990s where he started distilling arak and selling it from his parents' pharmacy. Eventually, he and his brother founded the iconic Massaya estate, which helped propel the latest chapter of Lebanese wine revival. In this week's episode, Sami supplements a lineup of his wines with tidbits of forgotten history and memorable encounters with Anthony Bourdain and the former prime minister of Lebanon. Automatically generated transcripts often make mistakes. Find a corrected version here . Skurnik Wines & Spirits Follow us on Instagram

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  Episode #36

  Graham Pirtle and Young Stowe of Unified Ferments

  Aug 9, 202637 minS1

  “We use fermentation to help you taste tea in a different way, to refract it into something that can live in the same category as wine or higher-end spirits, where you’re tasting this storytelling that tea can do—of places, of regions, of people around the world.” – Graham Pirtle Fermentation can do many things. It can preserve our produce, rise our bread, give us a buzz, and multiply subtle flavors. That last function is the one that most fascinates Graham Pirtle and Young Stowe, the co-founders of Unified Ferments . From their 4-person facility in Brooklyn, they seek to draw out the hard-to-get-to flavors existing in thoughtfully sourced, single-origin teas through a kombucha-style fermentation process. Unlike commercial kombuchas that use fermentation to augment added fruit flavors, Graham and Young use fermentation as a means of translating or recontextualizing the core ingredient itself, without the interference of alcohol: tea. In this episode, they interrogate the overlooked terms of “kombucha” and “tea,” discuss the key decisions that differentiate their ferments from any other product in the US today, and survey the future of the blooming category of NA craft beverages. Ferments tasted in this episode: Wen Shan Bao Zhong Soba Rhododendron Lapsang Souchong Automatically generated transcripts often make mistakes. Find a corrected version here . Skurnik Wines & Spirits Follow us on Instagram

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  Episode #35

  Vittorio Zoppi of Antica Torino

  Aug 2, 202626 minS1

  "Vermouth rosso is like the skeleton in a human body. It keeps the Boulevardier, the Manhattan, and the Negroni cocktails standing. Our goal was to produce Vermouth di Torino, which is the peak of the pyramid of vermouths." – Vittorio Zoppi Growing up in Genoa, Vittorio Zoppi was born with an instinctive appreciation for good food and wine and a passion for all things Italian. As a young man, he made a career out of connecting Italian wine estates with American importers, and by the mid-2010s, savvy American drinkers were looking for craft spirits and wine-based aperitivi that communicate a sense of place the same way fine wines do. Vito jumped at the opportunity to combine his love for northern Italian flavors with his extensive network of American beverage professionals, and with its flagship Vermouth di Torino , Antica Torino was born. To date, the lineup has grown to include historic Piemontese classics such as Vino Chinato , Amaro , Genepì , and Genziana . In this week's episode, Uncle Vito, as he's affectionately known at Skurnik, discusses his journey from selling IBM software in Milan, to slinging Nebbiolo in San Francisco, to developing his uncompromising recipes for Antica Torino. He explains the appellation's rules for producing Vermouth di Torino IGP and shares the cocktail he's been obsessed with lately. Automatically generated transcripts often make mistakes. Find a corrected version here . Skurnik Wines & Spirits Follow us on Instagram

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  Episode #34

  How Gaetana Jacono pioneered the New Sicily wine movement

  Jul 26, 202620 minS1

  "Wine is a culture of the people. This Frappato represents a link between the past and the future." – Gaetana Jacono Today’s guest is Gaetana Jacono, the woman who pioneered a new style of Sicilian wine in the province of Ragusa. Before she conquered the market with her perfumed, elegant, and enticing wines from Valle dell’Acate , Sicilian wines were typically bold, oaky, Nero d’Avola-based wines pushing 15% alcohol. Her terroir revealed a more delicate and playful expression that redefined expectations and captured the attention of the wine world. In this episode, Gaetana joins Skurnik’s Italian Portfolio Director, Mark Fornatale, to discuss the evolution of this misunderstood grape, from its days as an important Sicilian export in the 1800s to its revival and worldwide acclaim among today’s curious and open-minded drinkers. Automatically generated transcripts often make mistakes. Find a corrected version here . Skurnik Wines & Spirits Follow us on Instagram

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  Episode #33

  Climate Change in the Kamptal: Andreas Wickhoff of Weingut Bründlmayer

  Jul 19, 202626 minS1

  “From an historical point of view, every century has always had a crisis, but wine has always survived. Wine culture will always survive. We still have a bright future ahead. There is no doubt.” – Andreas Wickhoff Climate change has arrived, and weird things are happening in Europe. Hailstorms in March. Bud break in October. Deadly flooding during harvest. Despite it all, Andreas Wickhoff's radiant optimism is rooted in an historical perspective, that wine must survive. At the helm of Austria's iconic Kamptal estate, Weingut Bründlmayer , Andreas directs the precision farming and careful winemaking across classic Riesling and Grüner Veltliner, top-tier Sekt sparkling wine, and refined Pinot Noir and Zweigelt. In this week's episode, Andreas discusses the sobering realities of modern farming alongside a changing climate, the growing popularity of Sekt, and the creative ways the Bründlmayer estate continues to lead the Kamptal forward. Automatically generated transcripts often make mistakes. Find a corrected version here . Skurnik Wines & Spirits Follow us on Instagram

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