This interview is with Colt Deitrick. In this interview, Colt speaks about his background, growing up in a small town in western Kentucky before moving to Illinois, studying jazz piano and audio engineering in college, and eventually finding his way into the hospitality industry, where he discovered a passion for food and beverage.

Next, he discusses his journey to Newport and Local Ocean Restaurant, starting as a bartender and working his way up to running the beverage program, including developing cocktails and focusing on technique and high-quality ingredients.

Colt talks about his approach to creativity and collaboration, including working with different companies on branded wines, creating cocktail kits during COVID, and experimenting with new ideas that customers may not have experienced before.

This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Local Ocean Restaurant in Newport, Oregon on February 2, 2026.

This interview is with Trevor Smith. In this interview, Trevor speaks about his work in wine production around the world, including stints at Antica Terra in Oregon, Screaming Eagle in Napa, and elsewhere. He talks about what initially drew him to wine and the enjoyable hard work of wine production.

Later he takes us through the places he has worked, including Champagne, England, and as a consulting winemaker in California. He talks about the challenges and successes of his career, and of finding his way back to his home state of Oregon.

He talks about his work with his longtime friend Andrew Riechers on various projects, including Oregon brands Audeant, Sacred Shores, and Archer, and about what he still hopes to accomplish in his winemaking career.

This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt in the Nicholson Library at Linfield University in McMinnville on January 27, 2026.

This interview is with Travis Culley, a Linfield grad and local wine industry veteran. In this interview, Travis talks about attending Linfield in the 90s, beginning to work at Nick’s Italian Cafe the week before he started his freshman year, and all his adventures since then.

Travis talks about being introduced to wine through Riesling while his dad was in the Air Force and his family lived in Germany. They later moved to Weston, OR near Pendleton, and Travis came to Linfield in 1990. The week before classes started, his roommate took him to Nick’s Italian Cafe to help clean up the kitchen. He ended up working there for the next 11 years.

Travis discusses his involvement with IPNC and how he ended up in the background of a very famous picture outside of Nick’s. During a dinner with dozens of influential winemakers sometime in the late 90s, everyone gathered outside the restaurant to take a picture, and Travis stood on a chair on the other side of the window to be included.

Later in the interview, Travis talks about going wine tasting at various local wineries on Thanksgiving and Memorial Day weekends to visit places that sold wine to Nick’s. It was through these tastings that he started working holiday weekends at Archery Summit and WillaKenzie, and for the last 27 years at Belle Pente Winery.

This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Linfield University’s Nicholson Library on January 26, 2026.

This interview is with Jackson Grom of Abbott Claim. In this interview, Jackson speaks about his decision to attend UC Davis and focus on wine, the research he did there, and how it started his career.

He then talks about his move to Oregon and his work for Results Partners, Lingua Franca, and a couple organic farms. He describes how much he learned about farming and viticulture, and about the skills he needed to develop quickly.

Later, he talks about joining Abbott Claim in 2025, how the work has gone so far, and what comes next. He also talks about how he evaluates a vineyard, and the work that goes into keep on top of the annual vineyard cycle.

This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Abbott Claim in Carlton on January 20, 2026.

This interview is with Ian Shapen and Leyla Ersan of Horse Devours. In this interview, Ian and Leyla talk about meeting at the University of Oregon, getting into the wine industry, and later starting their own label.

Leyla talks about growing up familiar with wine and becoming more interested during college. After graduating, she went to Day Wines for a tasting and loved it so much she asked if they were hiring. She now acts as the general manager there, completing a variety of tasks depending on what is needed.

Ian discusses attending the University of Oregon to get a degree in Digital Arts with a minor in Business. He met Leyla while at college and eventually joined her at Day Wines during harvest. In addition to now working at Antica Terra, he works as a freelance graphic designer.

Later in the interview, Ian and Leyla talk about starting their own label together, Horse Devours. Thanks to Day Wines, they have connections to fruit growers and are able to utilize the winemaking facilities onsite. They also talk about the delayed gratification of starting to see their wines available in stores and restaurants.

This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Day Wines in Dundee on January 17, 2026.

Phaedra is also a DJ, and treated us to a set during the interview. Here is the tracklist:

1. Rameses III - For Jose Maria

2. Ben Bondy - 미안해 with Sunny

3. Purelink - Looked Me Right In The Eye

4. Susumu Yokota - Tears of a Poet

5. Woob - Amoeba

6. 吉村弘 - To-Ki-Me-Ki (Heart Beats)

7. Priori - Segue

8. Steve Jansen & Richard Barbieri - Light Years

9. Priori - Like It Shouldn't

10. blu - Dubmarine

11. Mister Water Wet, Memotone, Ben Bondy, AV Moves, Concave - Hourglass

12. Saint Abdullah and Jason Nazary - Lost In Your Neck

13. Woob - Pondlife

14. 吉村弘 - Hi-Mi-Tsu (Secret) (Prieto Mix)

15. Ben Bondy feat. Opheliaxz - XO Salt Llif3

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This interview is with Phaedra Brucato of Optimum Volume Wines.

Phaedra talks about her background growing up in Seattle and Southern Oregon and moving around a lot. She discusses studying at Tufts University, earning her BA and BFA, living abroad in China, and originally wanting to pursue art. Phaedra also shares how living in Boston and working in fine dining led her to develop an interest in wine and wine training.

Phaedra discusses her path deeper into the wine industry, including moving back to the West Coast, working a harvest in 2015, and how hands-on experience helped her understand wine more fully. She talks about moving to Portland in 2016, working in sales and restaurants, relocating to Kansas to work in distribution centers in 2020, and eventually moving back to Seattle in 2022 where she became a wine director at a restaurant before coming back to Portland where she currently lives.

Later in the interview, Phaedra talks about her work with Optimum Volume Wines, her side career as a DJ, and even shares a fun fact about playing ambient music during the grapes fermentation. She also shares her interest in collaborating with other creatives and getting more involved in art moving forward.

This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at a maker space in Portland on January 15, 2026.

This interview is with Emily Howard of Hayward. In this interview, Emily talks about growing up in McMinnville, discovering wine, and helping to open restaurants in her hometown.

Emily talks about her first job in hospitality at Pizza Hut in McMinnville. She immediately fell in love with the fast-paced energy of the job and the variety of people she met and worked with.

Emily discusses becoming the wine buyer for El Gaucho in Portland. From this experience she began to focus on food and wine rather than restaurants in general. She spent some time working in London and Seattle before moving back to McMinnville and opening Thistle.

Later in the interview, Emily talks about meeting Kari Shaughnessy of Mac Market, and working together to open Hayward. Originally, Emily worked to design service protocols for the employees, and later she took on wine buying responsibilities as well.

This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Linfield University’s Nicholson Library on October 14, 2025.

This interview is with Taralyn and Cyler Varnum, with Varnum Vineyards.

Taralyn and Cyler talk about their early lives and the paths that led them into wine, including Cyler’s background in agriculture, studying abroad, and working in tasting rooms, as well as Taralyn’s journey as a chemist and longtime teacher before transitioning into the wine industry full time.

Next, they discuss their journey as a couple, moving across different states, starting a family, and balancing work, education and winemaking before eventually settling in Oregon and purchasing their vineyard property.

Taralyn and Cyler talk about building Varnum Vineyards, opening their tasting room, experimenting with non-alcoholic wine, creating family-friendly products, and their goals for the future of the winery.

This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Varnum Vineyards in Amity on January 12, 2026.