At the end of 2024, I began what I thought would be a four-week endeavor to learn a little bit about wine. I signed up for WSET Level 1, and for a month, I went to Binny’s Lincoln Park and learned the basics.
At the end of 2025, I received my WSET Level 3 certificate. I had not intended to commit so much time to my wine education, but as it turns out wine combines many of my favorite things; food and flavor, geography and culture, and, unironically, memorizing and learning (sorry, annoying I know).
At the start of 2026, I started my WSET Diploma, which I’m told will take anywhere from 18-months to three years to complete. We’ll see how much I love “memorizing and learning” in October of 2028.
I intend to be better about documenting this journey than I was the first three levels, for no other reason besides the fact that there is an ungodly amount of information to learn. I hope that in writing about wine to my friends and subscribers (who are mostly my friends), I will be better equipped to explain the material and pass the six exams. I plan not to bore you with the hyper-specific scientific processes (though malolactic conversion is, in fact, fascinating), but instead share my perspective on what I’m learning and how it applies to your life.
In the meantime, feel free to reach out for any pairing recommendations as several friends have already taken to doing.
In the spirit of a more wine content this year, here are a few of my favorite wine moments of 2025:
Burgundy, France
Burgundy (or Bourgogne as youll see on the label) really needs no introduction. It is la crème de la crème of wine. Immediately after turning in my Level 3 exam, I hopped on a plane to London for a two-week visit. As I am wont to do, I managed to squeeze in a trip to Paris, and in that, a trip to Burgundy. For a day, I had a tour guide take me to grand cru vineyards (some of the best in the world) and participate in several tastings. If you ever have the chance to visit, or to pick up a bottle from the region, you absolutely should.
Le Bon Georges (Paris, France)
This place is a scene, and it is expensive, but they have a phenomenal wine list and delicious food so it’s genuinely worth the hype. The steak au poivre is amazing, in spite of the waitress telling me, “bah you want the instagram dinner.“ Generally, most bistros I’ve been to in Paris have good wine, it’s France after all, but Le Bon Georges has bona fides as having the best wine list in France.
Easy Does It (Logan Square, Chicago)
Easy Does It is one of my favorite places to drink wine in Logan Square (see also: Webster’s Wine Bar and Deep Red Wine Merchants). Their backyard patio is a great place to sip on a funky red and snack on olives. My ideal summer evening is wine at Easy Does It, followed by Pizza at Middle Brow, which I have done on numerous occasions. I’d also give a notable mention to Middle Brow’s “Wine for Pizza,” which does in fact pair perfectly with their za.
St. John Bread and Wine (Marylebone, London)
The name really needs no further elaboration. Is there anything better in this world than wine and bread? Situated on a quiet, but perfect people-watching street, St. John is one of my favorite places to drink wine al fresco in London. Is their house wine life-changing? No, but it is very good when paired with their cheese and / or Madeleine platters.
Croteaux Vineyards (Long Island, New York)
This vineyard produces several perfectly fine rosés. I would not necessarily go here for the same reason that you might go to Gevrey-Chambertin, but I would go for a rosé flight, a good lobster roll, and some time at a vineyard with a very cool vibe. My friend Jessica and I went after a few days on Shelter Island and it was the perfect cherry on top to a summer weekend.
That’s all for now! Cheers!