Vinohead: Corkboard

When you’re multiple time zones and an ocean apart, sometimes it’s morning coffee & afternoon tea in place of wine for a virtual chat. Add in a stomach bug and travel exhaustion from both interviewer and interviewee this week, you’d think this might potentially be a laborious conversation. But with the lively Amelia Singer on the other end of the proverbial line, it was anything but. After the usual formalities, this convo quickly went into that familiar, giggly, old “wine friend” zone full of shared stories and ending with a “we’re doing drinks for real ASAP.”

Some of you may be familiar with the gregarious, wine-loving Brit from Instagram or Hulu’s The Wine Show, but let’s dive a little deeper… Splitting her time between the UK and LA, Amelia is an award-winning wine communicator and educator. She hosts tastings, runs various media projects, is a wine consultant, and speaker. Amelia, like any good VINOHEAD, considers wine to be a lens through which we can see the entire world. She’ll tell you it’s the social glue to bring people together. Her wine philosophy: Collaboration. Curation. Cross-Pollination. Creation. Connection. And she’s got both the educational chops and authenticity to back it all up. From recent chance encounters with Tom Cruise to a personal timeline tasting in the Barossa Valley, skip the tea and pour yourself a bowl of crunchy cornflakes and a glass of sparkling Vouvray for this read.

Describe the moment you knew wine was your path.

I was always surrounded by wine – not that my parents were alcoholics, my dad was just European. My father used to pass me small sips of wine at an early age and ask what I tasted. I remember when I was 10, I gave him the perfect description of the Viognier in his glass and he got tears in his eyes. I never thought I’d work in wine, but it was always a part of our family meals and life. When I went off to university in Dublin as a literature major, I figured my life would continue down the theatre and jazz path I was hoping to forge. But then I started helping to run the food and wine society where I loved getting to know all the local merchants, and ultimately started turning my friends’ beer, cheese and music nights into wine, cheese and music nights. Then one night towards the end of college I was asked by this guy, “What are you going to do with your life?” Somehow the conversation turned to wine – as it does – and I started talking passionately about wine, and how it was meant to be a life enhancer, not exclusive, like good music, food, conversation…and obviously bored, this guy said in a rather snotty way, “Why don’t you make it more inclusive then.” And so I called my father and told him how I thought I could put all my work in theatre and literature into wine – you need to read a room, you need to be able to communicate, tell a story, and ultimately set your ego aside to gain the audience’s trust. Thankfully, he was entirely supportive – and quite proud too.

What’s the wildest wine destination you’ve ever been? And the wine that stood out?

Well for wildest scenery there are two places that stand out and they couldn’t be more different. The Elqui Valley in Chile where people go for star and moon gazing and Pisco. It’s a dry desert with dramatic views and these really old bush vines. And from there it’s the Douro Valley in Portugal where it’s mountainous and most majestic. But for the wine it was the Barossa Valley in Australia. Unbeknownst to me, during Series 1 of The Wine Show, the producer had arranged a tasting with the fortified winery, Seppeltsfield, – a timeline of my life. We started by tasting a few younger fortified wines, then a wine from the year I was 21, which is when a giant projection of a picture of me at 21 was on the wall. It continued on with each wine being paired with corresponding pictures from my school years, my parents’ wedding, when my grandparents were born…we ended with a fortified wine from 1891. It was magical – the way wine carries over lifetimes, histories, and continues on. It’s truly a liquid time machine.

You can only keep one of these things with you – wine, music, or dogs – which do you choose?

Dogs. I love dogs. I grew up with dogs and they have always been a part of my family life. I don’t have one now with my travel schedule, but I borrow my sister’s dog all the time.

Do you have an embarrassing nickname?

I was called Meals at school, but that’s not that embarrassing. My mum calls me Mia Moozie and that’s kind of embarrassing. Then my dad, whose favorite meal is sausage and beans, affectionately calls my sister sausage and me ‘sack of baked beans’. I got the better end of that one.

What app can you not live without and why?

Well my Podcast app for sure, but then also the HOODFIT app is an amazing fitness app I use all the time. It’s high energy dance-inspired fitness in the Tracy Anderson style.

Have you ever played a prank on someone? If so, what?

I was all about the pranks growing up. I went to boarding school and lived with 17 girls – there were definitely pranks. You know invisible and disappearing ink, stink bombs etc. But one of my favorites was when I had been living in LA for a year, I went to Venice and found this fabulous clip-on piece of jewelry. My parents were on holiday in Singapore and hadn’t seen me yet. So knowing they stalk me on social, I put the clip on the top of my earlobe and posted on my social that I had been living in LA too long and got a new piercing. Now it was midnight in Singapore so I didn’t think they would see/respond right away. But no! I got a call about 30 mins later with my mum yelling, “What did you do?” It was hilarious – they are just too easy to wind up!

What was your favorite episode of The Wine Show?

There were so many – especially right before the pandemic. But one that stands out was an episode I was filming in New York where I met Jermaine Stone (@realwolfofwine) for a piece on pairing wine with Hip Hop. And while I love music, I didn’t know that much about Hip Hop, but Jermaine broke the music down in a way that I could then pair the wine right alongside him. It was exactly the kind of cross-pollination I love experiencing through wine – the kind that transcends. It’s all about the people in the end and it’s these types of tastings that make wine more inclusive to us all. Since then Jermaine and I have had the opportunity to team up for several wine and music tasting events – both live and virtual – and each time it opens this space to new wine lovers through music.

What’s your favorite way to destress?

If it’s not wine with girlfriends, because let’s be honest, that’s the best, then it’s exercise. If I’m finding I can’t get an answer to something or can’t quite work something out, exercise is where I go. It may not give me the answer, but it always gives me clarity.

Is there a place you’re a regular customer? Where?

Traveling like I do, it’s hard to be a regular anywhere, but in LA I’d have to say it’s Bar Covell or Heritage Fine Wines. And while I can’t afford it, I love going to Sunset Tower for drinks and live music. It’s just classic old school Hollywood. So I go for a few martinis, eat the bar nuts, and listen to jazz.

What music reminds you of your childhood?

I was brought up listening to so many different types of music. My father wanted to be a conductor, but my grandfather convinced him there was no money in it. My grandmother, on the other hand, was an opera singer who trained in Vienna. So, as you can imagine, both my grandmother (through my father) and my father had a music influence on my life – particularly through jazz and opera. My mother from California also had her music influence, but she was more on the rock side, like the Rolling Stones.

What are you most excited to be working on right now?

Right now I’m grateful that I get to work in a way that allows me to capitalize on the fact that wine is about culture. Whether it’s podcasts, documentaries, or other media projects, I get to make wine more relatable and inclusive and that to me is everything. I’m leaning more into that every day.

Describe your favorite wine in three words.

Silky. Full-bodied. Coquettish.

What do you love most about LA? And about the UK?

For LA it’s the creativity, the interesting people, the high-octane energy. There’s no idea that is too sky-high here. It’s enlivening.

And for the UK it’s kind of the opposite. I love the stability of England (and the sense of humor). But here things don’t change as fast or get too radical. There’s a sense of tradition, that European-lifestyle, and we all just carry-on. Frankly, I need both in my life.

Best – and most surprising – food and wine pairing you’ve had?

I did some filming earlier this week, and while I do off-piste tastings all the time, this one was totally surprising. I paired a bowl of Crunchy Nut Cornflakes with a tasty sparkling Vouvray. The fusion of flavors hit the spot – the apricot and baked apple of the Chenin was perfect with the honey nut flakes. I think it should be a new trend. But I would not advise this with milk.

Name a fashion accessory you can’t live without and the wine you’d pair with it.

My godmother’s ring. She had a big personality and was in a big brass brand. Do you know the Bond movie, Dr. No? Well that scene where Ursula Andress is in the iconic white bikini, well that was my godmother – no not in the white bikini – singing “Under the Mango Tree.” She was this soft-spoken, tiny thing, but her personality and voice were larger than life. And so for the pairing, it’s going to be a Petite Sirah. Even though it’s called “petite” it’s anything but. It’s inky, colorful, and memorable – like my godmother.

Where do you want to be in five years?

Physically? Emotionally? Existentially? Metaphorically? There’s so many ways to answer this. Well, I just had this chat with a numerologist that I’ll be doing a wine tasting with and since it was about to be my birthday we of course chatted about what the numbers have in store for me. She talked about how I was ending a seven-year cycle and entering a new one. The bad is going to get left behind and new, exciting opportunities are ahead. And wouldn’t you know, on my birthday I randomly met Tom Cruise in a bar – that’s definitely a good start to the new cycle. So, I hope that means I’m bringing some of that shit in. But either way, I hope that I have created more balance in my life, channeled my creativity into even more sustainable and nourishing ways, and I hope that I continue to have such fulfilling relationships as I do now.

Describe one of your favorite wine moments.

I recently took my father to the Vienna Wine Fair which is held in the Imperial Palace. He’s my best wine companion and champion – and he’s part Austrian. So not only did we get to pop into the festival where there were over 400 wineries, but we also got to pop out and visit where my grandmother trained for opera, shop for waist coats and ascots, eat the local cuisine, and visit 300-year old wine taverns. It was a wonderful wine experience. It had it all: wine, culture, family, and of course, so many new friends.

You can take three people on a dinner cruise – who are you taking, where are you going, and what are you drinking?

Well, I’ve already said my father is my favorite wine companion, but I’ll pick three people I haven’t had the opportunity to meet yet. First, I’d take Reese Witherspoon because she’s amazing – a talented business woman and kind person. I’d love to pick her brain about business and of course pitch her some of my ideas! Then I’d pick Oscar Wilde because I think he’d eat and drink very well, plus be hilarious. And I’d also bring along my grandmother. She died when I was two, so I never had the opportunity to meet her. It’s my father’s biggest regret that we didn’t get to know each other – he says we’re very similar. Oh – and we’re going to the Greek Islands because that seems like the best way to see Greece and we’re drinking Greek wines along the way.

What’s next for you?

I’m off to America this week. I’ll be visiting family in Seattle, doing some work in LA and staying with my best friend, and then I’ll be taking a meditation retreat in San Diego. It’s a mix of work and pleasure. Then I also have a few new media projects in the works, which I can’t talk about yet, but will share soon, and some more cross-pollinated events like wine and astrology!

This interview was first published on Vinohead