September 18, 2023
SHARE
CANADALAND
#920 A Wine Critic Spills All
Have the business practices of one of the world's biggest liquor monopolies damaged wine writing? And, is the environment created by this vacuum in the world of journalism being abused by some high profile writers?
Jesse Brown
Host & Publisher
Bruce Thorson
Senior Producer
Tristan Capacchione
Senior Production Supervisor
Jonathan Goldsbie
News Editor
Karyn Pugliese
Editor-in-Chief

André Proulx is a wine writer who has worked for Newstalk 1010, CTV News, Quench Magazine, and Toronto Life. As dollars in traditional media disappear for journalists, it’s getting harder and harder to make money writing lifestyle content — including wine writing. In today’s landscape, is one of Canada’s most influential wine writers double-dipping, taking money from both The Toronto Star – and the people who represent the wines she’s reviewing?

To discuss the current landscape of wine writing André spoke with Chris Waters, wine writer for the Globe and Mail, and Rick VanSickle of Wines in Niagara. To explain how wine sales with the LCBO works he spoke with Ben Hardy of Vintage Selector wines, tech experts Carmi Levy and Dan Spearin, and media lawyer Miro Oballa. 

Host: Jesse Brown 

Credits: André Proulx (Reporter), Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), Bruce Thorson (Senior Producer), Annette Ejiofor (Managing Editor), Karyn Pugliese (Editor-in-Chief)

 

Further Reading: 

Additional music by Audio Network

 

Sponsors: Douglas, Elijah Craig, Article, Athletic Greens

If you value this podcast, support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch at our store, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.

You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime.

More from this series
“Sometimes the transplants weren't done in a sterile environment. They weren't done in a hospital. They were done in an apartment somewhere. There are some very bad black markets.” - Nobel Laureate economist Alvin Roth
August 10, 2026
How Canadian Missionaries are partly responsible for modern day North Korea and other stories.
August 6, 2026
I am now the Zionist sellout, horrendous traitor. People are sending me death threats, people wanting to kill me because I don't conform to some Western-concocted notion of what being pro-Palestine is. - Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib 
August 3, 2026
1406
"It is increasingly clear that a future tied to the U.S. is ultimately a future fastened to a dying animal." - Stephen Marche
July 27, 2026
“ Kevin looked at him and said, ‘Your tears add no value to this deal.’ It was just a great fucking moment.” -Stuart Coxe, Dragons’ Den Producer
July 20, 2026
“In the corner in the room there was a screen and there I could see the numbers going up. Then I figured that this is the amount of eggs that they're retrieving and it felt like a scoreboard in the operating room.” - Sana Al-Badri (IVF egg donor)
July 13, 2026
 It was an awful time. And to also be told, “You were unethical by using this facilitation letter." It was, it was like I was in some kind of nightmare. -Investigative Reporter Laura Robinson
July 6, 2026
The Theresa Kielburger lawsuit, Jesse’s union negotiating tactics, a new JSP.
July 2, 2026
all podcasts arrow All Podcasts
CANADALAND