Ep. 1827 Special Episode - International Women’s Day Cristina Mercuri | On The Road With Stevie Kim

The Italian wine podcast is the community driven platform for Italian winegeeks around the world. Support the show by donating at italian wine podcast dot com. Donate five or more Euros, and we'll send you a copy of our latest book, my Italian Great Geek journal. Absolutely free. To get your free copy of my Italian GreatGeek journal, click support us at italian wine podcast dot com, or wherever you get your pods. Welcome to another episode of On the Road Edition, hosted by Stevie Kim. Each week, she travels to incredible wine destinations interviewing some of the Italian wine scene's most interesting personalities, talking about wines, the foods, as well as the incredible travel destinations. Hey. Good morning, everybody. Welcome to Italian Wine podcast. I'm actually in New York, and we have a special guest today. This is going to be dropping this episode. On March eighth for the international woman's day. So it is indeed a special episode on the road edition. And today, we have a special guest for that. And that is Christina Merkuri.cha Christina. Hi. Hello, Stevy. How are you? Okay. Where are you Christina? I'm in Milan, actually today. Milan. Okay. So Christina, is it mercury. Melcuri. How do you say your last name? First of all? It's Mercuri. Mercuri. Mercuri. So the accent on the first syllable. I'm not a a singer as Freddy, but I can sing if I can. That's Freddie Mercury. Yes. Okay. Christina, so first of all, I've been listening to your pods this morning because you are very familiar with our podcast, Italian Wine podcast. Because you had already been on our show two separate additional times. Once with Steve Ray, that was about I suppose they're, like, a year and a half ago. It's been a while since Steve's been with us. So that's episode one thousand ninety three for those of you who want to go back and listen to. And then more recently, I see that it was uploaded about eight months ago. Episode number fourteen sixteen with Cynthia chaplain. So you are very familiar with our format. Thank you for coming back for this special episode. Thank you for inviting me. Yes. I'm quite familiar, and I'm always very, very happy to join you and have a a chat with you. Okay. Christina, so I know you've joined us in the past, but can you just let us know our new audience, those of who are less familiar, who you are, what you're doing, and just a very brief biographies. Very skinny. Yeah. I am a one educator based in Milan, but I work with, basically, all the territory of Italy and also abroad. I teach students, from the very beginning to up to diploma level or even M W tutoring. And I, especially, with my team, I work with wineries, importers, distributors. I train them. So I do a lot of stuff training, but also I work a lot with the communication. So I am a presenter for, master classes, and I like to communicate about wines, also on social media with my Instagram, channel that is, Christina McCuri. Okay. So we'll talk about your social media a bit later. But so I would just like to remind our listeners that today, we will be talking about Christina's role as the potentially the first female Italian master wine. And why does Italy need a woman master wine after all? And maybe we can also expect for her to unveil how she turns her setbacks into strength. And if there is indeed a need to speak up for a woman in the Italian wine industry. So those are some of the things that I'd like to address with Christina today. But I was actually curious because I was listening to these two episodes just now this morning. Your first episode with Steve Ray, I suppose you met him at Perseco. Right? Indeed. Yeah. Saled. Yeah. I was like, what is she doing on? And it is like, you know, get US market ready. But then I figured, I think you were at the prossecco event. Would you had said something, one thing that I wanted you to expand And you said master one, this MW, this this title is especially important for Italy. Would you like to expand on that? What you meant by that? I think that's, his important to have so there are maybe two sides of this, topic. One is that, Italy itself need more master wines because We have a huge potential and, many, many things to say to communicate to improve in my opinion. So the expertise of master of wise and unfortunately, now we have already three. So we are getting there, I think. So having this kind of expertise, in my opinion, is fundamental to explore new markets to solve also the gap that is now in, production and consumption. The second size is that master wine title could be fundamental for me as a woman. Because, maybe in the episode, I was talking about that. But being a woman in this segment in this sector now is not that easy. It's much easier than, in the past, of course, but not that, equal. So now I still or at the moment, one year ago, I was still thinking that, for a woman was more important than a man showing a title to make some people, shut up and be more respectful. This is not very I know. It's not, the best story I could say, but, sometimes, I was feeling like that. So I was feeling that, myself, was not enough. And I needed, in this sector title. Now I can say that I changed it a little bit my mind. So I am Christina with or without the title, with my value, with my strength, with my weaknesses, with my culture, But at that moment, the title for me was very, very important. It's still one of the most important, scope in my life, but I realized that, I can be myself, even without the title. I want the title. I don't don't. Yeah. Of course. I'm fighting for it. Yes. You are indeed. And, I suppose it segues into your second episode, the one you did with Cynthia, and you did say that In fact, this MW journey, you did have, you know, of course, your camaraderity from your other mastermind candidates. But you said that it is a lonely journey in the end. In the end, yes. I think that, study group and, the help and the proximity with other people is fundamental because, they can let you see what you cannot see by yourself, but also they can, convert you. They can be close to you. And I was close to my fellow students, as well, and, I was supporting as well. So they helped me, but I'm sure I had with them. But at the end, when you realize that you can go for it is something that is, very intimate. So at least to me, it happens like that. So I was going on studying and studying and practicing and practicing and making classes with other students. And, I was building what was necessary for myself, for my soul to understand how to pass because how to pass is something that is inner of yourself, because if there was a, method. If there was something that you can share with other and you can learn together, then everybody could pass together, but it's never like that. One is passing. One is ready. So it's something that is very lonely inside. Especially now I am stage three. So this one is probably the most lonely part of the trip, but is is something that is necessary because in the stage three, you have to focus very, very deeply in a small argument and go and think deeply about any aspect of this small, small topic. So, yes, it's quite lonely, but it's worth it. So are there any other stage three students from Italy at the moment besides yourself? None. No. None. How many are, you know, like, close? To passing stage two? From Italy, I think there is quite a few. Maybe I'm sure that, paulo de carvalho is getting almost there. Another, probably one or two candidates and I'm working with Paolo to help me to help him, to get ready. You know, it's very, very tough. It's a stage where, is exhausting because, is big, is deep, is long. If you have a four days of exam. So, you have to be ready from any, any aspect, not only the preparation, in the study, but also the mental training, the physical training. So your body have to be ready to stay there together with your brain focused on that stuff for four days from the beginning to the end in a room where you can brief only anxiety for other people. So it's most challenging. Are you enjoying this podcast? Don't forget to visit our YouTube channel, mama jumbo shrimp. For fascinating videos covering Stevie Kim and her travels across Italy and beyond. Meeting winemakers, eating local foods, and taking in the scenery. Now, back to the show. Actually, I did an interview with the three Masters of wine now acclimated at the Italians, you know, Andrea Gabrielle and Pietro about a year and a half ago, and they explained in detail the agony of the the entire journey. So I think that is something very common with the MW candidates. So I saw you last Actually, I think in December for the Prima de la scala, and you had just submitted your research paper. So, of course, you know, I hope to have another interview with you very, very soon. After you've completed your stage three. So be strong and let's forge ahead together. So listen, Christina. So you were formally a a lawyer. Yeah. How old do you now? Now I'm forty one. You're forty one. And you've decided to go into wine business one. In twenty fifteen. So not many years ago, but so not many years ago. Yeah. Yeah. It's very intense the way you do things it seems. Right? Yes. Because, also, it was not very young at that moment. And then I said to myself, okay, listen. You want to change because you're not happy. Fine. But if you want to do it, do it seriously. So when you were at the university, you wanted to arrive to be a lawyer or, something that was important. And you want to actually change something. Now you realize that you didn't like it. Fine. You can change. But if you change, you do for something important. So I decided from the beginning that I wanted to become an an educator. I wanted to improve the educational part of the wine's business and I wanted to become a master wine. So Yes. It's not a long trip, but I've done all the post everything possible to make my career speed up very, very fast. Yeah. It's a fast track. Let's say. In fact, you were also awarded as one of the twenty women in food, Don Adel Chivo, woman in food from Corera de La Sierra, and a huge shout out to Angela Frenda. And our friend, of course, Ale sandra Darmonte, because they're doing incredible work for women and food, which it's just annual summit. Unfortunately, it's happening in a very bad time history. It's in April, right in the midst of the Vineetri marathon, but It is an annual summit where they identify twenty personalities in the world of food, and we have a sliver of of wine and hospitality as well. And that's where you slipped in. And I'm part of the committee. And I think they were great to recognize you as that innovator in that, you know, very persistent and determined strength to represent a man in wine. So congratulations with that. Thank you. Thank you so much. It was a pleasure also to meet you there and, to see that you are in the committee. And I think that you are doing very, very well. You're doing great. You know, the food is a completely a different animal. Right? And I feel that they are so advanced in many ways, especially in communication. So I think the wine world, the wine people, we have a lot to learn from them. So I'm very happy to be part of that. And hopefully, we can have more wine activities in that event as well in the future. So getting back to you, Christina, what is your typical day like? Hey, it depends. So I like routine, but unfortunately, with the work I do, it's not very easy to have my routine. So in a normal day, when I can wake up with my cataludovica, I stay home in the morning, and I have breakfast. I open my laptop. I read some newsletter I receive, and then I answer some emails. I schedule some, meeting. I just, do very back end stuff in the afternoon. If I have to meet, people, or I have to teach, I do that. But, unfortunately, this kind of routine is quite rare because I travel a lot. So I also wake up in a different room every morning because, some days, I am in Tuscany. Another day, I'm in Trentina. So I teach to many different, companies. So for instance, last week, I was in Florence, teaching, a good history in, finance, and the staff training was, very, very amazing because this kind of people is one that I do like most because, you see exactly what they want, and you see exactly how you can help them improving. Then I teach also to Trento. So I went also to Trento, and I I was teaching the the small guys of the very young people of, foundation and market. So I'm I'm happy about my job, but if I can tell you there is a routine or, everyday life, It's not very easy to tell you. For example, the staff of the Cucios terrier, how do you go about teaching them? What are you teaching them exactly? Is it the waitstaff? Or is it the Psalms? What are you teaching exactly? It was a mix between some and, with stuff and was double city. Oh, okay. What level? Level one for a group of level two for another group, and then there is a level three that I was doing for another group as well. Okay. That's interesting. We also do a lot of, tailor made, classes, because it depends on what they want, what they what do they want to improve. So apart from publicity, we do manage also a lot of tailor made. So for instance, last a couple of months ago, I was teaching, to this, big distributor in Italy, and, he was telling me, no, I have to improve the language. On how my staff is communicating wine to my clients. And so it was a training only on the wines of the of the list and only, aimed to improve their capacity to sell to sell well. Right. Okay. So you had mentioned social media. Are you doing your own social media? Yes. I am trying to get the help of someone that is more professional that actually didn't find the right one. So now I'm doing it by myself, and I'm happy with that because I see that there is a lot of, authenticity. In what I do. I think that also people like that. The fact that, is me that is doing it. Okay. And how much time do you dedicate to social media? Because it's very curated. What is the handle? It's Christina Mercuri, right? Just your name? Christina Mercuri underscore wine. And it's quite well known. There is a good reputation. To be honest, I don't spend, a lot of time because my brain works very fast. So I decide to express myself, in a very authentic way. So, for instance, I decide that, when I have some moments that I am free, I plan my post or I film some video and then I publish them. To be honest, I don't spend hours on this. It's something that happens to me very natural. So it's easy. It's natural. It's authentic, a little bit like you. I see yourself working on your social media and you're very, very natural, spontaneous. And I think this kind of value always is, appreciated, to the audience. Yeah. I think your Instagram is much more curated. I'm more, let's say, prolific, you know, to say a euphemism, but I'm not as curate as you are certainly. Because we have an agency and we do so many other accounts. So mine is something very personal. But how do you see the social media space in the future for your career? I think there is something that is, destined to go on for sure, but it will not be the hundred percent of my career because, I think that, social, especially Instagram is getting more and more superficial. And, I really want to change something, in the mind of the people that, work in the industry or the consumer as well. So Instagram can be a fantastic way to to get, to penetrate, to give awareness, but not to communicate some concepts that are deep and, more complicated. So I tried to convert, complicated, the technical stuff into easy and, very approachable concept. But I think that this must be the way to attract people and then convert them into an offline classroom or something like that. I think social must get more and more important for wineries and for entities in general because, you know, everybody now has, at least one account of social media. Social media is getting the importance that the press has some years ago. The only thing is that, we have to educate the wineries or the the companies in general on how to communicate properly on social media. So I think I can help on this and I would like to work more on this. And, this must become part of the job. So talking about communication, online, digital, and, social media must be part of the communication. But not a total, of course, because we have to engage with different channels. But now there is a need, especially for, small wineries to know more about how social media works and stops saying, oh, there is my cousin that can do this because he is young can do it. No. No. It's something that's, a professional agency have to do this. So it's something that you have to invest on for the future. So we want to celebrate, you know, of course, the international woman's day on March eighth. So how do you feel, like, I guess the wine industry in general better support and empower woman, especially those, you know, aspiring to the leadership roles. Wow. It's, this is a big question. Let's be honest, industry It's not just a problem of wine industry. It's a problem of, generic approach of the industry of the society. So in a better word, there will not be gender pay gap. First things, because money make a lot of difference. In the value of the people. I think we could give more, of the opportunity with, maternity leave. So equal maternity leave for woman or man. So in that case, the international woman, they would be actually celebrating something that is equal. Now we celebrate people that are, yes, in a position of leadership and in my position. So, basically, I don't feel such a big leadership now. But I know that I'm working every day on this, and I make a discussion about that. With my company, for instance, my objective, since I am, social benefit, so it's a sort of a big corporation So your company, you mean the Mercury wine club? Yes. It's Mercuri wine club. Okay. And every year, we designate a part of our, a profit to an association against the violence against women. So We work on this. I don't feel I'm, the leader of woman in the sector. I would like to, to become one day. But, yes, we all have to work on this. So it's, it's something that is very horizontal in the industry. I don't know if you agree with me on this. Yeah. I mean, I think definitely we need to work on a lot of these issues. I don't have the answer, to be quite honest. I was just, you know, thinking out loud for the most part. And I hope we can work on this together in some way. Are there any female like wine personalities, wine producers who you have looked up to in your short courier in wine? It's only been few years. To be quite honest. But are there any shiras, so to speak, that you look up to? Yes. I really admire Camilla Ronelli. I think she is a beautiful mix of, assertivity, but gentleness and, precision. And, also, she's very inclusive. So this is the kind of leadership. Everybody needs. So the bossy or the alpha model, leadership is not fashion anymore. It doesn't bring any resources. It doesn't enrich anybody. It's only an old fashioned, way to to rule that, doesn't work anymore. And of course, my inspiration is also Janice Robinson because of the great, great, depth in everything that she delivered together with her stuff. So, yes, I always looked at, women as a font of inspiration, and I I hope to become one day a good, leader, to follow and to our admire as well. Let's say it's going to take you another few months or a year. Max to become the Master Wine. The first woman Italian Master Wine. How do you think your life will change if you can look into the crystal ball? This is fantastic question, actually. I don't know the answer, but, I have some, wishes. You know, wishes can be something real if you work for them. So I'm sure that we'll go on working on, the female aspect of the business because, I really and I think everybody is really they got enough about this, gender gap. And every day, still now, I see or I receive other stories from a woman in this sector that, you understand that cannot work like that. So I would like to improve my work on this, especially with education. So I would like to help company to fulfill the so called social sustainability in applying protocols that actually fill the gap between men and women in the pay in how they are treated in the role. So I want to work actively on that. And then, the other beautiful things that I I would like to do is, to spread the value of the many hidden gems, many, many beautiful places that we have around the world, because, actually, Italy is famous to be diverse. We know. But, We have to work and we can work much more on this, especially now with climate change where the native grape varieties are very well seen and very well appreciated. So working on the unicity of Italy around the world could be one of the things that I want to work on. I guess my question was now you dedicate from what I understand. Many hours dedicated to teaching, for example. Is that correct? Correct. Right. So you will become a master wine. How will that shift your life? Do you plan to have a expand your team? Like, you will have a bigger team. Will you be doing more consulting? Would you be writing a book? You know, what are your dreams? I guess that's what I'm asking. Talking about education. I already have a small team, but I want to improve it, and I want to improve also the b to b. Teaching the staff training. My dream will be also, yes, to write a book. Basically, a book that is not very romantic, but it's not about my story. Something about, how to study Italian wise, how to talk about, Italian grape varieties, how to deliver, a helpful and insightful information, also at the other master of wine students I would like to improve a lot of the consultancy and the presentation, the communication stuff. So you'd like to specialize in Italian wine. Is that correct? I think that it could be interesting, especially if I can export this knowledge abroad But, actually, to be honest, I'm in love with, many, many region in France, and, this is something that, many people knows I am fond of forty five wines. So there's many, many things that I like. So I don't know now exactly. I think that, if you work well, the future and the fate will, guide you to the right things, the important is that, you do what you like in a very professional way and in deep way. But, yes, are many, many things that I would like to do. Just last two questions. Let's try to finish on a positive note. What advice would you give to a young woman who are considering a career in the wine industry or thinking about starting a journey to become a master of wine. There would be a couple of things that I can say. Never doubt too much about yourself. I know imposter syndrome is something that is quite innate in the woman nature because of, the culture that we are briefing, in the last thousand of years. But if you do what you like and you do it deeply and seriously, there is nothing then can stop you. You can do whatever you want. And, if the other people don't believe it, it's not your problem. So go for it. Never stop. There will be moment where, you feel alone. It's okay. It's part of the job. Go on. And, for the one that want to achieve the big final step of the master of wine, just be very analytic, just be discipline. I know you can do it. Probably I don't know if it's something that can be easy to achieve, but be disciplined and, be very accurate. It's something that we can do very easily. So go for it. Don't get stressed about failures. We can be wrong. It's something that is even more difficult than any exam in the world. So having a failure is something that is very, very normal. But please always believe in yourself. And remember, believe in yourself more than the others. Because if you are driving, a Ferrari, it means that you can drive a Ferrari. So don't follow blindly the advice of another person that is, driving, I don't know, along inborghini. You are both driving to fantastic cars and you deserve it. So trust yourself, trust the process and go for it. Okay. Great. I think that is an absolutely a great message that you're sharing with your fellow woman in the wine industry on this woman's day special. Thank you so much. For joining us Christina. And that is a wrap, and I hope to see you and celebrate with you very, very, very, very soon. We we love for sure. Thank you for joining us on another installment of On the Road Edition, Hosted by Stevie Kim. Join her again next week for more interesting content in the Italian wine scene. You can also find us at italian wine podcast dot com or wherever you get your pods. You can also check out our YouTube channel. Mama jumbo strip to watch these interviews and the footage captured of each location.