📰 THE SPILL / Vol. 0

Ciao, Amici!

Before we pour the wine, spill the stories, and dive into recipes, adventures, and inevitable stains, let’s get one thing clear:

What exactly is Grapestained?

Grapestained is more than a brand — it’s a philosophy, a feeling, and a movement.
It’s the dusting of flour on your hands, the warmth of a glass raised in laughter, and the stories that leave a mark on your soul. Built on connection, curiosity, and culture, it celebrates the people, places, and flavors that transform ordinary moments into unforgettable memories.

At Grapestained, we believe the most authentic way to experience culture is by living it — with all its flavors, smells, and sounds. It’s about slowing down, diving in, and getting a little messy. Because if your fingers aren’t covered in sauce, and your shirt doesn’t have a blob of olive oil on it — did you even really experience it?

Our mission is simple but bold: to share the incredible stories of local and small producers with the world, through the universal language of food and handcrafted wine, served around tables filled with laughter, stories, and new friendships.
We push travelers to step beyond the usual — to get out of their comfort zones, to taste the unexpected, and to discover culture firsthand. Because the best way to learn is through experience, and the best way to experience is to learn.

You’re not just joining a newsletter or booking a trip — you’re becoming part of a community that honors authenticity, joy, and the pleasure of genuine connection.

💼 What We Do (Besides Spill a Lot of Wine)

🍷 1. We Tell Stories — Through Newsletters, Grapes, Recipes, and Culture

The Spill is our newsletter — part wine magazine, part travel guide, part kitchen table confidential.

It’s where storytelling and education meet over a glass of something good and a plate of something messy. We write about the things we love most: small producers, regional traditions, local legends, cultural quirks, and the rich, vibrant stories behind every dish and bottle. Some days it’s grape deep-dives, travel guides, and clever pairing ideas that bring your table to life. Other days it’s a handwritten recipe from a Tuscan nonna or a behind-the-scenes peek at the faces behind your favorite bottle.

Free subscribers get a generous taste 2–3 times a month of culture, travel, and flavor.

🍷 Unfiltered stories of winemakers, chefs, and small businesses
🍝 Spotlights on regional dishes and traditions
🍇 Grape variety deep dives
🧠 Wine education made simple (and wildly digestible)
🎉 And sometimes, just a really good story — the kind that lingers

Scarpetta Club (premium) members get everything above, plus a weekly full pour:

📖 Full-length weekly newsletter editions
🍷 Exclusive wine discounts from rare & small producers
📹 Behind-the-scenes videos and tutorials
🍝 Full recipes + deeper cultural explorations
💬 Virtual tastings with our winemaker and chef friends
✈️ Travel perks, early access to tours, and special event invites
📚 Downloadable guides, pairings, and resources
👥 Members-only feedback, perks, and insider involvement

It’s a love letter to culture, travel, wine, food, and the people behind it — one sip and story at a time.

👉 Subscribe to Scarpetta Club →
Because the best experiences are worth spilling for.

🇮🇹 2. We Take You There — The Real Italy (and Beyond)

Our small-group tours are handcrafted cultural experiences, rooted in real relationships. These aren’t your average wine trips. We go beyond the tourist trail — cooking with locals, sipping wine straight from the barrel, and exploring medieval villages that don’t show up on influencer maps.

Each itinerary is thoughtfully curated to show you the authentic side of a place — not just what’s pictured on postcards, but what’s cooked in home kitchens and passed around tables full of stories. You’ll make pasta with locals, laugh through long-table lunches, and drink wine in the vineyard with the producer who made it.

We work directly with small businesses and authentic winemakers, chefs, farmers, artisans, and more — partners who feel like family, and who are deeply passionate about what they do and proud to share their world with you.

👉 [Meet our partners →]

These experiences are immersive, intimate, and just a little chaotic in the best way. We want you to step outside your comfort zone — to taste, feel, and live each moment like a local. You don’t just visit Italy — you live it, laugh in it, and get a little grape-stained in the process.

And yes, you’ll probably go home with wine on your shirt… and something unforgettable on your heart.

👉 [Explore our tours →] 

🌍 3. We Bring the World to You - Through Tastings, Dinners & Events

Not everyone can always travel. So we bring the world of wine to you.
Back in the U.S. (and beyond), we host wine pairing dinners, tastings, and immersive events that feature the same producers, wines, and regional recipes we work with on the ground. These bottles aren’t from distributors — they’re from our friends. And these events aren’t lectures — they’re a party, a meal, a delicious education.

Led by our sommelier and storyteller-in-chief, Ryan Tingle, each experience is thoughtfully curated to bring the ambiance of travel to your table — no passport required. You’ll explore regional dishes, sip small-production wines sourced directly from Italy, and learn the stories behind them in the most delicious way possible.
It’s wine without the snobbery. Culture with an open seat at the table.
And a way to share handcrafted wines, traditional recipes, and meaningful stories — around real tables, with real people.

Whether it’s an intimate dinner with friends or a lively celebration with family, our events are made to be savored — full of culture, laughter, and a little bit of delicious chaos.

📩 Want to host your own Grapestained tasting?
Reply directly to this email — we’d love to help you create something unforgettable.

✨ What Grapestained Feels Like

• A lunch that accidentally turns into a sunset dinner.

• Laughing with strangers who feel like lifelong friends by course two.

• Getting lost in a village and finding the best meal of your life.

• Sipping aperitivo while the world slows down around you.

• Learning a region through its recipes, not a textbook.

• Taking in the scenery, the sounds, the simple magic of being present.

• A suitcase full of olive oil, sea salt, cookies, wine, and memories.

• A winery where the dog is the star of the show.

• Not knowing the language, but somehow understanding each other anyway.

• Stories that spill as easily as the wine.

• A community built one shared bottle at a time.

🧭 Why This Matters

This isn’t about content. It’s about community.
Not just wine. But why we drink it.
Not just food. But who we share it with.
Grapestained is a living, breathing celebration of pleasure, place, and people.
It’s where education feels like an adventure, and where every detail—from the vineyard dust on your shoes to the ragu simmering on the stove—tells a story worth savoring.
This is just the beginning.
Wine wisdom, recipes, stories from small producers, travel tips and hidden guides, cultural deep dives, perfect pairings — all poured with heart, humor, and just the right splash of chaos.

We’re so glad you’re here.
The table’s set.
Let’s spill.

🍷 Ryan,

Founder, storyteller, and your new best friend who always shows up with the wine.

P.S. Curious which Italian wine matches your vibe? Our “What Wine Are You?” quiz is bubbling up soon — keep an eye on your inbox!

Until then, hit reply and share your favorite wine story or ask us anything about food, wine, travel, or life in general. We’re all ears (and glasses)!