Hello all, I’m Anna Gagliano, and like every little Italian child, I grew up mesmerized by wine. From rich reds to bright whites, intense smelling ports to sickly sweet ice varieties, I was always asking for a taste.

On the other hand, like every little American child, I also grew up with an unhealthy love for cheese. It was always my job to assemble the cheese platters for family parties, so I’ve had my fair share of cheddar and brie.

And finally, like every little Italian-American child, I was raised with a love for entertaining and hosting. These aforementioned parties I sliced cheese for were the highlight of my childhood, and I couldn’t wait to grow up and start hosting my own lavish parties with wine and cheese.

Well, I’ve grown up, but there’s one problem that’s keeping me from attaining this dream: my bank account. I’m a third year journalism student with no off or on-campus job and a car that guzzles gas like there’s no climate crisis.

My solution? Finding the easiest and most affordable ways to enjoy my favorite things while sharing them with the other broke college kids around me, or really anybody looking for fun wine information that won’t break the bank.

That’s one of my missions for this blog, with the other being one of accessibility. Like I said, I grew up surrounded by a culture of wine, cheese and entertaining. My parents loved to discuss all of these things with me and show me how to partake in them myself.

To others, though, the world of wine can be pretty daunting. Too often I have heard my peers avoid or even sneer at wine simply because it seems elitist or pretentious. I know, though, that wine is for everybody, and it’s way more fun than intimidating

I hope by reading my blog that you’ll learn this too, and if you already know this secret, that you might learn something entirely new!

I can’t wait to start this journey, and I hope you all won’t mind if I wine a little bit along the way.