Wine, Travel, Education and Extraordinary Experiences
Join Susan Frasca on an adventure to hunt and explore the globe's premier wine regions and educational tastings for every lev
Explore Napa Through a Sommelier's Vision
Discover Napa Valley with expert-led visits, exclusive tastings, and behind-the-scenes winery stories that showcase its true essence.
Virtual Tasting & Education
Join our virtual and in-person tastings and wine education events from anywhere, and deepen your wine knowledge.
Private Tasting Space
Our private cellar offers an intimate setting for exclusive tastings and dinners.
Meet The Wine Huntress
My love affair with wine began many years ago as a passion and hobby and ultimately evolved into a lifelong pursuit of knowledge, travel, education, and discovery.
For 21 years, I was the proprietor of Chicago’s Kinzie Chophouse, where I had the privilege of combining my love of hospitality, food, and wine. During my ownership and under my guidance, Kinzie Chophouse received the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence from 2002 through 2016, followed by the Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence in 2018.
My experience at Kinzie Chophouse also gave me the opportunity to develop and educate a team around the importance of wine and wine service. Over the years, I trained restaurant staff in wine knowledge, tasting techniques, service, and food-and-wine pairing.
Wanting to take my passion for wine beyond the restaurant and pursue it through formal education, I embarked on an extensive course of study. I received Certification Level 1 from the American Court of Masters and completed Levels 1, 2, and 3 with the International Sommelier Guild. I also earned an Intensive Viticulture and Vinification Certification from the American Sommelier Association.
My studies continued with the Comité Champagne, where I became a Certified Champagne Specialist. Through the Wine Scholar Guild, I have studied many of the world's great wine regions, including Piemonte, Burgundy, Alsace, and the Rhône Valley. I am currently continuing my education through the Wine Scholar Guild's Italian Wine Scholar and Champagne Master programs.
But for me, wine education extends far beyond the classroom.
Travel has been one of my greatest teachers. I have traveled extensively throughout the major wine regions of the United States and Europe, seeking to understand not only the wines themselves, but also the people, traditions, history, soils, climates, and cultures that shape them.
My travels have taken me through the Piedmont, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio regions of Italy; through Champagne, the Loire, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Cognac, the Rhône Valley, and Provence in France; and through Priorat, Rioja, and Ribera del Duero in Spain. I also spent two weeks exploring Porto and the wine culture of Portugal.
In the United States, I have explored the country's major AVAs and have had the opportunity to experience wine regions firsthand—from the vineyards and cellars to the people behind the bottles.
I have attended some of the world's most important wine and food events, including Wine Spectator's New York Wine Experience, ProWein in Düsseldorf, Vinexpo in Bordeaux, and London's Wine and Spirits Show. I have also enjoyed attending the New York, San Francisco, San Diego, South Beach, and Pebble Beach Food & Wine Festivals, as well as the International Pinot Noir Celebration in Oregon.
One of the most memorable chapters of my wine journey has been my participation in the Premier Napa Valley Trade Auction, where I was invited to attend and ultimately became a successful bidder in 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2019.
Each journey, tasting, seminar, vineyard visit, and conversation has added another piece to my understanding of wine. Together, these experiences became the building blocks for The Wine Huntress.
Today, The Wine Huntress is an extension of everything I love about wine: the discovery, the education, the people, the food, the travel, and, most importantly, the stories found in every bottle.
I have conducted wine seminars for groups of all levels, from introductory sessions on how to read a wine list and how to taste wine to in-depth explorations of sparkling wines from around the world and the diverse wines of Italy.
I believe wine should be both understood and enjoyed. Whether you are beginning your wine journey or have been collecting and tasting for years, there is always another region to discover, another grape to explore, another producer to meet, and another bottle waiting to tell its story.
So, please join me for a trip or a seminar of your choice—and let's continue the hunt together.
— Susan Frasca
The Wine Huntress