The guy who made fermentation cool on YouTube just pulled up to the pod.
Brad Leone—It’s Alive, Local Legends, full-send food energy—breaks down fermentation, fire cooking, and how he built one of the most entertaining brands in food.
This one’s flavor, chaos, and good vibes start to finish.

🎙️ Go With Your Palate: Brad Leone | Fermentation, Fire & Full Send Flavor

This week we’re joined by the one and only Brad Leone—chef, fermentation wizard, outdoor adventurer, and the personality who helped redefine food content on YouTube. From his breakout days at Bon Appétit’s It’s Alive to building his own platform with shows like Local Legends and Makin’ It, Brad has turned curiosity, chaos, and creativity into a full-blown culinary movement.

We dive into the magic of fermentation—why it’s having such a moment, how it connects directly to wine, and where to even start if you’re fermentation-curious (without blowing up your kitchen). Brad also shares his journey from behind-the-scenes test kitchen grind to becoming one of the most recognizable faces in food media—and what he’s learned building his own brand along the way.

And because this is Go With Your Palate, we let it rip a little—getting Brad’s real breakdown of North Jersey (don’t mess that up), talking outdoor cooking, food adventures, raising kids, and yes… introducing the first-ever special guests on the pod—his baby chicks 🐥.

It’s equal parts flavor, storytelling, and straight-up good energy—with plenty of laughs woven into the chaos.

If you love food, fermentation, and content that doesn’t take itself too seriously, this one’s for you.

Grab a glass, maybe something pickled, and come hang. 🍷🔥

The guy who made fermentation cool on YouTube just pulled up to the pod.
Brad Leone—It’s Alive, Local Legends, full-send food energy—breaks down fermentation, fire cooking, and how he built one of the most entertaining brands in food.
This one’s flavor, chaos, and good vibes start to finish.

🎙️ Go With Your Palate: Brad Leone | Fermentation, Fire & Full Send Flavor

This week we’re joined by the one and only Brad Leone—chef, fermentation wizard, outdoor adventurer, and the personality who helped redefine food content on YouTube. From his breakout days at Bon Appétit’s It’s Alive to building his own platform with shows like Local Legends and Makin’ It, Brad has turned curiosity, chaos, and creativity into a full-blown culinary movement.

We dive into the magic of fermentation—why it’s having such a moment, how it connects directly to wine, and where to even start if you’re fermentation-curious (without blowing up your kitchen). Brad also shares his journey from behind-the-scenes test kitchen grind to becoming one of the most recognizable faces in food media—and what he’s learned building his own brand along the way.

And because this is Go With Your Palate, we let it rip a little—getting Brad’s real breakdown of North Jersey (don’t mess that up), talking outdoor cooking, food adventures, raising kids, and yes… introducing the first-ever special guests on the pod—his baby chicks 🐥.

It’s equal parts flavor, storytelling, and straight-up good energy—with plenty of laughs woven into the chaos.

If you love food, fermentation, and content that doesn’t take itself too seriously, this one’s for you.

Grab a glass, maybe something pickled, and come hang. 🍷🔥

The guy who finds the grapes behind Belle Glos Pinot Noir and Napa Valley Quilt Cabernet is finally on the podcast.
Matthew Heil—Copper Cane’s Director of Fruit Supply—is the energizer bunny of the wine world, constantly on the move scouting vineyards and building the relationships that shape every bottle.
In this episode, we go deep into what really happens before grapes ever hit the crush pad.

🎙️ Go With Your Palate: Matthew Heil | The Man Who Finds the Grapes

This week we go straight behind the vines with Matthew Heil, Director of Fruit Supply & Grower Relations at Copper Cane Wine & Spirits and one of the original team members who’s been with the company since day one in 2014. A true wealth of knowledge—and what we lovingly call an energizer bunny of the wine world—Matt is constantly on the move scouting vineyards, building grower relationships, and helping secure the fruit that becomes some of Copper Cane’s most celebrated wines, from the legendary Belle Glos Pinot Noir to the renowned Napa Valley Quilt Cabernet.

Coming from a lineage of farmers, Matt walks us through how he found his way into the wine world and what he’s actually looking for during those long vineyard walks across Napa, Sonoma, the Central Coast—and even Oregon during Copper Cane’s earlier chapter there. We dig into grower relationships, fruit sourcing, climate challenges, and the behind-the-scenes decisions that ultimately shape every bottle.

We also uncover the origin story of Matt and Joe’s Napa Valley bromance (which somehow involves two World Series and Fat Mario getting a lil jelly lol), plus some candid insider vineyard stories from years spent traveling wine country.

This episode only scratches the surface of Matt’s knowledge, which is why he’s officially joining us as a recurring expert guest to help break down the winemaking season—especially during harvest later this year.

Wine nerds, this is your chance: drop your vineyard, grape-growing, or wine industry questions in the comments, and we may bring them back to Matt on a future episode.

If you’ve ever wondered what really happens before grapes hit the crush pad, this one’s for you.

Grab a glass and come walk the vineyard with us. 🍷🌿