Getting Smart about Swiss Wine Travel with Marc Checkley

Welcome to Season 2, Episode 4 of TRINKTalks! In this episode we are joined by television journalist and wine educator Marc Checkley. Tune in as he takes us on a journey through the “hidden library” of Swiss wine, uncovering rare indigenous grapes like Completer and Plant Robert across Switzerland’s diverse cantons. From the terraced vineyards of Lavaux to the high-altitude Bündner Herrschaft, this episode explores the sustainable travel tips and vibrant local culture featured in Marc’s new book, Switzerland: The Smart Traveler’s Wine Guide.

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ABOUT TODAY’S GUESTS

Our guest today is Marc Checkley,  the Kiwi-born, Swiss-based “wine storyteller” who has made it his mission to put Swiss wine on the international map. Marc is a prolific writer and content creator whose work has appeared in Gault&Millau, Time Out, and National Geographic and more.

With a career that spans film, television, and broadcast journalism across Asia and Europe, Marc brings a unique “storyteller’s lens” to the wine world. He is the co-author of the definitiveSwitzerland: The Smart Traveller’s Wine Guide (Academie du Vin Library) and serves as an official UNESCO Heritage Guide for the Lavaux vineyards. In addition to his writing, he leads Drink Moi, a boutique consultancy specializing in wine education and curated Alpine tourism.

Whether he is judging international wine competitions or designing immersive wine tourism experiences, Marc focuses on “the story before the sip,” proving that the history and people behind the bottle are just as intoxicating as the wine itself.

ABOUT TRINK 

TRINKTalks has been brought to you by TRINK Magazine, an independent quarterly digital publication exploring the “German-speaking wines” of Austria, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland.

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ABOUT THE HOSTS OF TRINK TALKS

Valerie Kathawala specializes in the wine cultures, traditions, and innovations of Germany, Austria, South Tyrol, and Switzerland, as well as those closer to her home in New York City. Her work appears in the pages of Noble Rot, The Art of Eating, SevenFifty Daily, Meininger’s Wine Business International, Pipette, Glug, Pellicle and a number of other publications. She is the co-founder and co-editor of the wine magazine TRINK. She is currently at work researching and writing a new course (2025) on German wines for the Wine Scholar Guild. 

Paula Redes Sidore moves smoothly between the worlds of wine and words. She is a double-certified sommelier, through the Court of Master Sommeliers and the Chamber of Commerce.  In 2012, she founded Weinstory, a creative content and translation agency dedicated to transposing the world of German-speaking wine into English. She is the German and Austrian regional specialist for jancisrobinson.com and a member of the Circle of Wine Writers. Paula has a Masters degree in fiction writing, and her work has been featured in jr.com, Sevenfifty Daily, Feinschmecker, and Heated.

Thanks for listening & keep Trinking!