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Journeys of Discovery: It’s "Freakshow" time at Lodi’s Michael David Winery

The Phillips family homesteaded in Lodi, California shortly after the conclusion of the Civil War. Fruits, vegetables and grapes were staple family crops for decades. The Phillips' roadside fresh produce stand remains a Lodi destination, but its shelves and bins are equally weighted with the family’s wines

Today, brothers Michael and David Phillips actively farm 800 acres of estate grown grapes and manage an additional 1,200 acres. The family’s wine endeavors started off slowly, that is until they introduced the "7 Deadly Zins" label in 2002 with 700 cases, and almost overnight, the wine became a national sensation. When the winery spun off "7 Deadly Zins" two years ago, annual case production had ballooned to 300,000 cases annually. Today, the Phillips' "Freakshow" label wines have quickly become viral bestsellers—currently producing more than 500,000 cases annually with a target of more than one million cases annually in the not-too-distant future. Join correspondent Tom Wilmer for a conversation with Melissa Phillips Stroud; brothers Michael and David Phillips; and winemaker Adam Mettler, who was proclaimed the 2019 Winemaker of the Year worldwide by "Wine Enthusiast" magazine.

You are invited to subscribe to the Lowell Thomas Award-winning travel show podcast, Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer, featured on the NPR Podcast DirectoryApple PodcastiHeartRadio, the NPR One App & Stitcher.com. Twitter: TomCWilmer. Instagram: Thomas.Wilmer. Member of the National Press Club in Washington D.C. Underwriting support provided by the Society of St. Vincent De Paul.

Tom Wilmer produces on-air content for Issues & Ideas airing over KCBX and is producer and host of the six-time Lowell Thomas award-winning NPR podcast Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer. Recorded live on-location across America and around the world, the podcasts feature the arts, culture, music, nature, history, science, wine & spirits, brewpubs, and the culinary arts--everything from baseball to exploring South Pacific atolls to interviewing the real Santa Claus in the Arctic.
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