Ep. 2176 Sami Ghosn Of Massaya Winery | Wine, Food & Travel With Marc Millon

Welcome to episode 2176 of the Italian Wine Podcast, and episode 168 of Wine, Food & Travel with Marc Millon. Marc’s guest today is the Lebanese wine maker Sami Ghosn of Massaya winery in the Beqaa, a fertile valley region in eastern Lebanon. More about today’s guest: Lebanon's association with wine is as old as time. It is well established that wine making was already prevalent there thousands of years ago and that it was one of the joys of early civil society. From the first miracle of Christ, turning water into wine, to the Romans who built a temple in honour of Bacchus, the god of wine in the Beqaa valley, this tradition has been continuously present with over 50 winemakers operating today in Lebanon. One of the clear stand-out producers of the new generation celebrating its 25th anniversary is award-winning Massaya. Sami Ghosn, literally a renaissance man. He created Massaya from the wreckage of his family's estate in the Beqaa. Since returning from the United States in 1992 after civil war devastation, he and his brother Ramzi have built a winery in the Beqaa and a fabulous wine resort in Faqra, Mount Lebanon. Sami travels widely to promote Massaya thereby also serving as a roving ambassador for the country. Looking back at his family's legacy, the struggles in the Middle East, and the pride in his homeland, wine has a special significance for Sami. He says: “A glass of wine from Lebanon is more than an alcoholic beverage. It is a message of civilization, resilience, tolerance, and identity”. Connect Website: http://www.massaya.com/english/home  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/massayalebanon/?hl=en More about the host Marc Millon: Marc Millon, VIA Italian Wine Ambassador 2021, has been travelling, eating, drinking, learning and writing about wine, food and travel for nearly 40 years. Born in Mexico, with a mother from Hawaii via Korea and an anthropologist father from New York via Paris, he was weaned on exotic and delicious foods. Marc and his photographer wife Kim are the authors of 14 books including a pioneering series of illustrated wine-food-travel books: The Wine Roads of Europe, The Wine Roads of France, The Wine Roads of Italy (Premio Barbi Colombini), and The Wine Roads of Spain. Other titles include The Wine and Food of Europe, The Food Lovers’ Companion Italy, The Food Lovers’ Companion France, Wine, a global history. Marc regularly lectures and hosts gastronomic cultural tours to Italy and France with Martin Randall Travel, the UK’s leading cultural travel specialist. He has also been the host of the ‘Wine, food and travel with Marc Millon’ series on the Italian Wine Podcast since 2021. When not on the road Marc lives on the River Exe in Devon, England. Connect: Website:  https://www.quaypress.uk   https://www.marcmillon.co.uk  https://www.vino.co.uk    https://www.quaypress.com  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marc-millon-50868624/ Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Marc_Millon  _______________________________ Let's keep in touch! Follow Italian Wine Podcast on our social media channels: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/italianwinepodcast/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ItalianWinePodcast  Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/itawinepodcast  Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mammajumboshrimp  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/italianwinepodcast  If you feel like helping us, donate here: https://www.italianwinepodcast.com/donate-to-show/  Until next time, Cin Cin! Thanks for listening! This show is all about food and wine pairings, and traveling through Italy with Marc. Join him on this food, wine and cultural journey!