Wine Tasting & Personal Branding with New Age Nonna

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The IABC Waterloo 2017-2018 year kicked off in style with an elegant wine tasting and personal branding workshop led by Sommelier and strategic communicator, Danielle Campana. Also known as New Age Nonna (Nonna means Grandmother in Italian), Danielle took participants on a virtual journey through Wine Country, exploring the structure – acidity, alcohol, body, sugar, and tannins, of three wine selections and recommending excellent food pairings. Along the way, Danielle shared four simple rules that laid the foundation for her personal brand as a sommelier and entrepreneur:

New Age Nonna’s Simple Rules

  • Be honest

  • Compare apples to apples, not oranges

  • Teach and learn in every interaction

  • Make wine approachable to everyone

These rules guide every decision and interaction of the New Age Nonna brand, enabling Danielle to stay true to her objectives for the brand. Whether you are a senior leader or relatively early in your career, a public relations entrepreneur or corporate communicator, you too can create simple rules that shape your personal and professional brand. As you create your rules, keep these guidelines in mind:

  • Use positive statements (be honest as opposed to don’t be dishonest, for instance)

  • Keep it to 5-9 rules maximum

  • Do some soul searching to understand your personality traits, strengths, weaknesses, and life experiences - these make up your personal brand

  • Make sure they are applicable to everything you do

  • Keep them short and sweet.

For more information on creating simple rules, visit http://www.hsdinstitute.org/

Curious about the wines we sampled and recommended food pairings?

We compared Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay (white wines) and we tried a delicious Chianti (red wine) from Italy made from Sangiovese grapes. Yum!

We looked at wine pairing with several foods – a Sauvignon Blanc classic pairing is chevré (goat cheese). Chardonnay from California goes well with creamy cheeses, grilled chicken, or salmon on the BBQ. Chianti is a great red wine that can be paired with salami or prosciutto, pizza, or pasta with a meat sauce.

To learn more, while enjoying a glass of wine, reach out to New Age Nonna.

Kaitlyn Holbein

IABC Waterloo