Bouchon's Mandy Is Finally Here | Wine, Drag Race, Disaster Movies & Building Something Real

If you've been listening to Slightly Unhinged for any amount of time, you already know Mandy. She's been in the background of this show since the very beginning — her wine bar, Bouchon, is where the wine comes from in almost every episode, and her name has come up more times than either of them can count. This week, she finally gets her moment. Mandy is the owner of Bouchon: A Wine Bar in Cedar Mill, one of Portland's most beloved neighborhood wine bars and the unofficial home base of this podcast. In this episode, Justin and Mandy get into how they met, how Bouchon came to be, the rebrand from Portland Wine Cellar to the cozy, sexy space it is now, and why she left her old location the second her lease ran out. They also dig into wine club, the crash course Mandy got in wine knowledge after opening a business she wasn't totally prepared for, and why her no-bullshit approach to wine is exactly what makes her so good at what she does. And then it gets a little unhinged. They break down this season of RuPaul's Drag Race (the queens were not the problem), compare favorite comfort movies, debate whether Titanic is an acceptable answer in a rapid fire round, and somehow end up talking about Justin's bottle purge party that did not result in fewer bottles. This one is for the longtime listeners who've been waiting for this episode, and for anyone new who wants to understand exactly what kind of show this is. In this episode: How Justin and Mandy met at a CMBA happy hour The origin story of Bouchon and why the name means cork Why Mandy hated her old space so much she left the second her lease was up The rebrand from Portland Wine Cellar to Bouchon Wine club: what it is, how it works, and why the four bottle option is the right call Mandy's crash course in wine knowledge and why she's proud of how far she's come Why she never pretends to know something she doesn't This season of RuPaul's Drag Race, and Mandy's very strong feelings about production Rapid fire: comfort movies, wine trends, karaoke go-tos, and a very spirited defense of Dante's Peak Justin's bottle purge party that somehow required buying a new case of wine Saving bottles from Simon's birth year for his 21st birthday The Alien franchise, stepbrothers discourse, and natural wine opinions Mandy's unhinged moment: yelling at other people's children in a zip line queue About Mandy Mandy is the owner of Bouchon: A Wine Bar in Cedar Mill, Portland. What started as a crash course has turned into a genuine expertise and a community-centered space that people actually want to hang out in. She knows her wine, she'll tell you when she doesn't, and she built something her regulars are fiercely loyal to. She's also been mentioned in nearly every episode of this podcast, so it's about time. Connect with Mandy & Bouchon Website: bouchonpdx.com Instagram: @bouchonpdx How to support Mandy: Visit Bouchon, join the wine club, and send people her way. Mentioned in this episode: Bouchon: A Wine Bar — bouchonpdx.com Cedar Mill Business Association (CMBA) Violin Wines (Willamette Valley Pinot Noir) Vincent Wine Granville Wines Corsini (Italian wine featured in episode 2/3) PDX Deals — pdxdeals.com Buddha Lounge, Portland Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall (The Schnitz) Jinkx Monsoon Wine for this episode Thank you to Bouchon: A Wine Bar for providing the wine for this episode — a 2017 Chateau Falfas Bordeaux, right bank, heavier on the cab than you'd expect, and one of Mandy's personal favorites from the shop. Visit Bouchon: bouchonpdx.com Follow the show Instagram: @slightlyunhingedthepodcast Subscribe! If this episode made you want to finally check out Bouchon, good. If it made you want to watch Dante's Peak, we understand. Either way, subscribe and share it with someone who needs more of this energy in their life.