Can a wine critic become a world-famous influencer? Absolutely — at least that’s what Dr. Matthew Horkey, the renowned US wine expert, author, and founder of a popular YouTube wine channel, has done successfully. Very soon, Matthew will visit Ukraine at the invitation of the organizers of the Ukraine Wine&Spirits Awards 2025 international competition and the Wine&Spirits Ukraine expo. In addition to serving on the competition jury, during the expo he will lead a masterclass titled “The Art of Wine Videoblogging: Building Your Personal Brand Online” on October 30 at 12:30.

Dr. Horkey is the author of three books on wines, hundreds of articles, and thousands of videos, which regularly attract dozens and sometimes hundreds of thousands views from wine lovers around the world. He sits in the juries of many international wine competitions and tastes thousands of wines from across the globe each year. 

Matthew began his wine career in 2015, traveling the world to understand what truly makes great wines great. Today, he shares these insights with his audience, continually discovering new regions, wineries, grape varieties, and wine styles for himself and his followers. He is especially looking forward to exploring Ukrainian wines and exchanging knowledge with local colleagues — and we can’t wait to welcome him to Kyiv at Wine&Spirits Ukraine 2025.

Dr. Horkey has been a longtime friend of Drinks magazine and is also an honorary judge of the Wine Travel Awards, another important project of Drinks+ Media Group. Ahead of his visit, he spoke with our journalist Victoria Makarova.

At some point, there was an idea that theater will be killed by the film industry, and books will be killed by the internet. Never happened though. Do you think mass media as we see it now will be killed by blogging? 

I think blogging itself has largely been overtaken by social media, particularly audio podcasts and video content on platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram Reels, or various other channels. Traditional text blogs aren’t really as prevalent anymore, as people increasingly consume video content. It’s estimated that nearly 90% of internet traffic is now dedicated to streaming or downloading video. Today, reaching an audience is more effective through video and audio, or sometimes a combination of both. This shift explains why video podcasts have seen such rapid growth in recent years.

Your videos look like there’s a team of professionals working on them — director, camera, stylist, even a make-up artist perhaps. However, you do everything by yourself. How do you manage, and what did it take you to learn this?

 I shoot everything myself. Usually when I record in my studio, I use two to three cameras and about a dozen lights – from the two main lights that illuminate my face to several accent lights in the background. I learned the skill little by little because I was genuinely interested. I love cinematography and films.

If you look back at my earlier videos, they were absolutely terrible – I was filming with an iPhone 6 and just a basic microphone. Over time, I gradually accumulated these skills. I really enjoy it, and even though with AI and video reproduction some of these skills might become less essential, I still love it. It’s a core part of my creative process and it keeps the fire burning in me in terms of creating content.

You’ve been traveling to dozens or maybe even hundreds of wine destinations around the world. What was the most exciting and unusual one? 

I’ve been fortunate over the past ten years to travel to nearly every major wine-producing region in the world, and to almost all of the lesser-known ones – except Ukraine, which is why I’m particularly glad to visit this year. Eastern Europe excites me the most. Some of my favorite regions include the Dalmatian coast in Croatia, where the vineyards are truly spectacular – I think they rival those in the Mosel and Douro, even if the region is smaller. Serbia, especially the southern Župa Valley where Prokupac is the native grape, is another remarkable area. It’s tiny, but the variety is incredible, there’s a lot of traditional winemaking, and the valley feels almost frozen in time. Hungary as a whole also excites me. It has a long history of wine production, yet it doesn’t really have the cachet of some of the other regions and countries around the world, especially neighboring Austria. When I go through some of these unknown wine regions, I feel like a wine explorer. I literally feel like Kermit Lynch, the famous US discovere and importer of fine wines, decades ago, when he was traveling through France and Italy.

Do you think wine education is essential for a wine blogger? And why? 

I believe nothing can replace practical experience. I’ve spent many years on the ground, in cellars and vineyards, and that hands-on knowledge has been invaluable. I learned so much along the way.

I did take the WSET Level 3 certification, which was a piece of cake for me because I had already spent years traveling through wine regions, spending time with producers, and tasting and collecting wines. I plan to apply for the Master of Wine program next year.

I’m not sure it’s essential for a wine blogger, but our industry is very insular – everyone knows each other. Having some formal education, or at least a recognized qualification, helps establish credibility. It’s not absolutely necessary, but for anyone starting out today and hoping to build a career in wine, incorporating some form of formal education is definitely advisable.

How did your wine preferences evolve over time, and what are your favourite wines at the moment? (I am not saying “wine” — I understand there’s plenty).

Same as with many people on my wine journey, my palate has evolved quite a bit. I used to drink only reds, believing they were the only, quote, “serious” wines. Over time, I’ve found white wines far more exciting, and today they’re what I usually prefer.

However, when it comes to red wine, there’s one grape I’ve never wavered from: Sangiovese, particularly from Tuscany, and especially Chianti Classico. It was my first love in wine, particularly European wine, and my appreciation for it hasn’t changed over the years. I adore the balance of sweet and sour fruit in Sangiovese. If I had to choose just three styles of wine to drink every day, they would be Champagne, German Riesling, and Tuscan Sangiovese.

Guests of the Wine&Spirits Ukraine 2025 exhibition will have the opportunity to attend the masterclass and meet Matthew Horkey in person.

When: October 29–30
Where: PARKOVY, Kyiv

Tickets: https://wineandspirits.com.ua/

To take part in this and other masterclasses, we recommend registering in advance here: https://wineandspirits.com.ua/program2025/

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• Dr. Matthew Horkey
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• judge of the Wine Travel Awards
• Wine&Spirits Ukraine 2025