The Idea for My Series By Kate Lansing

Thanks so much for having me as a guest on Writers Who Kill! I’m thrilled to be here, chatting about the inspiration behind my Colorado Wine Mystery series.

When my husband and I first started dating years ago, long before misadventures of home-ownership, parenthood, and other adulting responsibilities, we were in the market for a unique date idea. Living in Boulder at the time, we discovered there were local wineries that offered tastings, and thought—as many of the best decisions are made—why not?

 

This somewhat spontaneous date led to a joint hobby of ours, and was the initial seed that would eventually spark the premise of my cozy series.

 

When we first went to tasting rooms, we knew next to nothing about wine tasting. We swirled our glasses high in the air and sniffed daintily because we thought that’s what would make us look like experts. For the record, they recommend swirling your glass on a flat surface so as to avoid spillage and getting your nose all up in that crystal bowl. But the owners and people working behind the bars were so friendly and informative! Sharing cool factoids about the winemaking process along with tips on how to best detect aromas and flavors in the hallowed beverage.

 

Everything we learned fueled our curiosity. The next summer, we visited Palisade, where Parker’s grapes are sourced in the story, and learned how their grapes, often grown near orchards, take on the sweet and tangy notes of peaches. And every subsequent trip after that—to Italy, France, Napa, Washington (we’re big travelers)—we’ve enjoyed tasting local wines and noting their unique flavors. How they can be more buttery, briny, or jammy depending on where the fruit is grown and what aging techniques are leveraged.

 

For a while, we even harbored a fantasy of trying our hand at crafting our own wine! Which, of course, is very difficult (shout out to vintners everywhere!), although never say never, right?

 

Until then, I’m vicariously fulfilling that dream through writing this series, happily researching the industry, grape harvest, chemistry of fermentation, and, naturally, partaking in a glass or two along the way. Cheers!

 

Bio: Kate Lansing is an award-winning short story author. She lives in Denver, Colorado with her

husband, daughter, and a chair-napping tabby cat named Maple.

 

Website: http://katelansing.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lansingkm/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/lansingkm

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kmlansing/

 

About Mulled to Death: A Valentine's Day getaway is on the rocks when a young winemaker discovers a body at an alpine resort in this delightful cozy mystery.

When Parker Valentine decides to take a weekend getaway with her boyfriend Reid, a ski trip seems like the perfect choice. Between hitting the slopes and persuading the resort's wine director to sell her mulled wine, Parker is eager to mix business with pleasure. But her plans are muddled when she finds the resort owner's body on a treacherous portion of ski trail near the resort.

As a result, not only is Parker's romantic weekend thrown into chaos, but now that the owner has died, her business deal is due for a frosty reception, and her life might be in danger as well. After a series of unfortunate mishaps befall Parker, she realizes that whoever killed the resort owner might want to tie up loose ends. Parker's going to need all of the investigative skills at her disposal to catch a killer before they put her on ice.

 

Penguin Random House: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/621062/mulled-to-death-by-kate-lansing/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Mulled-Death-Colorado-Wine-Mystery/dp/0593100220/

B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mulled-to-death-kate-lansing/1138537103

Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/books/mulled-to-death/9780593100226