Curtis Worrall wasn’t always Whispering Vine’s benevolent leader. In days long past, when The Vine was just a twinkle in his baby blue eyes, Curtis was a humble bellman and valet attendant serving eager, jovial vacationers under the neon lights of Reno, NV.  

After 13 years of parking cars and hefting luggage for the rich and famous, Curtis decided that it was time to set off down his own path to glory. Hence he opened, a small, but successful coffee shop by the name of The Purple Bean. After five glorious years manning the helm of the S.S. Purple Bean, Curtis decided that the time was right to take up his true passion; a passion for the glorious, fermented juice of grapes! 

You see, the coffee shop was just a stepping stone to a bigger dream; a dream of wine, a dream to satiate the thirst of his people. When asked how he got started in the industry, Curtis briefly, yet succinctly replied, “Dove in.” And indeed he did! 

Since that fateful day, 25 + years ago, Whispering Vine has grown to 4 locations (and back down to 2) spanning the length and breadth of Reno, NV; The Biggest Little City in the World! One might say that when it comes to wine, this one man, through sheer determination, sweat, and cunning, conquered the [Biggest Little City in the] world!

Brian. Everybody knows Brian. Brian is the man you call when no one else will do. He is the time tested, tried and true, cut from the cloth sort of guy. He’s the one and only man you know who can seek out just the right wine for you and only you. He’s always there for you, behind the counter at 4th street, or just a phone dial away. And when he’s not, surely no other will do. You’ll just have to call back again tomorrow. Yes, Brian, the man that literally everyone, I mean everyone, trusts with their dime to fill up cases with delicious wine. 

But it wasn’t always this way. He’s had to earn his stripes. Back when Brian first started with Whispering Vine in the year 2000, he was a young ambitious lad with a twinkle in his eye. (Turned out that the twinkle in his eye was actually just his son Jude, but we’ll get back to that later.) 

The owner of Whispering Vine, Curtis Worrall, saw something great in Brian. He wasn’t sure if it was the ease in which he dealt with customers, the love of wine that grew with every passing day, or that odd twinkle in his eye, but whatever it was, it was worth fostering and supporting. 

As the company grew, so did Brian. He grew into a powerhouse of wine knowledge and it soon came to pass that all of Reno trusted him and only him to pick out their wine. In fact, no one else in all of the world could possibly know the perfect style of wine and ratio of reds to whites for your dinner party other than Brian. So, next time you visit the Whispering Vine, walk happily up to the counter and ask, “Is Brian in?” And if he’s not, that means he’s probably hanging out with his awesome son Jude and any of our other knowledgable staff can still help you.

You all know Shannin. She’s the bright, smiling face that you’ve come to trust for all of your wine needs at the Whispering Vine. You probably even know that she likes sharing bottles of bubbles with friends, going on fun adventures, making people smile, and puppies (especially her new French Bulldog, Mabel). 

What you may not know is that when she started working for Whispering Vine in 2009 she actually didn’t know a thing about wine. However, after 6 years of working at the Foothill location, Shannin took and passed her level 1 Sommelier test proving that she had a knack for picking out exactly what her loyal customers were looking for. 

As her knowledge and passion for wine grew, so did Whispering Vine. Upon opening the 3rd Whispering Vine location, in what was Reno’s old Washoe Steakhouse, Curtis realized that with Shannin’s background in bookkeeping and HR management she would be the perfect choice to help him run the growing business as Whispering Vine’s new Operations Manager. Shannin accepted in the only way she could; she shrugged her shoulders, smiled, and said, “I’ll do my best!” 

With eight solid years since that fateful shoulder shrug, Whispering Vine is still running strong. And while Shannin is often fretting over scheduling 30+ employees, wine special orders, stocking, hiring, emailing, and whatever else she does to keep Whispering Vine chugging along, she will always stop, smile and help any guest find exactly what they are looking for.

When you sink your teeth into any of the culinary delights from Whispering Vine’s 4th street menu, and the flavors send you into a sensory-induced delirium of delight, you have Head Chef Josh Davis to thank. Family man and longtime mad scientist in the kitchen, Josh is the real deal. 

It’s hard to believe that this Virtuoso of Veal, this Champion of Tri-Tip; this Master of Morsels, this…. well, you get the idea. It’s hard to believe that Josh started his career almost 25 years ago as a teenage prep cook at Luciano’s. That job propelled Josh on to manage a pizza restaurant and eventually landed him in the culinary program at the Art Institute of Seattle. (I know, seems like a big leap in time and ambition, but I work with what I’m given).  While in Seattle, he worked for a traditional Japanese restaurant in the Westin Hotel learning how to wield a knife as swift and as deadly as a Samurai… well, as swift and deadly as a Samurai’s private chef. 

Upon leaving Seattle, Josh spent time in both Hawaii and Vermont working at the fast~paced Kimo's on Maui. He also learned how to tandem surf, tightrope over active volcanoes, and hypnotize tiger sharks. Since landing like a failed Russian Sputnik satellite in beautiful Reno, Nv, he has since worked for some of Reno's best Chefs in some of Reno's best kitchens, including Sezmu, Bowl, and LuLou's.

Since becoming the Head Chef and leader of Reno’s most spirituous and eligible kitchen crew, Josh has since come to love working in a kitchen that allows creative freedom. When prompted hastily for comment during the height of the dinner rush, Josh loudly stated, “Get out of the kitchen! I don’t have time for questions!” 

Later that night, when things had calmed down a bit he added to that previous statement by saying that his favorite part about working for Whispering Vine is that he, “loves that we put out great food and wine without being pretentious, as well as creating the family environment we've cultivated between both staff and customers. And lastly, I love working for an owner that values the importance of family!”

There you have it folks words of truth from our Patron Saint of Pork Chops, Captain of Kumquats, Commodore of Compote, Sheriff of Shucking Shells, Minister of Macaroni, Puppet Master of…… Alright, alright! I get it! I get it! I’m done….

…Puppet Master of Pickled Pigs Feet.

Sandy is the Restaurant Manager and the Events Coordinator of the 4th Street location of the Whispering Vine. Previously she worked as the general manager of the old Washoe Steakhouse which was the prior incarnation of the 4th Street building. She “came with the building” as she likes to say!

 

Sandy grew up in the Bay Area, graduated from UC Davis, and then moved to Reno 30+ years ago where she has worked as a server and/or bartender in various places in the restaurant industry such as Hacienda del Sol and Craig’s Restaurant. She loves working in general, but is especially fond of The Vine because of the people she gets to work with. The owner, coworkers and customers are the best ever and she’s happy to go to work every day. She once received a fortune cookie that read “you are busy but you are happy”, and that pretty much sums it up. From spreadsheets and keeping the her ducks in line, to smiling and suggesting some dessert! Sandy is at her happiest when she’s hard at work and she is great at it. 

 

In her spare time Sandy can be found running around town going to yard sales, teaching dance classes, playing the flute, caring for her 5 cats and looking after “Walker”, the feral feline mascot of the Whispering Vine! 

¡También ella habla Español!