Every year, as the Giro d'Italia approaches, we ease into our coverage with an episode that has — ostensibly — nothing to do with racing bikes. Any listeners with a passing interest in wine, stay with us. Everyone else, there are plenty of other episodes in our build-up to the Grande Partenza that will be more up your strada.The Cycling Podcast has been on the ground at every Giro since 2016, and the lesson we keep relearning is that these races can't really be separated from the places that host them. The culture, the land, the things it grows and makes — all of it is part of the story. It was with that in mind that we headed to D Vine Cellars HQ in London last week for the unveiling of our 2026 Girovagando selection (link to buy and list of wines in the shownotes below), with Greg Andrews the master of ceremonies. Follow us on social media:Twitter @cycling_podcastInstagram @thecyclingpodcast2026 Girovagando selection:You can buy this year’s Girovagando selection here: https://dvinecellars.com/products/cycling-podcast-giro-26. The wines with corresponding stage numbers are as follows: Stage 3: Mixtape Red, Georgiev & Milkov, Plovdiv (red) Stage 4: Tenuta del Conte, Calabria Rosso, Calabria (red) Stage 5: Vigneti del Vulture, Pipoli, Aglianico del Vulture, Basilicata (red)Stage 10: Bianco 'il Terraio’ Paterna, Tuscany (white)Stage 14: Les Crêtes Mon Blanc, Valle D’Aosta (white)Stage 20: Braida Antica Blanc, Russolo, Friuli Venezia-Giulia (white)Friends of the PodcastSign up as a Friend of the Podcast at thecyclingpodcast.com to listen to new special episodes every month plus a back catalogue of more than 300 exclusive episodes.The 11.01 CappuccinoOur regular email newsletter is now on Substack. Subscribe here for frothy, full-fat updates to enjoy any time (as long as it’s after 11am).The Cannibal & BadgerFriends of the Podcast can join the discussion at our virtual pub, The Cannibal & Badger. A friendly forum to talk about cycling and the podcast. Log in to your Friends of the Podcast account to join in.The Cycling Podcast is on StravaThe Cycling Podcast was founded in 2013 by Richard Moore, Daniel Friebe and Lionel Birnie.

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.