Kevin LoVullo is a man of many passions. From insurance to horticulture to broadcast media, his life has followed many different passions and career paths. Growing up in a hardworking Irish-Sicilian family, Kevin remembers being inspired by his father’s love of winemaking. Forty years later and armed with his own love for wine, he brings it to you with an entertaining and engaging style as host of Spiel the Wine.

Long before he became a respected wine enthusiast, Kevin worked for his family’s insurance company right after high school. “As a teenager, going to work and making money seemed quite appealing at the time,” reflects LoVullo. “I learned a lot in the years that followed, but I am a believer that going away to college is much more rewarding, beyond an education; an 18-year-old is too young to be thrown into a corporate environment. I made money, learned a great deal about business, and even met my wife Jackie to whom I have been married to for over 25 years.”

His life began to switch gears in 1998, when his insurance premium finance company was acquired by a Kansas City company. One year later, the deal was complete, and shortly after Kevin resigned from the company to channel his other interests in a more “earthly” direction. “I am passionate about plants and trees so I opened a retail specialty garden center in East Amherst, New York, called ProGardens, selling specialty plants, Vietnamese pottery, fruits, vegetables, and even kettle corn.”

In August 2004, Kevin took advantage of an offer to sell ProGardens. Kevin refers to the sale as a bittersweet moment. “As you grow older your passions evolve,” he says. “With the sale of ProGardens it allowed me to pursue a passion that had been there along: wine.” LoVullo’s interest in wine began with a book idea he has yet to publish. Titled “Spiel the Wine” the book was to be a collection of Q&A-style interviews with world-renowned winemakers, sommeliers, and wine enthusiasts. While working on the book, the idea of hosting a radio program of the same name was born and features LoVullo engaging in discussions about wine, food, and entertaining with distinguished guests, some of whom include Alessia Antinori, the first woman in twenty-six generations to take over the Antinori dynasty, and Thomas Matthews, Executive Editor of Wine Spectator magazine.