In this episode of the Cabernet Queens Podcast, hosts Matt Morgan and Deb Lee catch up on the January/February work rush, share their love of lists (and why being busy makes you more disciplined), and then dive into a new gadget that almost floods the table: an electric wine aerator and dispenser. From there, the chat meanders delightfully through weekend cooking shows, “food heaven vs food hell”, curry cravings, Beef Wellington tips (including a genius pancake trick), and a quick holiday hat question about all-inclusive cocktail habits, before they finally lock in their guesses and reveal a surprise bargain bottle from Aldi.

Key Takeaways

Matt explains why January and February are peak holiday-booking months, while Deb shares how satisfying it is to help clients who think a mortgage is out of reach. Both agree: the busier you are, the more organised you become.

A new electric aerator/dispenser turns pouring into a comedy moment, rapid flow, fizzy-looking wine, and a very nearly disastrous spill. Once mastered, they’re obsessed and start talking about it like it’s wine “on tap”.

Deb’s food hell includes aubergine and corned beef, while Matt can’t stand eggs and has childhood trauma from jellied eels. Food heaven? Deb goes straight to a great curry; Matt’s is a classic Beef Wellington.

Matt shares PJ’s method for avoiding a soggy bottom: wrap the Wellington in pancakes before the pastry to soak up moisture. Deb’s mind is blown, and she immediately wants to try it.

Deb says she’d try loads of cocktails on an all-inclusive menu; Matt avoids mixing because it writes him off too quickly, though he’d happily mix wines by the glass.

Key Moments

“That is an electric wine aerator and dispenser.”

“It’s the height of laziness then.”

“Food hell… aubergine.”

“The way to get around it… he wraps it in pancakes.”

“You’re at an all-inclusive bar… try everything on the cocktail menu?”

About the Hosts

Matt Morgan is a passionate travel specialist committed to turning your dream holidays into reality. Offering expert, impartial advice and 24/7 support, Matt ensures every step of your journey is stress-free. From crafting itineraries across all continents to arranging weddings, honeymoons, cruises, and city breaks, he handles every detail, including visas and check-ins. With strong industry relationships and ATOL protection, Matt delivers personalised, worry-free travel experiences tailored to your needs.

Find out more: https://luxurytravelexperts.co.uk/

Deb Lee is the owner of Aldridge Mortgage & Protection, a family-run business focused on helping clients achieve their property goals. From first-time buyers to seasoned investors, Deb offers tailored advice on purchasing, refinancing, and borrowing. Based in the West Midlands but serving clients nationwide, she provides flexible support through remote or face-to-face consultations. With a client-first approach and a passion for making the mortgage process simple and stress-free, Deb ensures her clients' property dreams become reality.

Find out more: https://aldridgemp.co.uk/

See the wine they drink and keep up to date with their adventures: https://www.instagram.com/cabernetqueens/

Get in touch with Cabernet Queens with any questions: cabernetqueens@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Episode 22 of the Cabernet Queens Podcast, hosts Matt Morgan and Deb Lee crack open a mystery red sent in by friends (complete with a personalised label), while Deb finally shares the full story of her “big birthday” Caribbean cruise. Between cheeky banter about turning 60, weekend-only drinking rules, and cheese-on-boob incidents, the episode swings from hilarious holiday chaos (nearly missing the ship!) to surprisingly thoughtful moments about ethical wildlife tourism, all wrapped up with a satisfying wine reveal.

Key Takeaways

Deb recounts her milestone birthday trip: a cruise out of Florida with a group of 11, loaded with laughs, cocktails, and standout experiences, including an unforgettable birthday meal in a speciality restaurant and top-tier service throughout.

From friends heading to the wrong port (Miami instead of Fort Lauderdale) to “first-night smashed” jet lag + cocktails, the trip proves that the best stories usually come from the near-misses.

Deb contrasts a respectful dolphin/snorkelling tour in Key West (no touching, no disturbing animals, protecting coral) with a more commercialised trip involving stingrays/starfish that left her frustrated by how tourists were encouraged to handle wildlife.

Deb shares emotional highlights from her birthday: a personalised song from Tan (tailored to their life story) and thoughtful gifts from family, reinforcing the show’s recurring theme that travel + love + memories beat “stuff.”

Key Moments

“Speaking of birthday, how does it feel to be 60?”

“We flew into Miami… and we were sailing from Fort Lauderdale.”

“It was a really good… sustainable tour… don’t touch anything… don’t damage the coral.”

“I ran up there like I got a rocket up my ass… and he asked me to leave the stage.”

About the Hosts

Matt Morgan is a passionate travel specialist committed to turning your dream holidays into reality. Offering expert, impartial advice and 24/7 support, Matt ensures every step of your journey is stress-free. From crafting itineraries across all continents to arranging weddings, honeymoons, cruises, and city breaks, he handles every detail, including visas and check-ins. With strong industry relationships and ATOL protection, Matt delivers personalised, worry-free travel experiences tailored to your needs.

Find out more: https://luxurytravelexperts.co.uk/

Deb Lee is the owner of Aldridge Mortgage & Protection, a family-run business focused on helping clients achieve their property goals. From first-time buyers to seasoned investors, Deb offers tailored advice on purchasing, refinancing, and borrowing. Based in the West Midlands but serving clients nationwide, she provides flexible support through remote or face-to-face consultations. With a client-first approach and a passion for making the mortgage process simple and stress-free, Deb ensures her clients' property dreams become reality.

Find out more: https://aldridgemp.co.uk/

See the wine they drink and keep up to date with their adventures: https://www.instagram.com/cabernetqueens/

Get in touch with Cabernet Queens with any questions: cabernetqueens@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Cabernet Queens, hosts Matt Morgan and Deb Lee catch up at the end of a long, five-week January, talking New Year’s resolutions, diets, birthdays and big holiday plans, all over a mystery bottle of red. As they sip and speculate about blends, grapes and countries, they also pull questions from the Holiday Hat, sharing hilarious (and occasionally mortifying) stories about drunken photos, balcony drinks, sneaky kisses and late-night skinny dipping on holiday.

Key Takeaways

Matt and Deb talk honestly about how tough January can be – long, busy and a bit gloomy, and why traditional New Year’s resolutions rarely stick. Deb refuses to make them anymore after too many “epic fails”, preferring to focus on learning from mistakes and just trying to be a slightly better person than last year.

Matt shares how he’s lost a stone on keto ahead of a huge 10-year anniversary trip, New York, Fort Lauderdale, a Celebrity cruise penthouse and Nashville. He talks about the reality of craving bread, potatoes and carbs, being sick of meat, and still refusing to give up red wine. Deb agrees keto works, but laughs at the impossibility of doing it over Christmas.

A Holiday Hat question about camera rolls leads Matt to confess to some truly horrific drunk photos – naked window dancing in Vegas and floor-scrabbling room-service shots on a Virgin Voyages cruise. They also admit they’re terrible at “saving” nice bottles for later, regularly demolishing special wines they’d intended to keep for Christmas or a future occasion.

Both agree balcony drinks are one of the best bits of any holiday, watching the sunset with a glass of wine, playing cards, dominoes or even travel chess, and drifting from deep life conversations into silly tangents. It’s the perfect “in-between” time, either before heading out or winding down after a night out.

Deb shares the story of her first kiss with Tan, a late-night snog in front of the Punch and Judy on Weymouth beach, complete with a heckling dog-walker and a 4:08am return to the caravan that became a running joke and the start of her longest relationship. Talk then turns to skinny dipping in Mexico, Portugal, Jamaica and various pools, liberating, fun and definitely fuelled by a few drinks.

Best Moments

“I massively underestimated how much having a wine at the end of the day means to me… I missed it, Deb. I missed it.”

“I don’t make New Year’s resolutions because I don’t like the thought that by the end of January I’ve failed miserably.”

“Balcony drinks are a must, you start with a quiet glass and suddenly it’s 10 o’clock and you’ve completely missed dinner.”

About the Hosts

Matt Morgan is a passionate travel specialist committed to turning your dream holidays into reality. Offering expert, impartial advice and 24/7 support, Matt ensures every step of your journey is stress-free. From crafting itineraries across all continents to arranging weddings, honeymoons, cruises, and city breaks, he handles every detail, including visas and check-ins. With strong industry relationships and ATOL protection, Matt delivers personalised, worry-free travel experiences tailored to your needs.

Find out more: https://luxurytravelexperts.co.uk/

Deb Lee is the owner of Aldridge Mortgage & Protection, a family-run business focused on helping clients achieve their property goals. From first-time buyers to seasoned investors, Deb offers tailored advice on purchasing, refinancing, and borrowing. Based in the West Midlands but serving clients nationwide, she provides flexible support through remote or face-to-face consultations. With a client-first approach and a passion for making the mortgage process simple and stress-free, Deb ensures her clients' property dreams become reality.

Find out more: https://aldridgemp.co.uk/

See the wine they drink and keep up to date with their adventures: https://www.instagram.com/cabernetqueens/

Get in touch with Cabernet Queens with any questions: cabernetqueens@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.