Each week long-time AA members Don and Sam will interview a different member about their experience, strength and hope, in a casual “meeting after the meeting” manner. Special features will enhance each episode.
A new episode is released every Monday.
Polly, whose article appears in the April 2025 issue of Grapevine, talks with Olis and Don about getting sober just before the pandemic hit and meetings went online. She tells the story about being scooped up from a bar room floor, waking from a blackout and knowing that something had to change. Today she stands on her own two feet. Polly was pleasantly surprised that her letter of gratitude for the AA Grapevine podcast became an article in the magazine.
You’re Invitedto the 2025 International Convention of Alcoholics Anonymous. Please visitaa.org/international-conventionfor information and to register. To get the best rate, register by April 15, 2025.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org
Susie talks to Don and Sam about coming into AA while in high school, and some of the attitudes she learned to change. Only in AA, she says, did she find others who admitted that they too loved alcohol—until it turned on them. The three discuss using AA tools to get through challenging times sober. In a History Snippet, Mily reports on the early days of AA in Canada.
You’re Invitedto the 2025 International Convention of Alcoholics Anonymous. Please visitaa.org/international-conventionfor information and to register. Register by April 15, 2025 to beat the price increase.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org
Mack recalls being told early on that “you will never have to sober up again,” and those words stuck with him and helped him commit to AA. Mack, Don and Olis discuss Ask it Basket questions from Madeline and Michael. Stay tuned after the closing music for Listener Feedback from Nadja and Gary.
You’re Invitedto the 2025 International Convention of Alcoholics Anonymous. Please visitaa.org/international-conventionfor information and to register.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org
Stephanie tells Olis and Sam about going to an AA website after a particularly bad binge and taking “The Quiz.” Qualifying, she took it again just to be sure, then found her way into AA through a virtual meeting. Don and Olis share anecdotes about co-founder Dr. Bob. There’s an update on the 2025 International AA Convention in Vancouver, BC July 3—6. This week’s feature is #heardinameeting, and Stephanie, Olis and Sam discuss quotes found on social media.
You’re Invitedto the 2025 International Convention of Alcoholics Anonymous. Please visitaa.org/international-conventionfor information and to register.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org
Chris joins Olis and Sam and says that when he accepted help, little by little his life got better. Chris carries the message by going with other members to detox and treatment centers, and enjoys not only the work but also the meetings in the car before and after. In special features the three discuss a Daily Quote on sanity, and there’s an Ask it Basket question about reading “How it Works” in meetings.
You’re Invitedto the 2025 International Convention of Alcoholics Anonymous. Please visitaa.org/international-conventionfor information and to register.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org
Mary, whose story appears in the March issue of Grapevine Magazine, shares that she got serious about AA when alcohol stopped working for her. She tells Don and Sam that once she surrendered her Higher Power gave her a fish-eye lens view of what she needed to do. Our roving reporter Olis visits the AA International Women’s Conference in San Diego and we hear sharing from Tracy, Brenda, Paige, Danni, Liz, Faith and Cindy.
You’re Invited to the 2025 International Convention Alcoholics Anonymous. Please visit aa.org/international-convention for information and to register.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org
Cindy spent a long time dry in AA meetings while not working the Steps, and it wasn’t always pleasant. She wonders now how she did not go out. Eventually, she tells Don and Sam, she had enough and reached out for help with working the AA program of recovery. In the Ask it Basket Madeline wonders if it’s OK for a newcomer to bring a friend for support to a meeting, and Jim has a question about outside contributions. On Listener Feedback Haley questions Don’s interpretation of “Coat of Tan” in Bill’s Story in the Big Book.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org
Don and Sam start us off with a conversation about the difference between “rigorous honesty” and “brutal honesty.” Jeff joins the discussion saying that his first exposure to AA was through his father and his AA friends. Jeff tried AA for a couple years but struggled with the ideas of a higher power and with sponsorship. With the help of a past teacher he met up with at a meeting, Jeff learned that he absolutely could not stay sober himself and needed help. Let’s see how Jeff does in this week’s feature, Stump the Thumper.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org
Theresa began AA with gratitude for the Traditions, finding she could be herself in the fellowship without concern. An early AA friend helped her see that she belonged. Theresa does service in hospitals, women’s treatment centers and in half-way houses. She says her recovery is a repeating process of discovering, uncovering and discarding, and that she needs to be an AA member all the time—not just in meetings.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org
Michelle, whose article appears in the February 2025 issue of Grapevine, talks to Olis and Don about her awakening of not wanting to drink anymore. Among other things, Michelle talks about the successful logistics of her hybrid home group, about healing her relationship with her daughter, and about writing for the Grapevine.
While we provide the podcast at no charge, we do have expenses. Grapevine is the only AA entity that does not accept contributions, so to support the AA Grapevine Podcast, please subscribe to Grapevine Magazine in print, online, or on the Grapevine app. You can also provide a subscription to someone in need through our“Carry the Message”program or purchase books or other items ataagrapevine.org/store
You can email us atpodcast@aagrapevine.org. To record an Ask-It-Basket question or a recovery-related joke, call 212-870-3418 or email a voice recording topodcast@aagrapevine.org