Richard Siddle, Author at The Buyer

By Richard Siddle on January 19, 2023

Top UK importers: Importance of French wines & VIN tasting

Next month sees a new wine event launched in London as Business France brings winemakers and producers from all regions of France together for the first VIN event – billed as a one stop opportunity for buyers to see what trends and styles are now possible in still arguably the world’s most influential wine producing country. To help set the scene The Buyer talks to leading buyers and importers who will be taking part in VIN to ask them why France is such an important country for their businesses.

Posted In: business france, france, french wine, VIN, wine, wine buyers, wine importers, wine tasting

Opinion

By Dan Hooper on January 18, 2023

How AI is blurring real world from a computer generated one

When it comes to creating content, tasting notes, marketing copy and images or illustrations to be used by businesses across the drinks, retail and hospitality sectors there is a now an increasingly blurred world between what has been created by a human and what has automatically been generated by an artificial intelligence platform. There are now even AI tools out there that are specifically targeted at the wine and drinks industry and many more are expected to follow. For this month’s column Dan Hooper, co-founder of YesMore Creative, analyses just what is the future for AI in our working lives.

Posted In: AI, artificial intelligence, Daniel hopper, digital, wine, wine content, wine industry, yesmore

Tasting: Wine

By Justin Keay on January 18, 2023

Ksara’s balance and consistency amidst Lebanon’s chaos

Winemakers are used to dealing with major climate issues and, more recently, problems with supply chains. For Lebanese producers such as Chateau Ksara, life is a whole different ball game. Making wine in the Bekaa Valley, a stronghold of the pro-Iranian Hizbollah, coping with frequent power cuts from a bankrupt utility group and inflation that is tracking at 180% – it is a wonder that any are still in business. But the Lebanese people, like the wines of Chateau Ksara, have an agelessness and indestructibility about them as Justin Keay discovered when he met up with Ksara’s George Sara and Lebanese wine expert Michael Karam for a rare vertical tasting of Sara’s flagship Bordeaux blend Chateau and its 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Posted In: Chateau Ksara, George Sara, Justin Keay, lebanon, michael karam

People People: Producer

By David Stredwick on January 17, 2023

How Riesling is a treasure of Australia’s Great Southern region

“Mature vineyards and talented, experienced winemakers have taken the expression of Riesling to another level, where the region’s examples sit comfortably as world-class interpretations of the variety.” That’s how David Stredwick explains the impact that Riesling has had in Western Australia and how winemakers, particularly in the Great Southern area, are working hard to understand and improve the unique quality Rielsings the area is now capable of producing.

Posted In: David stredwick, diletti wines, frankland estate, great southern, Western Australia, wine, winemaker

Tasting: Wine

By Roger Jones on January 16, 2023

Long Read

Marqués de Murrieta turns on the style for its 170th anniversary

As the oldest family-owned estate in Rioja, Marqués de Murrieta, has an air of Spanish royalty. At the bodega’s 170th anniversary, however, chief Vicente Dalmau explains to Roger Jones that there’s no intention to sit on its laurels but rather for his team to push the envelope further both in terms of wine styles and how Rioja is presented to the outside world. At a spellbinding dinner atop London’s Shangri La, Jones reports back on an event where some of the rarest bottles from Rioja were opened and consumed.

Posted In: Marqués de Murrieta, Rioja, roger jones, spanish wine

People People: Producer

By Richard Siddle on January 16, 2023

Steve Matthiasson on new wave & farm to table Californian wines

“It is great to see what Steve and Jill Matthiasson are doing to fight the good fight for California as a whole,” is how Jon Davey of its UK wine importer, Nekter Wines, introduced the Matthiassons to a room of top sommeliers and wine merchants in London at the end of last year before giving the floor to the Matthiassons to explain their part in the new wave Californian wine scene and just what a ‘pursuit of balance’ means to them and why sustainable and organic winemaking has always been the way they have made wine since they started in 2003.

Posted In: california, Californian wines, Jill matthiason, Jon Davey, matthiason wines, neater wines, Steve matthiason, wine

Tasting: Wine

By Peter Dean on January 16, 2023

Long Read

Best of 2022: Peter Dean picks his top 10 wines of last year

Our final look back at the wines of 2022 finishes with a selection of 10 from our Drinks Editor, Peter Dean. Four major events stood out for him in the year – a legendary Hermitage tasting, a wine fair in Vienna, a cycle through the vineyards of Burgundy and a tasting in the underground cellars of Octavian which has already gone into wine scribe folklore as possibly the best-ever wine tasting.

Posted In: Best of 2022, Peter Dean

People

By Richard Siddle on January 13, 2023

Queena Wong on impact of MW Gérard Basset funding

“Curious Vines’ approach to redressing the gender imbalance in the wine world is two-fold: not only do they provide high-quality education and academic support for women undertaking the highest level of wine qualifications; but they complement this by fostering a genuine community of women in wine.” Which is why The Gerard Bassett Foundation has just awarded Queena Wong, founder of Curious Vines, a Master of Wine support funding programme to help female candidates taking the exam. Here we talk to Queena Wong about the work Curious Vines does to bring women in wine together and how the new funding will help.

Posted In: curious vines, Gerard basset foundation, Master of wine, queena Wong, women in wine

Insight

By Richard Siddle on January 12, 2023

Top UK buyers on Right Bank Bordeaux “never being so good”

“We have never been able to buy Bordeaux with the consistency of quality that we are doing at the moment…Bordeaux has never been so good.” That was the verdict of Bordeaux wine educator, Laura Clay, after taking part in a tasting of Right Bank Bordeaux wines that asked our panel of leading importers, wine merchants and educators to assess wines from 2018, 2010 and 2012 vintages to see what developments there have been across the region’s main appellation as part of a link up with Union of Syndicates of St Emilion which covers 10 appellations: Lussac Saint-Emilion, Puisseguin Saint-Emilion, Saint-Emilion, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, Montagne Saint-Emilion, Saint-Georges Saint-Emilion, Pomerol, Lalande de Pomerol, Fronsac and Canon Fronsac.

Posted In: Bordeaux, Right Bank, Right Bank Bordeaux, wine, wine buyers, wine importers, wine merchants, wine producers

People: Producer

By Victor Smart on January 12, 2023

How Frerejean Frères is taking a fresh perspective on Champagne

Created in 2005 and now led by 36-year old CEO Rodolphe Frerejean Taittinger, Frerejean Frères is one of the youngest houses in Champagne – allowing it to break free from convention. The company ethos sits somewhere between that of a typical maison and that of a grower as Victor Smart discovered when he visits for its inaugural maison cellar dinner. Smart meets the Frerejean Frères team and samples the wines including Cuvée des Hussards 2012 and VV26 Grand Cru, a blend of 2008, 2009 and 2016 harvests from vines dating back to 1926.

Posted In: champagne, Didier Pierson, Frerejean Frère, Taittinger, Victor Smart

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