Richard Siddle, Author at The Buyer

By Rupert Millar on November 26, 2023

Why sommeliers need to take heed of the still wines of Penedès

Rupert Millar confesses to coming away invigorated and inspired from the inaugural DO Penedès wine event in London last month. For too long in the shadow of mass market Cava producers this Catalan wine region has also not enjoyed the attention that its neighbour Priorat has in the past 20 years. But still wines featuring Xarel-lo and Sumoll, amongst other indigenous grape varieties, will hopefully correct that, argues Millar who hears from Álvaro Ribalta MW and Sarah Jane Evans MW about why these wines suit the on-trade so well. He also tastes and recommends six of the 60 wines on show that require immediate attention.

Posted In: Penedes, Rupert Millar, Xarel-lo

Awards

By Richard Siddle on November 25, 2023

London Spirits Competition’s case studies of gold medalists

The London Spirits Competition has now established itself as one of the most important and relevant spirits competitions in the world. It attracts some of the best spirits judges in the world and rewards products that most appeal to potential consumers in how they taste, their value for money and what they look like. Here is how success in the London Spirits Competition has helped some brands grow and succeed in their target markets.

Posted In: beers, london spirits competition, wine

Awards

By Libby Brodie on November 24, 2023

IWSC On The Road: Medals galore for Margaret River producers

We continue our journey around the world with the IWSC’s panel of judges who have been visiting, tasting and assessing wines in their countries and regions where they come from by travelling to Margaret River, in the capable hands of Libby Brodie, who was part of the team of wine buyers, importers, merchants and consultants who were able to see for themselves just how far one of Australia’s increasingly premium wine regions has come in recent years.

Posted In: australia, Australian wine, iwsc, Libby Brodie, Margaret River, wine, wine judging

Tasting: Wine

By Dominic Rippon on November 24, 2023

Going with the grain: success of oaked Chardonnay in Pays d’Oc

When Pays d’Oc Chardonnay shot to prominence in the 1990s, it owed much of its recognition to the New World producers, particularly in California, who had spearheaded the concept of varietal wines, taking the native French grape and infusing it with a new level of extroversion. Key to this was the role played by oak, which became closely associated with Chardonnay in the public imagination – and followed the grape back to Pays d’Oc as it rode the waves of international market trends.

Posted In: Dominic Rippon, oaked Chardonnay, Pays D'Oc

People People: Producer

By Abbie Bennington on November 23, 2023

Château Clarke captures Edmond de Rothschild’s global strategy

The Listrac-Medoc is one of the smaller and less renown Bordeaux appellations and home to Château Clarke that is celebrating its 50th birthday by having a €18 million facelift funded by its owners Baron Edmond de Rothschild and the Edmond de Rothschild Heritage group. The results speak for themselves and put the estate in a position to fully maximise the potential of its land and the Rothschild name, according to Boris Bréau, managing director of Edmond de Rothschild Heritage Wines, who tells Abbie Bennington the work being done at Château Clarke reflects the strategy of the group at all its estates around the world.

Posted In: Abbie Bennington, Bordeaux, Boris breau, chateau Clarke, Edmond de Rothschild heritage, wine

Tasting: Wine

By Leona De Pasquale on November 22, 2023

How Caballo Loco Blanco N°1 proves Chilean wine can go wild

Viña Valdivieso’s flagship brand, Caballo Loco (meaning “Crazy Horse” in Spanish) has recently launched two new wines. Head winemaker Brett Jackson and Caballo Loco co-founder Christian Sotomayor were recently in London to unveil the brand new white wine Caballo Loco Blanco N°1 and Caballo Loco N°20, the celebrated multi-vintage red blends, now in its 20th edition. Leona De Pasquale met with Jackson to uncover the secrets behind the brand’s three-decade success and to delve into the creation of its inaugural white wine.

Posted In: Brett Jackson, Caballo Loco, Caballo Loco Blanco N°1, Caballo Loco N°20, chilean wine, Leona De Pasquale, Viña Valdivieso

Insight

By Victor Smart on November 22, 2023

ecoSIP blind-tasting shows great things come in small packages

The Online Tasting Company believes its high-tech wine pouches can now match the traditional cork and bottle for quality. Its ecoSIP 100 ml packaging is also a whole lot cheaper, greener and more transportable. This innovative tech’s most immediate impact is to make serving small portions of wine much more feasible, opening the way to get drinkers to sample more expensive wines. Naked Wines is already doing just that with the launch of a 24-wine Advent Calendar priced at £89.99. But can you tell the difference between a wine from a pouch and the same wine from a bottle? Victor Smart went along to an innovative blind-tasting to find out.

Posted In: blind tasting, ecoSIP, Online Tasting Company, Victor Smart

People

By Christian Holthausen on November 21, 2023

How Julien Camus got Wine Scholar Guild to top of the class

Wine Scholar Guild is widely regarded as the pioneer in online wine education and the leading provider of specialised certification programs on the wines of France, Italy, and Spain. With a network of over 130 schools in 30 countries and an online community of over 10,000 alumni, it has set its bar to facilitate one of the highest qualified wine certifications in the world with an instructor/ contributor list that reads like a Who’s Who of wine educators. All the more impressive given Wine Scholar Guild has been going for less that 20 years after it was set up by a 23 year-old Frenchman, Julien Camus, living in the US. Despite this success, Camus has maintained a low profile, something Christian Holthausen wanted to set right when he sat down with him to discover more about the story of how it was set up, how it operates, the new website overhaul and where Camus sees wine education heading.

Posted In: Christian Holthausen, Julien Camus, wine education, Wine Scholar Guild

Insight

By Angela Mount on November 20, 2023

Angela Mount: How & why bulk wine is taking over the world

Major wine buyers’ eyes will be either in, or on Amsterdam this week as the wine industry comes together for the 2023 World Bulk Wine Exhibition. A time of the year when so much of the mass volume of wine being traded around the world is being sold, negotiated and bought. This year’s event could not come at a more opportune time as producers the world over scratch their heads to see what they can make from what the OIV estimates is the lowest global harvest in 60 years. It has put even more focus and pressure on the bulk wine market as leading retailer, distributor and importer buyers look to secure not only their wine supply for the coming months, but pin down larger volumes of lower abv wines, particularly for buyers looking to service the all changing UK duty market. Former leading supermarket buyer, Angela Mount, talks to many of her peers in the sector to share their views on what they see are the big opportunities and challenges in the global bulk wine market.

Posted In: angela mount, bulk wine, wine, wine buyer, wine fair, wine producers, world bulk wine exhibition

Tasting: Wine

By Leona De Pasquale on November 20, 2023

Burgundy 2022: Thibault Gagey on the new ‘godsend’ vintage

Just as news was announced that 2023 is the second spectacular vintage in a row in Burgundy so Louis Jadot unveiled its Burgundy 2022 En Primeur offering in London through UK importer Hatch Mansfield. In stark contrast to the disastrous 2021 vintage, when hardly anyone had any wine to sell, 2022 came as a relief, delivering outstanding quality and quantity. However, the soaring demand has kept prices firmly anchored on the elevated end of the spectrum. Leona De Pasquale spoke with Louis Jadot’s managing director, Thibault Gagey, for an overview of this much-anticipated vintage.

Posted In: 2022 Burgundy, Bourgogne, Burgundy 2022, chardonnay, hatch mansfield, Leona De Pasquale, Louis Jadot En Primeur 2022, pinot noir

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