What makes two professionals, highly respected in their fields put all their life savings into a project to create a boutique winery in Malta making top quality wines? How do they find the time to manage a wine business despite their professional commitments? That’s the story of Dr Astrid Camilleri, a gynaecologist and Prof. Juanito Camilleri a former University rector and former CEO of a mobile operator who have set up the Ta’ Betta Winery in Malta with the aim of making fine wines with personality that have ageing potential. “It’s a long story,” Astrid tells me. It is not a problem for me. It is a beautiful albeit windy summer evening at Ta’ Betta winery, a gem of a place the two have created over many years of hard work. You could call it their life or passion project but it has turned out to be much more than that. “We met in Cambridge while we were studying. I had started working there and Juanito was reading for his PhD. We got to know each other and we got married within 2 … [Read more...]
The Douro Boys in the time of the pandemic
When the Douro Boys group was created, the aim behind the idea was not to work together commercially but rather to put the Douro on the wine map. That required a lot of travel both from Portugal and the Douro valley where the wineries are but also into the region. Today, 17 years later and as the group approaches its 20 years since its existence with a pandemic in between, the five wineries which have put the Douro on the wine spotlight are reflecting as to what the future holds. The Douro Boys was set up by the owners of five wineries, Quinta do Vallado, Quinta do Crasto, Quinta Vale D. Maria, Quinta do Vale Meão and the port wine house Niepoort to raise awareness for the Douro region worldwide. Over the past weeks, I sat down (albeit via Zoom) to speak with a representative of each of the wineries to discuss the impact that the Douro Boys have had on Portuguese wine in particular but more importantly what changes they are considering particularly given the COVID-19 pandemic … [Read more...]
Ichiyo Terauchi: From Japan to New Zealand with focus and determination
In the last in a series of interviews with new New Zealanders involved in the wine scene in New Zealand, Isabel Gilbert Palmer interviews Ichiyo Terauchi, sales and marketing executive of Te Mata Estate, New Zealand's oldest wineries Ichiyo, you are the last person I have chosen to interview in my series about new New Zealanders living and working in the Wine Industry in Hawkes Bay but you are working in a different but important area and are passionate member of the New Guard Group there. What is your interest and involvement in the industry? I am in Sales and Marketing Executive for Te Mata Estate. Its a family owned winery which was established in 1896 where the three original vineyards planted then are still in use and one of New Zealand's oldest like Mission Estate. What led you to come here? I first came to New Zealand when I was 17 years old on a school exchange program to learn English because I was fascinated by it as a language. At the time we could chose to study … [Read more...]
Dan Brennan: ‘Time makes the wine’ and time makes a wine career
Isabel Gilbert Palmer interviews Daniel Brennan, an American who has settled in New Zealand and is working to do something different with wines in Hawkes Bay. His advice to anyone taking a step towards a winemaking career is to be ready to work hard and not make much money for a very long time. He says its important to work with people who have the same mindset as yours and are passionate. Here is his story. Lets begin with a timeline Dan. What year did you come to New Zealand and specifically why? 2008 to study Wine Science at the Eastern Institute of Technology (EIT) in Hawkes Bay. Where do you live and from where did you come from originally ? I live in Hawkes Bay. I am New York-born, and grew up in Philadelphia in a Sicilian-Irish family. What brought you from the East Coast of USA not exactly known for wine growing to the East Coast of New Zealand and Hawkes Bay, well known for it? I can answer that partly with a question for you. Do you think tasting a wine … [Read more...]
From journalism to winemaking – the story of Clos de L’Obac
The wines of Clos De L'Obac don't need any introduction among lovers of Spanish wines. These wines are known for their balance and elegance and have great ageing potential. I recently caught up with Guillem Pastrana at a tasting organised by Belgian importer of Spanish wines La Buena Vida. He is the son of former journalist Carles Pastrana and his wife, a Barcelona enologist Mariona Jarque who embarked on their life adventure devoting their professional and family future on a project to recover the wines of El Priorat and to make these wines internationally recognised. 30 years later, you can easily say that they have succeeded in their mission to make their wines internationally known. The wines are exported to over 40 countries to the extent that Guillem says they are no longer looking to expand. Guillem explained the philosophy of the winery. "At the age of 34, my father, who was a journalist in Spain, wanted a change in his life. He decided, together with my mother, to … [Read more...]
Albert Jané (Acustic Celler): ‘Great wines are made in the vineyard’
Albert Jané is a passionate winemaker who is considered to be one of the pioneers of the D.O. Montsant region, in Spain. Coming from a winemaking family in the heart of Penedes, Albert had full confidence in the Do Montsant regionI had the pleasure of meeting him recently at a wine tasting event organised by La Buena Vida. The name of the winery ‘Acustic’ reflects not only the style of wine but also Albert’s philosophy of winemaking. He told Food and Wine Gazette that he likes to make great wines from exceptional vineyards. “It is the grapes and the weather conditions which express the history and reflection of a region and not the winemaker. I firmly believe that wine is made in the vineyard not by the winemaker,” he tells me. “Wine is pleasure, emotion and passion,” he tells me. “When you take a good bottle of wine and listen to what it tells you, it gives you a similar feeling to music. That is why I have used ‘acustic’ for the winery. “I like to think of my wines as being … [Read more...]
Rafael Palacios: Making magnificent white wines in Galicia, Spain
Rafael Palacios does not need any introduction among Spanish wine lovers. Considered to be among the best white wine makers in the whole of Spain, if not the best, he began his new wine project in Valdeorras in 2004 using the Godello grape which is an indigenous white grape variety of the Valdeorras region of Galicia. The Godello grape is a stunning variety that has been rescued and is now attracting a lot of attention. Rafael Palacios recognised the grapes' potential has been making wines which are the perfect expression of the quality of this grape variety. I met Rafael last weekend at a wine tasting organised by Belgian importer La Buena Vida and asked him what it means to be the 'best' white winemaker in Spain. "That's a very big statement," he tells me. "I am very happy to work with the Godello grape and I am extremely happy and proud that I have found my passion. That is important and that motivates me to continue to work to make better wines." Rafael is the youngest … [Read more...]
Inside the cellars of Grafé Lecocq in Namur: A winemaker like no other
Within the citadel of Namur, the Belgian city that provides a gateway to the Ardennes, lies a tunnel that for more than sixty years has been quietly ageing the wines of one of Belgium's leading wine 'negociants'. The conditions for holding up to 1,200 oak barrels are near perfect. Temperature is constant between 11C and 12C and the humidity reaches over 90% in these tunnels. Bernard Grafé, the CEO of Grafé Lecocq, took me to visit the impressive cellars within the Namur citadel and explains the story behind this incredible wine house. After our visit to the tunnels inside the Namur citadel, he takes me to the cellars of the Namur cathedral and the Courts of Justice, just opposite the house from where the business had started 130 years ago. There he shows me over 500 square metres of storage space with ideal and stable temperatures where the bottles are aged before they are distributed. The cellars have been used pretty much since the business started and had been built to … [Read more...]