Poms, Pinot and Wine Vault TV
Wednesday 3 March
I met Jayson Bryant of Wine Vault TV through twitter last year. He’s New Zealand’s answer to Gary Vaynerchuk although he hails from Hampshire in England. Bryant set up his store, The Wine Vault, in 2005 and while he’s been in New Zealand since 1998, he hasn’t lost his southern accent.
Wine Vault TV started at the end of 2008 and Bryant admits he cringes when he looks back on the first 40 or so episodes. But as he nears the 200th episode, he’s very comfortable in front of the camera, as I found out when he invited on to his show.
A few days before coming on the show, he asked “What do you want to taste?”
“Syrah”, I answered.
So off I went thinking he was going to pull out a bottle or two of Syrah but he hadn’t taken a blind bit of notice of me! He pulled out two Pinot Noirs. Bloody Southerners.
I’ve not yet been overly impressed with Marlborough Pinot Noir, they lack a bit of structure in my opinion while Martinborough and Central Otago are much more together. So, just to prove me wrong out comes 1996 La Strada Marlborough Pinot Noir from Fromm. It was still alive – just with really earthy, vegetal flavours. I’ve not had the chance to taste a wine with so much age from New Zealand so it was pretty interesting.
I’m not going to reveal any more or it’ll spoil it. We had great fun on the show and it’ll be on the web next week and I’ll embed it on my site too for you to watch. I’m hoping I didn’t swear too much or my mum won’t be pleased.
Chilean earthquake strikes our wine producing friends
Monday 1 March
You probably turned on your TV yesterday and saw the aftermath of the massive earthquake in Chile: houses no more than piles of rubble and bridges nose-diving into the ravines they once crossed.
Haiti seemed like a distant place to me but knowing people in Chile and its wine regions, having been there just three months ago, this natural disaster seems very close to home. I met Pedro Parra, a terroir specialist who lives in Bio Bio, which was at the centre of the quake and I hope he is safe and well. I am awaiting a reply from him via twitter.
When fires, floods, earthquakes hit countries with wine regions, the wine press can struggle to find information but Wines of Chile were on the ball with a statement and immediate plans to set up a relief fund.
In a statement they said: “At this early stage, it has been difficult to ascertain the extent of the damage to Chile’s wine regions and winery infrastructure, but I have had contact with a number of friends in Chile who report that there is significant damage in the southern wine areas closest to the epicentre, notably Bío Bío, Cauquenes, and other parts of Maule, and Curicó.
“Even wineries as far north as Colchagua have been affected, with structural damage, road collapses, and power and communication problems.
“In due course Wines of Chile will find a way to ensure that the UK wine trade can send funds to help families in need as Chile find its proud feet again.”
My pesos are on their way.
If you want to donate more generally, here are the details of the Chilean Earthquake Appeal. A wine trade fund will follow.
BBVA Bank
142 Brompton Road, London, SW3 1HY
Account Nº 01010982
Sort Code: 23-47-36
(if needed) IBAN: GB46BBVA23473601010982