Kevin Ecock's WinePod: Recent Episodes
Kevin Ecock
Kevin Ecock talks wine, explores wine, and tastes wine with experts from across the world of wine. This is the Wine Pod.
Riedel has a special place in the world of wine. It is one of Respect for a family that has worked tirelessly to perfect how we can further our ability to taste many types of drink but especially that of wine.
Riedel stemware is known the world over as being completely brilliant. It is also a family that firmly believes in designing and producing glassware to perfectly suit individual grape and wine styles.
To emphasise this Maximilian Riedel spends a lot of his time touring the world with a quite fabulous roadshow. At these he presents, through interactive tastings, how to capture the very best from a wine by using the appropriate Riedel wine glass.
Recently Maximilian commanded the attention of an Irish audience of many hundreds (both wine professionals and consumers alike). His presentation was brilliant. His glassware memorable.
The result is that Riedel and Respect are intertwined by Quality and Brilliance.
Enjoy our podcast recorded while Maximilian was in Dublin.
The Riedel Wine Glass and Decanter Collections are distributed in Ireland through Mitchell and Son and by Hospitality Products.
Last year we were very fortunate to have had a zoom podcast chat with Dave Phinney and the remarkable wines he has created, most notably under the Orin Swift label. Dave is a very busy man!
So how cool was it to meet him in person in London and spend a further 30 minutes chatting. Very cool indeed!
Orin Swift is one of the great wines from the Napa Valley in California. Fruit expression in Orin Swift has been elevated to an art form. Just as well then that the labels Dave Phinney designs are among the funkiest and most personal in the world of wine.
Orin Swift wines are collectable, age worthy and very, very drinkable.
Enjoy our latest chat with one of the really great wine maker personalities.
Many thanks to the team at E&J Gallo who made this visit possible, to Dave Phinney for his generosity and wines and also to Ireland agents Pembroke Wines (to whom I continue to apologise for accidently blocking them in my WhatsApp!)
I met Olly Nolan at the Gifted Fair in the RDS last Christmas. He was showing a range of honeys. I was captivated. Each honey had a captivating scent. Intoxicating even. Olly's Farm Dublin Honey had taken me prisoner!
Wine, Tea, Honey, Whiskey, Stout, and on and on can only stand out as being exceptional if they attack our senses in a visceral way. This should be immediate, lasting and memorable. I just had to find out more about Olly's Farm.
I paid Olly a visit recently and we recorded in his Honey House up on the edge of the Dublin hills. What a view!
My knowledge of bee keeping and honey production is, to be honest, rudimentary to the point of being non existent. Thanks must be given to Olly for guiding me through the process and a lot more besides. Choosing to live the life of a small holding farmer on the edge of Dublin city is not for the faint hearted. That said Olly Nolan has made a fabulous success with limited resources.
Olly's Farm Honey is among the very best tasting products on sale today. Enjoy.
The Honey House
In this podcast we talk with Zoltán Heimann whose family, HEIMANN & FIAI, has a long and distinguished history of quality winemaking in the southern Hungarian wine region of Szekszárd - on the border between the Large Hungarian Plain and the beginnings of the Transdanubian Hills.
Zoltán likes to refer to himself as the 'Kadarka Man'. After this tasting and podcast I'll always be in his debt as knowing my Kekfrankos from my Kadarkas! Each grape is brilliant. Each is unique and completely different to one another.
This podcast was recorded at The Lodge at Ashford Castle where Zoltán gave a masterclass food and wine matching meal the night previous. At the tasting we progressed from Village (Szekszárd) to Single Vineyards (Bati Kereszt and Baranya-volgy) to Szivem (a parcel selection wine from Baranya-volgy).
These are wines to explore and to support. Really excellent.
The Lodge at Ashford Castle : A Red Carnation Hotel
It's a sobering thought to many winemakers that they work at companies and enterprises that, in many cases, are younger than they are themselves! For those lucky enough to work in wineries where age and tradition has seen decades upon decades of continual success they might only contribute to a very limited number of vintages.
It is very unusual that a family can trace its lineage back over 250 harvests. That's a very big number. 1772 - Captain Cook sets sail to find the Anti Arctic: Rutherford discovers Nitrogen gas: The American Revolution begins: The Boscaini family gather in grapes for the first time in the Vaio dei Masi, a little valley in the heart of the Valpolicella Classico region, northern Italy.
Yes, Masi Agricola by the Boscaini family celebrated its 250th harvest last year.
There were events across the world as MASI is one of the greatest names in the world of wine. We were treated to a celebratory dinner at Glovers Alley by Andy McFadden. Giacomo Boscaini opened and poured for us a special label Vajo dei Masi 1997 double magnum produced to honour the 2022 celebrations.
In this podcast, recorded in Dublin at last years' celebration, Giacomo Boscaini brings us on the journey that his family continues to travel. It's been a long and extraordinary time and a story with many more vintages to come.
ENJOY.
Looking forward to visiting our signed bottle in Valpolicella one day! The MASI portfolio of labels is represented and distributed in Ireland by the Findlater & Co.
Recently I met with David Llewelyn at his farm in Lusk, north County Dublin. It's a small holding where he grows a fantastic collection of fruits that include, pear, apple, cherry and grape.
It's also a business where David makes truly interesting products. Try his Perry (sparkling pear wine). It's really very good!
David has a wine label called LUSCA. It's a collection of red wines and a new sparkling wine. They are genuine finds.
In this podcast David tells us his story. Why does he not grow any white grapes? Where did his love of the RONDO grape come from? This a unique story where hard work meets vine growing and wine making talent. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot! Really?
On the day David was very generous. It was a tasting for the ages! The Lusca Sparkling Wine is the real deal. Remember, David only grows red grapes so this is a Rose. It's so good that I can see a lot of the vineyards' grapes heading towards it in the future.
The Lusca Rondo is a very versatile grape. The wine ages really well and one sample of a Rondo made with semi dried grapes really impressed these taste buds. Mind you that's testament to David's wine making skills.
Quantities of the various LUSCA wines are small. Hence you won't find any inexpensive bottles! Google Lusca, though, and you'll find a collection of the finest wine stores in Ireland. They all want a slice of the action because ' the action' is so very good. Read an excellent Producer profile here on the Terroirs wine store web site.
Enjoy.
Bruce Tyrrell was in Dublin recently. His fame and expertise in the world of wine is well known. His wines are among the most awarded. His Semillon considered as among the best ever produced. He was in Dublin behind the Tyrrell Wine's stand at the Cassidy Wines Portfolio tasting serving the wines himself. There are many who would have passed this along to an agency, a distributor or to whoever else. This is Bruce Tyrrell. He tells a fabulous story and continues to work hard at what matters - his customers.
Tyrrell's Wines is family owned since 1858 and its website tells us that, 'Having lived and breathed wine growing and winemaking in the Hunter Valley for more than 160 years, we’ve amassed an unrivalled knowledge of what makes the Hunter one of Australia’s, and indeed the world’s, greatest winegrowing regions'.
In this podcast Bruce Tyrrell brings us on the fabulous journey this family has taken, the brilliant wine they produce from the most extraordinary vineyards and how keeping an eye on the future is totally dependent on respecting the past.
Enjoy
Tyrrell's Wines is a founding memebr of of Australia’s First Families of Wine, an organisation that helps to build awareness of premium Australian wines and their heritage.
April the 17th 1853. Who'd have thought back then that it would be a date celebrated the world over as World Malbec Day. After all, back in 1853 it was just an idea presented to the national legislature of Argentina that it might be a good plan to establish a 'Quinta Normal and Agricultural School'. Up to then the wine industry in Argentina didn't have any great focus. As it happens it wasn't until September 1853 that the idea was given the green light and even then it was for the project and had nothing in it specific to Malbec at all!!
Fast forward. Malbec today is to the wine industy in Argentina what barley is is to whiskey; what Earth, Wind, Fire and Water are to the elements; what John and Paul were to the Beatles. I could go on. Malbec is Essential and without April the 17th 1853 it may never have been imported to Argentina (from France) at all.
Essential, of course, should not be read as singular or indeed as unique. The wine trade in Argentina is diverse with regards to grape types grown, regionality, terroir and wine making brilliance. It is vibrant and fascinating, superb value and totally unique in its offering to the world. No wonder World Malbec Day is so often celebrated as Argentina Wine Day.
We are honoured in this podcast to chat with Phil Crozier, Wines of Argentina Ambassador. How do you become an 'Ambassador'. How do you know so much about Argentina? Phil tells it all! Phil Crozier really does talk Argentina.
Enjoy.
This podcast was recorded in June 2022 in Dublin at the very successful Wines of Argentina tasting titled:
La Kav Wines is the brainchild of Arnaud Clopin. It sells a selection of well sourced wines from France at www.lakavwines.ie. Arnaud's wife is a Kavanagh and he is French - hence La Kav. All straight forward so far!
La Kav Wines also has a vineyard on the East coast near Gorey in Co. Wexford. Visit the La Kav website and fly over it in a drone. It is spectacular!
When I visited Arnaud at his vineyard the weather wasn't as good as it was for the drone. It was winter. Have a look at what 5,000 vines in Ireland on a couple of hectares looks like. Fabulous.
Afterwards we visited the La Kav winery in Gorey town, tasted the wine (white, fresh lemon and thyme, 11.5% excellent) and recorded this podcast. Enjoy the story.
It is unique and quite brilliant.
Ashford Castle in Cong Co. Mayo is a Fine Wine destination and a Five Star hotel. It sits in majestic surroundings. Under the ownership of Red Carnation Hotels Ashford Castle offers a unique visitor experience. Robert Bowe has been part of the fabric of the castle for many years and now with Red Carnation Hotels continues to develop Ashford as one of the most extraordinary destinations in the world.
This is a fascinating podcast. Robert details his beginnings at Ashford, how the wine cellar was conceived and built. Along the way he has helped to develop the most comprehensive Wine Flights, Wine Events and Wine Dinners that Ireland has ever seen.
Robert's attention to detail is a fine one and his love of the customer and guest is now part of the folklore of the Hospitality trade in Ireland. It was our honour to chat with him in the great wine cellar at Ashford Castle.
And let's not forget the stories - Robert has a comprehensive collection!
Enjoy
Kevin Ecock’s WinePod would like to acknowledge support received from leading wine distributor Comans Wines whose portfolio is one of the great delights available to the wine trade in Ireland. It is a collection of some of the finest wines available.
Ashford Castle in Cong Co. Mayo is a Fine Wine destination and a Five Star hotel. It sits in majestic surroundings. Under the ownership of Red Carnation Hotels AShford Castle offers a unique visitor experience. None of this matters unless the staff involved are at the very top of their game. Their wine sommeliers are!
Paul Fogarty is Head Sommelier at Ashford Castle. In this podcast he recounts his early days graduating from Athlone, a healthy stint as a wine retailer and a return to his native West of Ireland as sommelier at the Castle.
We recorded in the extensive cellar at Ashford. It really is a wonderful place and testament to the foresight of Red Carnation Hotels. ENJOY
Kevin Ecock’s WinePod would like to acknowledge support received from leading wine distributor Comans Wines whose portfolio is one of the great delights available to the wine trade in Ireland. It is a collection of some of the finest wines available.
This podcast with Morgan VanderKamer is the first in a series that chats with sommeliers working in Ireland. Their expertise is invaluable and enriches our dining experience in a very immediate way.
Morgon is a Canadian, has been in the hospitality industry for twenty years, the last nine of which have been in Ireland. Today, with her partner Stephen McArdle, Morgon is the co-owner of UNioN Wine Bar & Restaurant in Waterford city .
Morgon is a Certified Sommelier with the Court of Master Sommeliers, has Level 3 Certification with the Wine and Spirit Education Trust and is the current President of the Irish Guild of Sommeliers.
ENJOY.
It was never our intention or plan to publish our podcast with DIABLO at Halloween! Perhaps the brand decided for us .......
When (the fabulous) Concha y Toro launched the DIABLO brand a few years ago it was hard to see where it might fit into the market. That's the way with leaders and those 'first to the table'. They often see hidden and emerging gaps on our shelves long before the rest of us know they are there!
In this recording we were honoured to speak with DIABLO winemaker Tito (Hector Urzua) and with Lynn Balaresque (Global Marketing Manager for both Diablo and Casillero del Diablo). Together they give us insight into how the brand came about, who it was aimed towards and how brilliant it's performance has been.
Importantly, Tito guides us through the grapes, soils and climate that gives DIABLO it's unique character. Mind you, the packaging and pricing are also fabulous and everyone MUST have a peek HERE at the promo video!
Since this podcast was recorded both the DIABLO Volcanic Cab and the DIABLO Golden Chardonnay now sit on our shelves beside the DIABLO Dark Red and the DIABLO Cabernet Sauvignon.
Now it really is a case of the DIABLO you know!
ENJOY.
It was never our intention or plan to publish our podcast with DIABLO at Halloween! Perhaps the brand decided for us .......
When (the fabulous) Concha y Toro launched the DIABLO brand a few years ago it was hard to see where it might fit into the market. That's the way with leaders and those 'first to the table'. They often see hidden and emerging gaps on our shelves long before the rest of us know they are there!
In this recording we were honoured to speak with DIABLO winemaker Tito (Hector Urzua) and with Lynn Balaresque (Global Marketing Manager for both Diablo and Casillero del Diablo). Together they give us insight into how the brand came about, who it was aimed towards and how brilliant it's performance has been.
Importantly, Tito guides us through the grapes, soils and climate that gives DIABLO it's unique character. Mind you, the packaging and pricing are also fabulous and everyone MUST have a peek HERE at the promo video!
Since this podcast was recorded both the DIABLO Volcanic Cab and the DIABLO Golden Chardonnay now sit on our shelves beside the DIABLO Dark Red and the DIABLO Cabernet Sauvignon.
Now it really is a case of the DIABLO you know!
ENJOY.
Trivento has been acknowledged by the very best wine writers as the Best Value High Quality label from Argentina. The name means Three Winds. In this podcast chief winemaker at Trivento, Maximiliano Ortiz, brings us to the heart of what makes Trivento so good.
We have two of Maximiliano's labels in sale on Ireland - the Trivento Reserve Red Malbec and the Trivento White Malbec. It's unusual to describe Malbec as the 'Red' Malbec but in Trivento's case it's necessary because they are unique in bringing us a white version of this dark skinned grape!
Both wines are quite fabulous. The red Reserve Trivento is rich, handsome and rewarding while Trivento White is inviting, bracing and memorable. Both have tremendous depths of fruit, structure and quality.
Maximiliano is an engaging personality and just like his wines we can 'hear' him smiling throught our half an hour together.
Enjoy.
Trivento is a member of the Concha Y Toro stable of world renowned brands.
Vinho Verde has been on our shelves as long as I have been in the wine trade - a long time! That said, I always thought of it as a wine and not a region. A few brushes in the past with poor quality Vinho Verde styles then led me away from both wine AND region. Poor choice. My loss!
On a recent visit to Ireland the good folk from Aveleda transported me to the fabulous quality that the region is capable of. Indeed, I was introduced to wine styles that completely blew any notion of 'green' wines' away for ever.
Vinho Verde is one of 14 demarcated wine regions in Portugal. It sits in the Minho region above the Douro river, below the Minho river and with the Atlantic ocean to the west. It is primarily a white wine region with a load of permitted grapes, most of which we have never heard of! Of these the Alvarinho and Loureira make up the majority of exported wines. Red and Rose wines are also produced.
In the podcast Teresa Olivera (see above) of Aveleda guides us through the region and the fabulous wines made under the Aveleda label. These are wines made by the same family for the past 150 years. These are really top class.
Aveleda is distributed in Ireland by the award winning Mackenway Wines.
Jonathan Mitchell is among the most likeable, knowledgable and enduring personalities in the drinks trade in Ireland. His family business, Mitchell and Son, is not just the longest running of its kind but is unique in its offering.
In this podcast Jonathan guides us through the remarkable history of his family from an early 1800's bakery in Fairview to a coffee emporium on Grafton Street to their long established presence on Kildare Street in Dublin.
Along their journey to their current flagship stores in Glasthule and the IFSC the Mitchell family has continued to develop its world renowned Spot Whiskey collection along with a multi faceted wine agency and retail business.
The New and the Old. A recent Mitchell and Son Portfolio Tasting and the original 1887 lease for the Kildare Street premises.
Will we ever see another family business of its kind again? I fear not. So, let's celebrate the remarkable and fascinating Mitchell and Son.
Just as this podcast recording was completed Jonathan produced a 1978 Spatlese Riesling from their long standing association with Deinhard. This is so typical and generous of this family. It wasn't for show. No. It was for opening! Robert, Jonathan's son, was called in and I had the honour of watching two generations help each other to carefully remove the ancient cork. ..... and it drank beautifully!
Orin Swift is an ultra premium wine brand with a fascinating back story. It's a story that begins and continues with Dave Phinney, one of the finest wine innovators around. His vision is extraordinary and his wines are equal to his vision. They are the epitome of what 'unique' and 'original' are - all wrapped into bottles whose labels would not be amiss in an exhibition at the Tate or at our own IMMA.
Dave Phinney's first venture into wine was at the very bottom rung of a harvest with Mondavi in 1997. A year later he bought a load of premium Napa grapes without a clear vision of what he was going to make with them. He incorporated Orin Swift Cellars (a blend of family names) and made 'The Prisoner' (a unique and captivating blend of Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Charbono). Dave likes blends! It was a runaway success. So much so that the brand was sold in 2008 for a sizable return.
Currently Dave Phinney makes a range of wines under the Orin Swift label - a brand he successfully sold to E&J Gallo in 2016 - owns vineyards in four countries, makes the Locations Wines label (fruit and labels from France, Italy, Spain, Argentina, California, Oregon, Washington, Corsica, Portugal, New Zealand, Texas ....) and has a simply brilliant looking new distillery Savage&Cooke in California where he makes Tequila, Bourbon and Rye whiskey (from Daves own pure water spring in the Alexander Valley!)
Enough! This podcast is Dave Phinney generously telling us the story of Orin Swift - owned by E&J Gallo and made by the insanely gifted Dave Phinney. Enjoy.
Ribera del Duero is on a high plateau in the north centre of Spain. It is, in fact, the D.O. with the highest altitude in Spain with vineyards grown at a thousand metres above sea level and above.
In this podcast Nacho Andrés, Export Director from Bodegas Emilio Moro, guides us along the Emilio Moro journey. It's a fabulous story that results in wines of extreme class and quality.
Nacho at Cassidy Wines in Dublin recently
Low rainfall, long and bitter winters, lashings of rain in the springtime and hot dry summers. These are the conditions that vignerons need to work with to make the local Tinto Fino red grape (Tempranillo clone) into some of the finest red wines made anywhere.
Bodegas Emilio Moro sits at the heart of this region in the Valladolid village of Pesquera de Duero. Its lands have been worked by the same family for three generations and current president Jose Moro is leading the family forward. Jose has a fabulous guiding philosophy that makes him an endlessly interesting person to listen to.
Jose will tell you that 'to make good wine it is necessary to love wine and everything it involves' and that 'a Great wine is the harmony between space and time'. Indeed he also has a refreshingly genuine belief in a Corporate Social Responsibilty where all aspects of Humanitarian and Environmental responsibilities are carefully and fully inetegrated into the wine making process.
The wines of Bodegas Emilio Moro and Cepa 21 are sublimely and uniquely latched onto family tradition and the most up to date and modern technique. They are justifiably proud of their family tradition and at the same time tell us that, 'Innovation in our wineries was born with Emilio Moro when he planted the Clone of Tinto Fino and, with him, set us apart forever. Since then, we have not stopped innovating. From the development of native yeasts, digital field notebooks, through drones or geolocation in the vineyard, to the star sensorization project, Sensing4Farming.'
Jose Moro at both Bodegas Emilio Moro and Cepas 21
The wines of Emilio Moro and Cepa 21 are imported and distributed in Ireland by Cassidy Wines Ltd.
Tea Tasting is very like Wine Tasting. Bouquet, Aroma, Palate Structure, Length, Fruit/Berry Intensity, Weight and so on. Try it some day. Focus into the sensations that Tea brings to the senses. Then add a Sparkle!
This podcast with Jacob Kocemba explains all!
Award winning Sommelier, Jacob Kocemba, brought his first Sparkling Tea to the market in 2017. It was a sensation and represented years of meticulous research into developing a product that answered a need.
Jacob (left) with his business partner Bo Sten Hanson
The 'Need' began when Jacob was working at a top Michelin starred restaurant. He found that that even the though the wine cellar at his disposal had as many as 1700 wines none were entirely suitable for matching with a particular suite of desserts.
Copenhagen Sparkling Tea answered the call. It is quite simply fabulously innovative, brilliantly produced/packaged and a genuinely enjoyable product to savour and to drink.
The product comes in five styles. Each has a unique blend of 13 different black, green, white and oolong organic teas (Silver Needle, First Flush Darjeeling and others). Each is finely and gently flavoured with among others Habiscus, Lemon Grass and Jasmin.
Three of the Sparkling Teas are at 5%abv (Gron, Rod and Vinter) with the remaining two (Bla and Lyserod)at 0%abv. Today Copenhagen Sparkling Teas are offered at over 70 Michelin starred restaurants across 35 countries.
This is a fabulous success story and a great podcast. Enjoy.
Copenhagen Sparkling Tea is represented and distributed in Ireland by Richmond Marketing.
Laura Catena is one of my all time favourites in the world of wine. Her bio is well told HERE and worth reading into. Her father Nicolas is the most decorated wine maker to ever make a living from wine in Argentina and South America. The wines from Catena Zapata are magnificent. While these have all held my esteem for Laura for quite a few years now they only tell half the story.
What I really admire about Laura Catena is her continual and real engagement with her audience. She doesn't need to. Besides all the above she also has a family and a life outside of wine! And yet, she still perseveres to be accessable and wondrously interesting. She writes great wine books.
The three wine books that Laura Catena has written are pride of place among the many hundreds that I have. Why? Becuse they are completely from the heart, brave and honest. They tell me a lot more than simple facts. They allow me to enter into the lives, ideas and inspirations behind some of the finest wines made in the world.
Laura's latest book, in collaboration with Alejandro Vigil, is 'Malbec Mon Amour'. Her previous titles are 'Vino Argentino' and 'Gold in the Vineyards'. Alejandro is a director of the Catena Institute of Wine, Chief winemaker at Catena Zapata and by training a celebrated soil scientist.
'Malbec mon amour' draws heavily on the ground breaking work that the Catena Institute of Wine has undertaken since its formation in the 1990's. This work has brought us the most extensive study of the Malbec grape, and its relationship to its terroir, ever undertaken. Published in both Food Chemistry and the American Journal of Enology and Viticulture it effectively gives a scientific proof to the existence of terroir to vines over time.
In this podcast Laura Catena brings all of this and more to us. Enjoy.
The wines of Catena Zapata are distributed across Ireland by Cassidy Wines. A previous podcast of ours dealt with the wines of Catena Zapata, The Catena Zapata Adrianna Vineyard: one of the Finest in the World. Our guest at that time was Pedro San Martin of Bodega Catena Zapata.
SuperValu runs a tight ship when it comes to Wine Sales. They drop prices back in a very honest and transparent way. They also bring in Guest Wines at fabulous prices. These are in store for a limited time only. The mix is always fabulously interesting.
The current Sale, featuring wines from Spain and from Portugal, offers us a fascinating insight into the brilliant Marques de Caceres. They have the Marques de Caceres Rioja Crianza at €12.00 and the Gran Reserva at the absolute bargain price of only €15.00 (down from €30). In addition they offer the Marques de Caceres Verdejo from Rueda at only €10.00.
But who is behind the Marques de Caceres? What makes them so special? Let's find out.
In this podcast Santiago Alvarez of Marques de Caceres explains all. Well, not quite all, all! The wonder of wine is that it keeps us learning more all of the time. In the case of Marques de Caceres this is one of the great pleasures we have to enjoy.
Enjoy.
Last year Zoe Lengjak brought us, in her words, 'truly special, exclusive, natural and independent Grower Champagnes from the rarest terroir to Ireland's shores'.
Read all about it here at www.champagne.ie
As it happens she also brought herself as a fabulous addition to the palate that makes up the wine trade in Ireland. Zoe's experience within the region of Champagne is exceptional. We are genuinely lucky to have her here.
In this podcast we are introduced to the world of Grower Champagnes. This is where family's grow their grapes and make their wine to the very highest standards. The quality is quite brilliant.
If I wanted to make statement with my wine list I'd Champion a Grower Champagne. If I wanted to impress with a gift I'd choose a Grower Champagne from Zoe's list. If I was wondering what my New Year Resolution was going to be I'd include the idea that in 2022 I'll have a look at the Champagnes that Zoe imports!
Enjoy the podcast and to you all
a Very Happy New Year.
Michael Eddy is Director of Winemaking at Louis M Martini in the Napa Valley of California. This is a winery that produces high quality year in and year out. It is one of the shining jewels in the E&J Gallo portfolio of Fine Wines. It has some of the finest Terroir available at its Monte Rosso vineyard. Add to this Micheal Eddy's talent. What a great story!
Louis M Martini brings us some of the finest Cabernet Sauvignon based wines made anywhere.
In this podcast Michael talks to us about terroir and his winemaking philosophy where Cabernet Sauvignon takes centre stage. Mind you, there are other players as well! How about a Gnarly Vine Zinfandel ...
Enjoy.
This is Episode 4 of our six part podcast series from the premium vineyards within the E&J Gallo portfolio.
Episode 1 featured the wonderful Beth Liston of Dark Horse Vineyards and Winery.
Episode 2 followed up with the legend that is Jim Collins - Vice President for Vineyard Management at E& J Gallo.
Episode 3 entered into the world of Master of Wine, Edouard Baijot, Director of Fine Wine at E&J Gallo for EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Asia).
In Episode 4 we travelled to the famed Sleepy Hollow vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands. This is where winemaker David Coventry weaves his magic into some of the most sublime Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines made in California.
There's an old chestnut out there doing the rounds that asks, 'What makes a Great Coach?' The answer is, of course, 'A Great Athlete!' Great coaches agree.
David Coventry agrees. He's a winemaker who answers the question, 'What Makes a Great Wine?' by telling us - 'Great Terroir'. Indeed, he only positions himself as an intermediary!
Is it possible that sometimes Great Winemakers become part of the terroir? They, in effect, become part of the fabric of the wine. One becomes essential to the other. If so then welcome aboard David Coventry.
Talbott Vineyards, in the Santa Lucia Highlands of California, brings us labels from their Diamond T and Sleepy Hollow vineyards. These are fabled and exceptional wines made by an exceptional winemaker who, I believe, is as part of the fabric as the rolling land itself is.
In this podcast David invites us into his winemaking philosophy and out into the vineyards that allow him to produce Chardonnay and Pinot Noir excellence.
Enjoy
This is Episode 4 of our six part podcast series from the premium vineyards within the E&J Gallo portfolio.
Episode 1 featured the wonderful Beth Liston of Dark Horse Vineyards and Winery.
Episode 2 followed up with the legend that is Jim Collins - Vice President for Vineyard Management at E& J Gallo.
Episode 3 entered into the world of Master of Wine, Edouard Baijot, Director of Fine Wine at E&J Gallo for EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Asia).
Edouard Baijot must be one the bravest Frenchman to ever pass the Master of Wine exam! Why? Because when he joined the wine trade in 2002 he began as a sales rep in the north of France selling Californian wines for E&J Gallo - to the French! This from someone born in Vertus in the Champagne district.
Edouard has since passed the rigorous Master of Wine examination and seventeen years after joining E&J Gallo is now Director of Fine Wine for EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Asia). This is a great story that proves beyond doubt that the wine trade is not a closed shop and that 'Fine Wine' should not (and perhaps does not) imply wine snobbery.
E&J Gallo owns some of the finest vineyards in California, employs some of the finest winemaking talent and, in turn, makes some of the finest wines made anywhere. After all that takes place the wines are entrusted to Edouard's expertise to tell their stories and to explain their magic to the rest of us.
This is what this podcast does. This is Edouard Baijot's story and these are the exceptional wines from E&J Gallo. Enjoy.
This is Episode 3 of our six part podcast series from the premium vineyards within the E&J Gallo portfolio. Episode 1 featured the wonderful Beth Liston of Dark Horse Vineyards and Winery. Episode 2 followed up with the legend that is Jim Collins - Vice President for Vineyard Management at E& J Gallo.
It is simply not possible to make fine wine without fine grapes. Jim Collins goes further and tells us that, 'I'm a firm believer in the idea that better choices and better wine go hand in hand, today and for generations to come'.
Well, as VP for Vineyard Managemnt at E&J Gallo, Jim is one of those who has to make the choices.
How is it possible to oversee 8,000 acres of top class vineyard? What experience would you need? Add 8,000 acres of wildlife habitat onto that and then adopt an sustainability model for the entire operation ... the mind boggles.
Welcome to Episode 2 of our 6 part mini series looking at the premium and super premium wines of E&J Gallo in California. What a brilliant episode where another great story really does lie behind the greatest wine labels in California. Enjoy.
In Episode 1 we met up with the amazing Beth Liston of Dark Horse. Listen back HERE to Beth as she brings us on a journey along which California's best selling premium wine label was born.
Welcome to the first podcast in our 6 part mini series of premium and super permium wines in the E&J Gallo portfolio. These wines are brilliant.
Beth Liston is Director of Winemaking for the E&J Gallo Dark Horse label situated in the central valley of California. These are wines that are widely available at affordable price points - they deliver fabulous fruit!
Dark Horse is a label that has been developed so that we can enjoy, on a regular basis, quality fruit from California. Along the way its winemaker has forged ahead with some highly innovative techniques that give Dark Horse a distinct edge above its rivals.
In this podcast Beth allows us to explore a world of winemaking where experimentation and imagination are allowed to play part. Fabulous processes have resulted in wines born out of co-fermenting different grapes together, dry rosé from Californian grapes grown specifically to make rosé wines, Malbec with a dash of Petit Verdot ......
This is a great podcast and I reckon we can hear Beth smiling her way through it!
Enjoy.
The next podcast in this series will follow in mid Novenber when we chat with Jim Collins - Vice President of Vineyard Management at E&J Gallo.
The astute among you will recognise that I have already recorded a podcast interview wIth José María Fraile of Bodega Tandem. That was at an O'Brien's Wines Fair held at Dublin Castle back in Dec 2019. You can listen to it HERE. I just did. Not bad. Not bad at all!
What was missing, however, was Jose's partner in business and winemaker at Tandem, the very gifted Alicia Eyaralar. Well, here they are together in our new podcast and here they are together at the winery:
I am a complete fan of the wines of Navarra in Northern Spain. The region offers a uniquely diverse collection of grape types and a great understanding of how to blend from both new and old vines. Then there's the great differences across the region in terms of climate, geology and geographies.
Then there's Tandem! This is a super modern winery bringing grapes in from ancient mountainsides. The team at Tandem does as as little as possible as these grapes are transformed into bottled wines. The result is a collection of finely crafted beauties. Listen in and find out why, and how, Tandem goes about its craft.
Enjoy.
The wines of Bodega Tandem are imported to Ireland by O'Briens Wines.
When WineOnline.ie was launched back in 1999 it was a groundbreaker. The first of its kind always is!
There are loads of online wine stores out there now. These weren't there when Anne Mullin and Gerry Fitzsimons developed WineOnline.ie. Indeed it was unthought at the time that their creation would one day be in competition with not just these but also a wide variety of bricks and mortar retailers also.
It is testament to how brilliant WineOnline.ie is that it has not only held its own against allcomers but has also constantly redeveloped itself, time and again, to suit an ever changing winescape. Online events. Off line events. Hampers. Spirits. Gifts. Special Offer cases of wine and more. Much more.
In this podcast we explore the world of WineOnline.ie with Will Mullin. What goes on behind the scenes? Where has WineOnline.ie come from? Indeed, where has Will Mullin come from and where do their wines come from . . . !
This is entertaining, informative and really, really interesting. Enjoy.
In this podcast we chat with Fernando Rodríguez de Rivera, of the fabulous Bodegas PradoRey farm and vineyard in Ribero del Duero.
PradoRey (Kings Meadow) is the largest estate in the north of Spain - 7km stretch of the Duero river; 520 hectares of vineyard; a hydroelectric dam that dates back to 1858; a dairy farm with 800 Friesian cows; a flock of 1800 Churra sheep; a 3hectare solar panel farm; a 17th century 18 room palace for tourist accomodation and a 16th century chapel. This is mega.
The wines are equally impressive!
Ribero del Duero is a fascinating wine producing region. It is high - vineyards might be 1000m asl!
This gives the region harsh and tough winters but also spectacular diurnal shifts during the warm summers. And these are Good! The local Tempranillo grape has a small berry and is referred to as Tinto Fino. 90% of the DO is planted to this grape. The resulting wines are big, bold, age worthy and distinctly food friendly.
PradoRey is imported to Ireland by Classic Drinks.
LUXARDO is a name that I have always associated with beautifully crafted spirits of the highest quality.
The family has just celebrated its 200th anniversary of being in business. We are honoured to have been joined in this podcast by the Luxardo cousins, Nicolò and Matteo.
The family history is peppered with difficulty and war torn strife. There can be very few companies that have had to see their entire operation completely destroyed by war - then, with extraordinary determination succesfully rebuilt, brick by brick and cherry tree by cherry tree.
Original Maraschino Cherries are mouth wateringly exceptional. It's a taste that is impossible to forget. The LUXARDO MARASCA cherry is a unique cultivar grown across the north East of Italy. Each tree is overseen by the Luxardo's.
The Luxardo range is fleshed out by brilliant products such as Limoncello, Sambuca, Triple Sec, Gin and others. None disappoint. Cocktails just aren't the same without a Luxardo present. Have a look at the Luxardo 200th to see cocktails in action!
Luxardo advert from 1828
Nugan Estates is a winery based in New South Wales in Australia. It is the 13th largest exporter of branded wines in Australia, a top 20 wine producer and whose wines are imported directly to Ireland by the Musgrave Group. As such the Nugan labels are widely available through SuperValu and Centra stores.
In this podcast 3rd generation Matthew Nugan brings us on a journey. Along the way we explore his family's quite brilliant history as farmers all the way to where they have become one of Australia's most successful wine producers.
Matthew (above) with winemaker Daren Owers. They won the Wine and Spirits magazine's 2021 Star of Australia and Star Design for their Scruffy’s Shiraz.
The range of labels available from Nugan is extensive and impressive. The Nugan Web Site is a trove of information while the Supervalu/Centra shelves are a willing source of the treasure it tells us to explore!
In this episode I chat with Chris Gifford who set up The Allotment Wine Company last year. Yes, right in the middle of our Covid lockdowns! Brave or Bonkers? Let Chris explain himself all the way from how to get into the wine trade, how to stay in it and how to set up an online wine store. Great story.
Brave.
Chris has been in our trade for quite a long time. Many will know him from his time in retail all the way from the ground breaking McCabes on Mt Merrion Ave to the excellent, 'The Corkscrew' on Chatham Street in Dublin. He is well educated with his WSET credentials and knows a good wine when he tastes one.
The Allotment Wine Co sells to a private client base and via an online portal. Online Wine Sales is an area that I am always interested in hearing about. It is also an area of growth across the world of wine these days.
So, what better place to talk about growth than down at your new, and friendly, Allotment.
Enjoy.
Dunnes Stores recently held a fascinating online tasting of its WEINHAUS range of wines produced by the great Reh Kendermann in Germany.
The tasting was hosted by Alison Flemming, Master of Wine. It was quite brilliant. We are thrilled that Alison agreed to give some of her time, and to share her expertise in relation to the wines of Germany, with us here at the WinePod.
German wine continues to be either misunderstood or not understood at all. What a pity. They produce exquisite wines. Listen in here and find out why.
Enjoy.
When I visited Vasse Felix way back in 2010 I was bowled over by the quality of its wines.
At the heart of this story was its chief winemaker Virginia Willcox. If anyone dares to say that there are no winemakers around who can instil their sheer fabulous enthusiasm, extreme dedication and insane ability into their wine year after year after year after .... then they have yet to meet Virginia!
Vasse Felix is the founding winery of the unique area that is the Margaret River in Western Australia. South of Perth this is a wine making region that is truly alone in the world. It is also a region that everyone interested in wine, everyone that likes wine and everyone with even a hint of curiosity of what might make one wine more brilliant than another needs to know about. The Margaret River, its wines and Vasse Felix are unique in the world of wine.
This is a powerful story, told by an amazing winemaker who brings us wines to dazzle.
Vasse Felix is imported to Ireland by Cassidy Wines.
Gerard Bertrand is a winemaker of tremendous ability. More importantly he is an extraordinary human being. He has the vision of a poet and when he speaks it is uplifting and positive. His eleven great wine estates across the South of France contain the greatest collection of organic and biodynamic vines in the world.
Image from The Buyer
In this podcast Gerard invites us into his world, a place where he feels uniquely honoured to be a part of.
The Gerard Bertrand website is a superb read. It is littered with worldly advice and is richly philosophic. For instance it describes his Clos d'Ora wine as 'Unique and bordering on the sublime, the Clos d'Ora is, more than a wine, a unique experience, a suspended moment in which the intention of its creator, the work of man and animal, the patient power of the plant on the base of the mineral resonates.
The wines of Gerard Bertrand are brought to Ireland by O'Briens Wines. In addition, Dunnes Stores also imports from the Bertrand stable of labels.
I have been a long time fan of the work that Wine Intelligence does for the wine trade. It provides us with context and data. Both are vital to our understanding of how the trade works and where it might be heading to next.
In this podcast Richard Halstead, COO of Wine Intelligence, allows us to have a look inside his organisation. We hear how it goes about its work towards the three aims of conducting Research, supplying expert Consulting and writing in depth Reports.
As with all trades there are many back stories to the wine we buy and the wines we are presented with. The Wine Intelligence story is one of these - and it's a fascinating one.
Enjoy.
Peter Dauthieu is a Director at Ehrmann's, a leading distributor across the UK and Ireland. He is based in Jerez, is MD of Viniberia and responsible for Viniberia Almacenista which consolidates the sherry range sold by Ehrmann's in the UK. Peter has worked in the wien trade since 1997 - at Ehrmann's Wines aand also as Export Director at CVNE. In 2002 Peter graduated with a Wine MBA from Bordeaux University.
I originally approached Ehrmann's through their distributor, United Wines, with a view to explore the 'BeefSteak Club' wines. I have a great admiration for companies that can develop value brands that in turn deliver very drinkable wine. The BeefSteak label does just that!
Peter very quickly changed my mind by pointing out that, as he lives in Jerez (and is quite the Sherry expert), I might begin the Ehrmann's story with a podcast on almacenista sherry with an additional focus on his family's long association with the great sherry bodega, Williams and Humbert. (BeefSteak to follow at a later date ... )
Yes Please! You never have to ask me twice when it comes to talking about what is probably one of the most exciting wines and wine regions in the world.
I took part in a Virtual Wine Tour of Lanzarote recently. It was brilliant. What an extraordinary landscape! This image is from Turismo Lanzarote. Watch the video HERE before you listen to this podcast with Ollie Horton of Wine Tours Lanzarote. It brings it all alive!
Wine Tours Lanzarote was set up by Ollie Horton, an English man from the Channel Islands. (He does, intriguingly, mention that there was an Irishman involved also ...) The business seemed like a great idea for someone with a background in - surfing and finance!
Well, it was. Why? Because Ollie knew the island backwards, had taken a genuine interest in its unique wines and craft beers. He could see there was a gap in the market. His potential customer base would be found hidden amongst the hundreds of thousands of sun seeking tourists who flocked in from the UK and Ireland every year.
Bingo. It worked. And why not - Lanzarote has some of the most extraordinary vineyards in the world built into its slopes of ancient lava flows.
Then Covid hit. Tourism ceased and the Lanzarote Wine Tours business crashed.
Not to be deterred Ollie set up Lanzarote Virtual Wine Tours along with an online wine shop - Wine Shop Lanzarote. They work hand in hand as when you buy a virtual tour you are also sent a bottle of wine from the Island.
The wine shop is top class. It gathers the best products from a number of the island's best wineries and allows you to mix and match. Delivery was initially a UK and Ireland only service but has since expanded across the rest of Europe.
This podcast has a slight echo feel to Ollie's voice - but, then, he was speaking to us from an island! Enjoy.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until Christmas 2020 many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Christmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more successful business environment in 2021. Hopefully after Easter? was the Hope. Now it's likely mid June - outdoor dining only....
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Sinead and Liam Cabot run an excellent wine distribution business, Cabot and Co., in Westport, Co. Mayo They also run an excellent vineyard and wine production business, (Roka is the brand) in Slovenia. At one time they also operated an excellent wine store in the IFSC in Dublin. Clearly, while they are defined by excellence they can also be defined as a couple who are willing to travel the long mile to find it.
The recording for this podcast caught up with the Cabots just after they had driven 2,500kms to their vineyard. It is in Kog in the Stajerska region of eastern Slovenia.
We began with the obvious! How do you do it? Why? This quickly moved on to the history of their venture and finally the wines. What a great story. True passion. Genuine emotion.
'Roka' means 'Hand' and the three wines that I have recently tasted are excellent, memorable and unique to their origin and production. The Cabot website has a fabulous piece on the vineyard and its wines written by Tamlyn Curran. Read it HERE.
Roka is on sale in Ireland across many select wine stores. It sells out every year.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until Christmas 2020 many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Christmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more successful business environment in 2021. Hopefully after Easter? was the Hope. Now it's likely mid June - outdoor dining only....
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Kanonkop Pinotage is reckoned to be one of the finest wines made. It's wine makers have been awarded Best Winemaker in the World on many occasions. It is that brilliant
In this podcast we chat with Deidre Taylor of Kanonkop. We first met Deidre at a small tasting hosted in Dublin three years ago by their Ireland agents, Findlaters. It was a small occasion for such a big wine and to make things difficult the room was dark. Regardless, both Deidre and the wines of Kanonkop shone into my tasting book as Outstanding and Exceptional. Testament to all great wines is that they really do bring joy (and light) into all occasions!
Kanonkop is is in the majestic Stellenbosch vine growing region of South Africa - famed for it's red wines. Hear in this podcast why they say this is 'Where the Big Guns Roar' or why they can quote Robert Parker as saying, 'If ever you meet a cynic who claims that Pinotage cannot make great wines, then pour them a glass from Kanonkop and they will soon change their mind'.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Christmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more successful business environment in 2021. Hopefully after Easter? was the Hope. Now it's likely mid June - outdoor dining only....
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Our Podcast episode #6 was with Clive Weston of Nautilus Wines of New Zealand. That was recorded at their Ireland agents' office, Cassidy Wines, in Dublin. It was this week all the way back in 2019!
How everything has changed since then. What has not changed is that Nautilus Wine Estate of Marlborough in New Zealand continues to make some of the finest wine available.
Their website says it all: The Striking Nautilus Shell - it's shape expressing natural beauty and mathematical perfection is our inspiration to create a collection of expressive, textural precisely crafted wines.
We are very pleased here to present a new podcast with Clive Weston. This was recorded last week via Zoom during the grape harvest in New Zealand - Vintage 2021.
During our discussion we touched on this years harvest, new developments at Nautilus and New Zealand wines in general. We also tasted a few wines!
Follow each of these wines in the podcast. Note that, while my photography skills are not the best, the very clear and youthful colour of the 2015 Pinot Gris is noticeable. Both the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir were supplied for the podcast by Nautilus while the Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris By Cassidy Wines.
Nautilus Pinot Gris 2015
Nautilus Sauvignon Blanc 2019
Nautilus Southern Valleys Pinot Noir 2017 GOLD at the NZ Royal Easter Show
Nautilus Chardonnay 2019 GOLD at the NZ Royal Easter Show
Each wine is spectacular with the Chardonnay taking the honours for me. It is bright, alert and simply packed in much the way a good apple tart might be - layers on layers of adventures in fruit and texture!
Nautilus is a proud member of the Family of Twelve - Twelve Exceptional New Zealand Wineries.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Christmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021. Hopefully after Easter?
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Gaia Wines always means top notch and unforgettable Assyrtiko from the volcanic Greek island of Santorini. These are Greek wines that sit at the top table of quality wines.
Of course, there's a lot more to Gaia Wines! In this podcast, owner and founding partner, Leon Karatsalos guides us through the wines that he produces at Santorini and also at Nemea.
Santorini for Gaia is exclusively the white Assyrtiko grape. These are ungrafted vines grown on young volcanic soils. Quite how these vines achieve full ripeness under magnificent Greek sunshine and yet retain such sparkling acidity is a constant mystery to me! But they do, and in turn, bring us some of the most interesting white wines on the market today.
Nemea for Gaia is all about the red Agiorgitiko grape. We need to see more of these red wines on our shelves. They make such a unique and satisfying style of wine with soft delicious fruits to the fore. (Wikipedia tells us that, 'In Nemea, the Agiorgitiko wine of the region is nicknamed the "Blood of Hercules" based on the legend of the Greek hero slaying the Nemean lion'. Now, we're talking!!)
The wines of Gaia are imported to Ireland by O'Briens Wines.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Christmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Pio Cesare makes a range of magnificent wines in Piedmont in the north of Italy. In this podcast 5th generation family member Federica Boffa talks to us about her family's 140 year history of making wine. 140 years - that's 1881!
Federica with her father Pio Boffa
Pio Cesare makes its wine in an extraordinary winery built in ancient and modern cellars below the pavements of Alba (North of Genoa and South of Turin - see map HERE). The wines themselves are exemplary as Pio Cesare owns some of the finest vineyard sites in both Barolo and Barbaresco. This is where the fabulous Nebbiolo grape is capable of expressing itself to perfection.
Federica is patient with me here! How many times am I going to mix up my Nebbiolo, Barbaresco and Barolo's!! What a great podcast. Pio Cesare -in safe hands as the 5th generation of Federica and her cousin Cesare bring them forward towards new stories, generations and wines.
The wines of Pio Cesare are distributed across Ireland by Cassidy Wines.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Chrstmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
I am fascinated to hear from Janet Wang that wine making in China has a 9,000 year history. Incredible as that seems Janet still refers to wine in China as being both new and old.
Janet Wang is a complete expert on everything to do with wine in China. Her book, The Chinese Wine Renaissance, is rich with both historical records and contemporary accounts. It is an important reference to a country where more vines are being planted than anyhwere else in the world. It is an account of a country where wine has been re-imagined.
Janet Wang is a member of the Association of Wine Educator's and hosts a fabulous YouTube stream on the Wines of China at the Cambridge China Centre. She can be found at her web page WinePeek where you can see the very impressive lists of how busy her media work is.
The Chinese Wine Renaissance is published by Penguin Books.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Chrstmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Maison Joseph Drouhin is one of the leading practitioners of biodynamic and organic viticulture in the world. They are also one of the leading high quality producers of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay based wines from both Europe (Burgundy) and North America (Oregon).
The Drouhin family is a member of the twelve strong Primum Familiae Vini - First Families of Wine.
In this podcast Veronique Drouhin, winemaker at Maison Joseph Drouhin and Domaine Drouhin Oregon, explains to us how she works with her three siblings, Frédéric, Philippe, and Laurent, and also alongside their father Robert, to maintain the magic and excellence of the wines of Drouhin. It really is a truly remarkable story.
Horse ploughing in Burgundy. Weathered basalt in Oregon. Venerable cellars in Burgundy. Gravity flow winery in Oregon.
The wines of Maison Joseph Drouhin are distributed in Ireland by Bibendum Ireland.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Chrstmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Soil, Location and Vine. Over the millenia farmers have understood that chance is best left at the door when choosing 'what to grow' and 'where to grow'.
Experience is a better bed fellow. Sometimes, though, a grower will make a decision based on a soil analysis along with a great deal of knowledge and experience but because no-one had ever attempted to venture into this territory before then chance is their inevitable traveling companion.
In 1992 Nicolas Catena planted a vineyard 5,000 feet above sea level in the Uco Valley of Mendoza in Argentina. Noone had attempted this before. It would be ten years before they knew whether folly or reputation would benefit.
This is the Adrianna Vineyard - South America's Grand Cru
In this episode Pedro San Martin of Bodega Catena Zapata brings us closer to the stones and vines that now produce 100 Point wines. This was a terroir that local viticulturists said could never ripen grapes at all.
In 2018 Laura Catena brought out her second book. It was titled 'GOLD in the vineyards'. (Her first was the brilliant 'Vino Argentina' in 2011). Gold in this case was the potential wine quality hidden away in special and rare terroirs across the world.
The Adrianna vineyard held onto its gold for quite a few years. Then, after an inticate mapping of every detail relating to every vine - it released its treasure.
Bodega Catena Zapata is represented in Ireland by Cassidy Wines.
Enjoy
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Chrstmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Martin Codax is a superb story of co-operation, innovation and independence. When its grower members came together back in 1986 the world, for the most part, had never heard of wine from Galicia, tasted Albarino or could pronounce Rias Baixas.
Today, white wine from the region has captivated the world of wine to the extent that Albarino from Rias Baixas is considered the Finest of Spanish white wines. In this episode Celina Rodriguez guides us through the region, its subzones and, of course, the wines of Martin Codax.
Martin Codax also produces Mencia based wines from Bierzo (Cuatro Pasos) and Godello based wines from Monterrei (Mara Martin). All three regions and their wines are represented in Ireland by Barry and Fitzwilliam. The story behind how the Cantabrian Brown Bear conservation programme is supported by Martin Codax is fabulous. Read it HERE.
Martin Codax Albarino will feature in the forthcoming SuperValu Spanish Wine Sale. More about that on WineIreland.blog closer to the middle of February. In anticipation of that I attended a SuperValu webinar for the press acouple of weeks ago and listened once more to the Martin Codax story. It is so good I just had to bring it to our Podcast!
In this episode I am guilty of telling two of my own stories from a visit I made to Galicia as far back as 2002. Apologies for my indulgence as the Martin Codax story is told to us here so brilliantly by Celina Rodriguez. Enjoy.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Chrstmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Astrolabe is one of those wineries. You know the kind!
Memorable. Exceptional.
In this podcast we chat with owner/winemaker Simon Waghorn. It's quite the chat! Astrolabe is situated in the Marlborough region on the South Island of New Zealand. The Waghorn family produce wines that reflect their specific origin to an incredable and specific detail. It is just fabulous to taste high quality wines where climate, soils and winemaking are all reflected completely accurately.
New Zealand produces fabulous Sauvignon Blanc wines from Marlborough. But they are not all alike. Indeed, the Astrolabe portfolio shows this to perfection. When I first tasted the Astrolabe Kekerengu Coast Sauvignon Blanc I was quite simply there - with the windy coastline, up on a hillside sitting in a stony vineyard. It's briny background and extreme mineral driven foretaste are as I say, Memorable, Exceptional.
O'Briens Wines carry the wine in Ireland.
Wo, I'm getting carried away. This is Simon Waghorn's story, not mine! Let him tell you why soils matter and how the shape of his Island affects rainfall. This is family and this is very good wine.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Chrstmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
BODEGA 695 was launched this year. It's an online wine shop with a difference. In this episode we chat with Ed Jolliffe, sommelier and one of the 'brains behind the portal'.
Rest assured, if you join up to the BODEGA 695 through its BODEGA 695 Club you will receive the very best of quality information and advice. Ed knows his wines! We learn here why his business card carries the quote, 'The Finest Wines Available to Humanity ... We Want Them and We Want Them Now'.
What separates BODEGA 695 from other sites is the exclusive nature of its wines. They trade in premium labels not easily available elsewhere .... and the wines are very, very good.
Take as examples: Floresta Field Blend Blanco or the red Bougainville Petite Syrah from Santa Rita: a magnum of the Contino Rioja Reserva 2015 or Elegance Rose from Clos Cantenac in Bordeaux. These are just a few examples of how rich a bounty BODEGA 695 has on sale.
Enjoy the podcast!
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again. Then we heard that they had to close once more - on Chrstmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
There really is nothing like Champagne to kick off great celebrations. Happy New Year to all of you and many thanks from everyone here at Kevin Ecock's WinePod for your great support over the course of 2020 - a memorable year.
A Favourite label of ours that never lets us down is Champagne Pannier . Why? Because in every blind tasting that it pops up in we rate it top of the list. 'Don't judge a book by its cover' is so true for Champagne. Taste matters and Champagne Pannier has that in bucket loads!
In this podcast Commercial Director at Pannier, Mathieu Brécy, brings the brand alive for us. We learn of the grapes, the growers, the incredable cellars that the wines are aged in and, of course, we learn of the styles that Pannier produces. Distributed across Ireland by Classic Drinks.
Listen and Enjoy. Welcome in 2021 and Keep Safe and Keep Well.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened. That was great news - Open Again! Then we heard that they had to close once more on Chrstmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed. Here's hoping for a more succesful business environment in 2021.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Celebrate Christmas with the best of Irish. Ireland is blessed with the finest artisanal and craft produce. We focus in this and last weeks' podcast on one superb story. Highbank.
This is Part 2 of the story. To begin the tale listen to last week's fabulous episode HERE. Indeed, you can also read all about it on the Wine Ireland web page HERE!
Highbank Orchards in Cuffesgrange Kilkenny makes a bewildering array of multiple award winning products - all based on their organic cider apples. This year Highbank released an
Irish Apple Wine. While it's obviously an organic product the manner in which it is made is unique. In this podcast Rod Calder Potts explains all. In particular Rod focuses on his aplliance of organic techniques and what terroir mans to his family.
From the apples that the Calder Potts grow they make everything from Drivers Cider to Organic Apple Jelly and on to finest
Apple Syrups available to Treacle to Vinegars and to Highbank Proper and also Medieval Ciders. Then there's the still! This brings us Organic Kilkenny Apple Gin, Pink Flamingo Gin, Organic Apple Brandey, Highbank Orchard Spirit Single Estate and Organic Apple Vodka. Impressive.
Enjoy. This is podcast 2 of 2 from Highbank.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! Then we heard that they will close again at 3pm this Chrstmas Eve. Tough times, Tough times indeed.
We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Celebrate Christmas with the best of Irish. Ireland is blessed with the finest artisanal and craft produce. We focus in this podcast on one superb story. Highbank.
Highbank Orchards in Cuffesgrange Kilkenny makes a bewildering array of multiple award winning products - all based on their organic cider apples. This year Highbank released an Irish Apple Wine. While it's obviously an organic product the manner in which it is made is unique. In this podcast Rod Calder Potts explains all. In particular Rod focuses on his aplliance of organic techniques and what terroir means to his family.
From the apples that the Calder Potts grow they make everything from Drivers Cider to Organic Apple Jelly and on to finest
Apple Syrups available to Treacle to Vinegars and to Highbank Proper and also Medieval Ciders. Then there's the still! This brings us Organic Kilkenny Apple Gin, Pink Flamingo Gin, Organic Apple Brandey, Highbank Orchard Spirit Single Estate and Organic Apple Vodka. Impressive.
Enjoy. This is podcast 1 of 2 from Highbank.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Wine Australia is keen to tell us all about their Australian Wine Discovered platform. It's an online educational resource available for FREE for EVERYONE to enjoy, explore and to learn from.
.... and it is quite Brilliant - pdf's, videos, podcasts, tutorials and maps. Loads of maps! You can download the whole shooting match and just so we don't get ahead of ourselves there's even an Introduction to Wine! Mind you, there are also introductions to just about everything else possible. This really is an excellent site.
In this podcast Emma Symington MW (Education Development Manager at Wine Australia) chats with us about what makes the Australian wine trade tick. Indeed, how does Australia produce many of the finest wines available to us?
A good starting point is the sheer size of the continent, its many climates and soils, its people and, of course, the longevity of its grape growing tradition. Oldest vines in the world are here folks!
Let's not get ahead of ourselves and let Emma do the talking. It's such a fabulous story.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
The story is well told. Irish business man Terry Cross falls in love with Chateau de la Ligne in Bordeaux.
The property has not seen a vine on its land since the great freezing fogs of 1956. Terry buys de la Ligne on St Patricks Day 2000 and proceeds to renovate the Chateau back to its glory days. In addition, he employs some of the greatest talent in France to plant new vineyards around the Chateau and then to bring winemaking back to its cellars. Today both the Chateau and its vineyards are magnificent. As are the wines!
Chateau de la Ligne Bordeaux Superieur is distributed across the island of Ireland by Dunnes Stores.
In this podacst we are very fortunate to chat with Stephane Toutoundji, one of the finest consultant winemakers working today. Stephane's company Oenoteam has been with the Chateau de la Ligne project from the beginning. His insight to why he considers de la Ligne to be both an excellent property and a fabulous wine is fascinating.
Of course as with all my chats we expand our horizons beyond de la Ligne and find oursleves touching on Bordeaux, France and even into the vineyards of China!
Apologies to Michael Morris of Hinch Distillery in Lisburn, the North of Ireland. I left him sitting in the Zoom Waiting Room by mistake! Embarrassing. Funny (sort of?) when I finally 'let him in'!
The new, and very impressive, Hinch Distillery is also a Terry Cross venture. Watch out for some fabulous cross merchandising with Bordeaux from Chateau de la Ligne and Irish Whiskey from Hinch.
Another great example of The Wine Geese at their modern best.
While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened only to have to close again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. This is a very, very difficult time for restaurants across Ireland. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host events and celebrations. One day, hopefully soon, this will once again be available to us all.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
What is a Master of Wine? In this podcast we chat with Dermot Nolan MW to find out.
Masters of Wine (commonly referred to as MW's) have passed a rigorous set of blind tasting and theory exams. In addition, they have completed a written and original research paper on a wine related subject, usually technical. Make no mistake, passing the MW examination is an extraordinary achievement!
So, pass an exam and become an MW. Is that it? Not quite. The Master of Wine title is awarded by the Institute of Masters of Wine (IMW) based in London. Successful candidates are required to sign a Code of Conduct and among many expectations are expected,'to abstain from any behaviour which may discredit the IMW' and 'to use every opportunity to share their understanding of wine with others'. A rigourous and broad brief!
When Dermot passed the exam back in 1997 the trade here referred to him as 'Ireland's First Master of Wine'. What we really meant was that someone working in the Irish trade had (finally) managed to pass the damn thing! That meant a lot. It gave us a sense of developing maturity and brought with it a great deal of confidence. Dermot is very keen to remind us, though, that other Irish people preceeded him. It's true they may not have ever worked in Ireland, or they may have moved here after becoming an MW, but they were/are still Irish!
I still can't get it out of my head that Dermot was our first.
Anyhow, Dermot has kindly sent us the following list. Lucky us. We have a stack of fine MW's working in Ireland now. Or perhaps the collective term might be a Cellar of MW's or maybe a Case of ....
date = Passed the MW examination
Worked or is working in The Republic:
Dermot Nolan 1987
Alan Crowley 1993
Martin Moran 1994
Lynne Coyle 2015
Barbara Boyle 2016
Mick O'Connell 2016
Harriet Tindal 2019
Roisin Curley 2020
Worked or is working in the North of Ireland:
Jane Boyce 2000
Worked or is working in the UK or elsewhere:
Aileen Trew RIP 1979
Robin Kinahan 1990
Carmel Kilcline 2005
Fergal Tynan 2005
Rod Smith 2006
Mary Gorman-McAdams 2011
Anne McHale 2013
Barry Dick 2013
Ray O'Connor 2020
Springfield Estate has been one of my favourite 'go to' places for a long time now. Why? Because it makes fabulous wines that have shown a profound respect for the land long before 'Sustainability', 'Organic', and other trending monikers were in use across the wine trade at all.
The Bruwer family has farmed at Springfield since 1898. They are ninth generation Huguenot settlers many of whom brought wine making to this part of South Africa way back in the 1700's. Today Abrie Bruwer with his sister Jeanette and daughter Jenna run the farm and the business.
In this podcast Jeanette brings us on a journey through the Robertson wine growing region of South Africa and into its Springfield Estate where the Bruwers practice a very traditional way of making wine. This is natural wine making at its best where wild yeast and whole bunch fermentations take on a whole new meaning!
The wines speak for themselves and pay homage to the family motto: Made on Honour
Many of the Springfield labels have a dedicated following with 'Life from Stone Sauvignon Blanc', 'Whole Berry Cabernet Sauvignon' and 'Work of Time' exciting wine collectors the world over. I am a complete devotee to the 'Wild Yeast Chardonnay' from Springfield - an unoaked exceptional!
Classic Drinks bring us the wines of Springfield and introduce the range through the fabulously well made blends of 'Miss Lucy' (Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Pinot Gris) and 'Thunderchild' (Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon) a wine whose profits go to support a local orphanage.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened only to have to close again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. This is a very, very difficult time for restaurants across Ireland. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host events and celebrations. One day, hopefully soon, this will once again be available to us all.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
In this podcast Francesco Ricasoli corrects me with my pronounciation of his surname and the fact that vineyards around Brolio were not destroyed in WW2 - Isn't this what a proper chat is all about!!
Brolio Castle at the heart of the Chianti Classico region of Tuscany is surrounded by vineyards that can best be described as the beating heart of Italian wine. This is where the Ricasoli family have been making news and wine since 1171.
News? Well, in 1872 Baron Bettino Ricasoli originated the formula for Chianti wine, now called Chianti Classico. While this has long since been discarded as a formula it was an extraordinary innovation for its time.
Francesco Ricasoli, current owner and President of the company, has generated new ideas and concepts to render his vineyards sustainable. An ongoing study of soil types and a clonal selection of the Brolio Sangiovese are among his greatest passions. Francesco has totally renovated the vineyards and completely mapped them.
Wines? Attention to detail pays off for Ricasoli as every wine with his name attached to it is exceptional. In this podcast we hear how this is achieved and what lies in store for Chianti Classico one of the greatest wine regions in the world. Enjoy.
Ricasoli wines are distributed in Ireland by Cassidy Wines.
This is a Zoom Interview podcast.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened only to have to close again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. This is a very, very difficult time for restaurants across Ireland. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host events and celebrations. One day, hopefully soon, this will once again be available to us all.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Every time I try one of the wines produced by Villa Huesgen on the banks of the Mosel river in Germany I am captivated by their crisp, clear, character. Their website tells us that they believe in Origin. Tradition. Home. Family. Wine Culture.
In this podcast (a bit 'warbly' due to the Zoom connection) owner and winemaker Adolph Huesgen guides us through his extraordinary vineyards where aspect and steep slopes of slate are unique and extreme within the world of wine. He gives us a glimpse into what drives his family to produce such brilliant wines. 'To enjoy means to show attitude. It is the aim of VILLA HUESGEN to satisfy the taste of our clients ... To enjoy means to take one‘s time, for each other and together. Everything that has to do with great wines needs time. And we take the time to create culinary experiences'.
This is where Riesling shines as the one of the most incredible grapes in the world. It also shows that terroir really does make a difference and that when a family, such as the Huesgens, really listens to the land the results are quite brilliant.
Enjoy.
Villa Huesgen is distributed in Ireland by Classic Drinks.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many reopened only to have to close again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. This is a very, very difficult time for restaurants across Ireland. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host events and celebrations. One day, hopefully soon, this will once again be available to us all.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
I was fortunate to visit the vineyards of Navarra in northern Spain a couple of years ago. I was doubly fortunate that one of the wineries we visited is owned and run by the Ochoa family.
These days Bodegas Ochoa, near the fabulous town of Olite, is run by sisters Adriana (winemaking) and Beatriz (Sales and Marketing). It is quite brilliant to see how professional each sister is, how well they work together and and yet how independent they are one from the other. Ochoa is a true family team that makes very good wine.
Adriana and Beatriz Ochoa
Javier Ochoa spent many years as a qualified wine maker and director at the wine research station for Navarra - EVENA. When he left to begin his own winery he was joined in the venture by his wife Marivi Aliman.
Kevin Ecock at the fabulous Ochoa vineyards
In this podcast we hear both Adriana and Beatriz tells us of how the Ochoa winery has from day one been experimenting and researching into many groundbreaking ideas. They have, along the way, recorded many firsts within the Spanish wine industry.
The wines, vineyards and family of Bodegas Ochoa are well recorded in this podcast and can be viewed at the very excellent Ochoa website. They are distributed across Ireland by Comans Beverages. Enjoy!
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Wachau in Austria is one of those places that should be on everyones bucket list to visit. I've not been there but it truly looks stunningly beautiful. Domäne Wachau makes wine that should be on everyones bucket list - to taste. I have been there!
The vineyards of Wachau lie on the banks of the Danube in Lower Austria slightly NE of Vienna. The Wachau is a 33 km long gorge listed as a Unesco Cultural Landscape. Within this the slopes, aspect and soils of the valley provide a unique setting for vines to flourish. To cap it all the vineyards owned and managed by Domäne Wachau have been awarded the extraordinary title of 'Best Vineyards in Europe' and 'Third Best in the World'!
Of course great vineyards don't naturally make great wine - they only have a potential whose release is crystalised by fabulous winemaking. This podcast explores how this is achieved with one of the great Master of Wine winemakers - Roman Horvath.
Domäne Wachau epitomises the symbiotic nature of culture and landscape where dry stone walled terraces are as much part of the wine as the Reisling, Gruner Veltliner, Zweigelt vines are. Unique geology from exquisite slopes. Stunningly beautiful wines.
Domäne Wachau is distributed across Ireland by Cassidy Wines.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
In this podcast Kevin O'Callaghan, wine buyer at SuperValu, guides us through their current sale of wines from France - The SuperValu French Wine Event. In addition, Kevin touches on many other aspects of selling wine in 2020 - the challenges and rewards.
Superquinn stores across Ireland used to bring us a very fine annual French Wine Sale. It was innovative. At times (before computerised tills made mix and match possible) wine boxes and their bottles were coded with coloured stickers so that customers could work out which offers were compatible with one another! Cute.
Fast forward to today. SuperValu has long since succesfully bedded Superquinn into its impressive network of over 200 owner-managed franchised stores. It has also brought forward the fabulous French Wine Event. This year it takes place from Sept 3rd to Sept 16th.
While the current sale includes individual spotlights on the wine of each of Bordeaux, Burgundy and the Rhone the whole of France is well presented with very good value wines.
Most of the great wines made in far flung countries, such as Australia, Chile and others, make wines with grapes of French origin. Sales, such as this at SuperValu, brings us back to their origins.
Particular favourites of mine are the Guy Saget Sancerre and Pouilly Fume from the Loire at €14.76, the Alma Cersius Coteaux de Beziers at €9.84 and the Gustave Lorentz Pinot Blanc Reserve from Alsace at the very good price of only €11.80.
Many more wines are mentioned in this podcast, ( ... even the most expensive in the sale - the sublime Louis Latour Meursault at €39.35 - is absolutely fabulous value - would make an exceptional Christmas present!!) and we will mention them at WineIreland.blog over the coming weeks of the sale.
For now enjoy the podcast. Its a rare and intriguing insight into a fascinating world.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
I was impressed when I first saw the flat bottle of wine from Garçon Wines. I liked its simplicity. What I really should have liked was its sustainability and how more sustainable the world of wine would be with innovation such as this.
Recently I wrote a feature for Checkout Magazine on Sustainability in the World of Wine. I researched Garçon Wines. What I found was so impressive that I just had to podcast the story. A flat recyclable bottle made out of recycled plastics is the public face of a great story. This is Sustainability in practice where a bottle of wine becomes part of the solution and no longer a part of the problem.
In this podcast Santiago Navarro, CEO and Co-Founder of Garçon Wines, explains his philosophy and business model. He brings us through the wine trade on a route seldom traveled. Listen in. It's fabulous!
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
I first met Sebastian Labbé when he was head winemaker at the brilliant Viña Carmen, part of the Santa Rita Estates in Chile. In that role he was a frequent visitor to Ireland. The tastings he hosted were fascinating lectures on how to make excellent wine from excellent vineyards. He was always looking forward.
Today Sebastian is the head winemaker for the Santa Rita Estates Ultra Premium Wines. His quest for seeking the very best from the land continues through a detailed series of innovative techniques and ideas. All are founded on an absolute adherance to the Santa Rita Estates' code of Sustainability**.
In this podcast Sebastian guides us through various facets of his work with Santa Rita's very top wines. He generously brings us into a world of brilliance and innovation. This is a quest where excellence is always the ultimate goal.
*Listen back HERE* to Elena Carretero, Director of Sustainability** at Santa Rita Estates.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Maison Champy began in 1720 and has the honourable distinction of being the oldest wine company in Burgundy. Extraordinary.
Brilliance, of course, needs quite a lot more than venerability! Three centuries might simply imply dusty cellars. Not so with Maison Champy who in 1866 helped Louis Pasteur develop his, 'Etudes sur le Vin: Diseases, Causes, New Process to Keep and Age Wine'. Then in 1890 (celebrating 170 years young) Maison Champy built a new winery in Beaune using Eiffel's (he of the Tower) architecture. By 1912 87% of the vineyards owned by Champy were of Cru appellation. Today Maison Champy has a new boutique and tasting rooms in the heart of Beaune opposite the Hospices de Beaune and has developed a new logo and design for its branded wines.
Nothing dusty here!
In this podcast Technical Director and Oenologist for the past 20 years at Maison Champy, Dimitri Bazas, brings us up to speed with the vineyards and wines of of this amazing house.
The wines of Maison Champy are distributed by Classic Drinks.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Huia is an organic and biodynamic vineyard in the Marlborough area of the South Island in New Zealand. The wines they make are exceptional and are bolted to their makers Claire and Mike Allans belief that nothing should be taken from the land that cannot be returned to it. Their agents, Classic Drinks write that, 'grape juice is probably the only element that is permanently removed from Huia Vineyards'.
In this podcast Claire Allan brings us into the Huia world where they create wines that have an immense depth of pure fruit bursting from every glass.
The Huia Vineyards website tells us that, 'Huia feathers were said to represent wisdom, elegance and great dignity. At Huia Vineyards we share these philosophies to grow and make our selection of organic wines'.
The Huia Bird has been extinct for over a century but continues to be revered. Indeed, the Maori has traditionally worn its feather as a symbol of prestige and honour.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Bodega Santalba in the Rioja region of Northern Spain opens its web page with, '... the best grapes and the experience of previous generations comprise the formula to achieve the highest quality end product. Ancient Traditions and Modern Times. ..
In this podcast Roberto Ijalba, son of founder Santiago Ijalba ( whose name was shortened to Santalba), guides us through the region, his wines and his family tradition.
Ireland is a top 10 destination for the wines of Rioja. We love the styles of wine that Rioja has to offer. How does the local climate, soils, topography and local traditions in Rioja come together to bring us such a diverse range of unique wines? Enjoy.
As with all our podcasts these days we recorded Roberto via Zoom to our home studio. Many thanks to our producer Justin Ecock in Toronto for his help in bringing the sound together. The bird chirruping in the background is all the way from Rioja!
The wines of Santalba are distributed by Classic Drinks.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Doña Paula is the Argentine arm of the Santa Rita Wine Estates. In this podcast Martin Kaiser, wine maker and viticulturist at Doña Paula tells us that Doña Paula is an Estate winery and as such all of the grapes they use are grown on their own land.
Where the grapes are grown is decided by an ultra scientific approach to an analysis of the varied soils high up in the Andes of Mendoza. It's fascinating. For a quick peek at this extraordinary landscape have a look at the video here.
We are introduced here to Doña Paula by the (very good and widely availaable) Los Cardos varietal wines. Martin then introduces his other ranges including the fabulous Altitude Blends, the Estate Wine labels and of course how could we forget the NOFFLA Rosé of the Year 2019 the Doña Paula Rose of Malbec 2018
The day before we recorded this podcast Martin Kaiser was awarded the fabulous accolade Argentine Viticulturist of the Year 2020 by Tim Atkin MW 'highlighting Martin's continued focus on terroir'. Tim knows his wines to the nth degree and this is one of the very genuine awards that recognises true talent. Congratulations Martin.
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While all restaurants in Ireland were closed until recently many have now reopened. This is great news - Open Again! We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Tenuta San Leonardo is in Trentino. The Alto Adige is to its north while Valpolicella is to the south. In this podcast Anselmo Guerrieri Gonzaga recounts his family history and how he works with his father Marquis Carlo to produce sensational wines.
The Guerrieri Gonzaga family has run the San Leonardo estate for the past 300 years. Across 25 hectares they grow an eclectic mix of classic French grape types such as Carmenere, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. In addition they purchase some Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling both of which make exceptional wines.
The classic nature of the red wines produced at the estate is due to the family's ability to blend with precision and its complete belief in a style that is soft, elegant and packed full of age worthy elements.
The signature label - San Leonardo - is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Carmenere and 10% Merlot. Spontaneous fermentation in small concrete vats, 24 months in French oak, will age well for 25 years plus.
There are a number of additional fascinating features associated with the estate. We chat about all of these and more in this podcast with Anselmo. For instance the Carmenere is all grown on high pergola's; the estate has a history back to 589; there is a chapel with 12th century frescoes on its walls; the extraordinary Villa Gresti estate house built in 1724 was where the armistice prelimineries were drawn up to end WW1 while the German Wermacht used it as a regional HQ in WW2.
The estate of San Leonardo converted to being fully organic in 2015.
This is a classic story of one of the world's finest wines.
The wines of San Leonardo are distributed in Ireland by Classic Drinks.
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Lidl brings us an interesting and wide variety of wine styles. At times the selection available might be seasonal or themed. To help us through the eclectic nature of wine specials, grape types and areas of origin Lidl employs the services of a Master of Wine, Richard Bampfield to help us.
To help us even further Lidl has a (flattering) photo of Richard beside each of its wine sections.
In this podcast we chat with Richard about Lidl, his 100 point Scores and the current selection of summer wine styles available at Lidl.
We begin with the Gavi at €9.99 mention the Sparkling Ribolla Gialla €16.99 and along the way find time for Refosco, Rias Baixas, Rueda, Toro and many, many others. I concentrate in this podcast (mainly!) on Iberian and Italian styles but you will also find over the course of summer 2020 a selection available from both New Zealand and South America.
As with most of my chat podcasts we manage here to drift across Champagne, Cava, South Africa, Portugal - and beyond. As we said at the beginning Lidl brings us an interesting and wide variety of wine styles. Enjoy.
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Across the world of wine we hear the word 'Sustainable' again and again. Very often it's linked to a 'green movement' of some vague description, 'organic viticulture' and its dislike of artificial fertilisers or just plain old 'keeping the land in a good condition to pass on to the kids'!
Sustainability is much more and all of these. In this podcast we hear from Santa Rita that it covers Vineyards, Cellars, Workers and Community, Marketing and Suppliers - effectively everything from the soil to the bottle and all the way to you!
Elena Carretero is a leading expert on the subject of sustainability and for many years now has been Sustainability Director with the Santa Rita Wine Group in South America. In this podcast Elena brings us into her world where every facet of the Santa Rita Group is linked into being a sustainable enterprise that can be Defined, Measured and Managed.
"Viña Santa Rita and its subsidiaries were the first of Chile’s major wine groups to attain certification in December 2011, including Santa Rita, Carmen, Nativa, and Terra Andina, covering 2,325 hectares that make up 75% of the vineyards that we own, as well as 500 hectares belonging to our suppliers: .... from Santa Rita
Enjoy - and next time you crack open your favourite bottle from Santa Rita remember that the logo on the back label really does mean something substantial.
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Where to start with Tim Phillips? Rome? South Africa? Montepulciano? The New Forest in Hampshire? It's an interesting list and makes a fascinating podcast! This is very much a story of 'How to When Noone had Even Thought it Possible' sort of podcast. Fabulous and Brilliant. This is Charlie Herring.
Before our current lockdown travel restrictions the WinePod was due to visit the New Forest in Hampshire to help advertise a number of wine talks due to take place at the Daisybank Boutique Bed and Breakfast.* One of these talks and tastings would have been presented by Tim Phillips, owner and winemaker at the Charlie Herring New Forest vineyard**.
Charlie Herring is a walled vineyard in the New Forest. It has history! Tim Phillips transformed an old estate garden into a biodynamic vineyard of the most beguiling kind. Is this is 'cutting edge viticulture meets up with garagiste winemaking' or is it 'how to make your dreams come true'? Listen in ... Tim even has a solera ..
Rather than let the opportunity to work with two exceptional New Forest businesses slip by I recorded an interview with Tim via Zoom. Let's face it, we need local business to reopen and to survive. Within the world of wine most vineyards across the globe are family owned and small enterprises. The same applies to the hospitality and tourist trade. We must do all we can to help them get back on their feet. These talks/tasting will go ahead at some stage - hopefully soon.
- Daisybank Boutique Bed and Breakfast is owned and run by Cheryl and Ciaran Maher. There is a close family connection to everyone here at the Winepod! That, however, is not the story. No, the story is that Daisybank is a uniqe experience. It has won numerous awards and, situated in Brockenhurst, is constantly mentioned as one of the very best places to stay in the New Forest.
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Marlings is a vineyard in Hampshire that makes award winning wine and carries the New Forest Marque - 'an accreditation scheme set up to develop and support the production, processing and distribution of local produce from the New Forest'.
Before our current lockdown travel restrictions the WinePod was due to visit the New Forest to help advertise a number of wine talks due to take place at another member of the New Forest Marque - the Daisybank Boutique Bed and Breakfast.* One of these talks and tastings would have been presented by Paul Cartmell**, owner at Marlings.
Rather than let the opportunity to work with two exceptional New Forest businesses slip by I recorded an interview with Paul via Zoom. Let's face it, we need local business to reopen and to survive. Within the world of wine most vineyards across the globe are family owned and small enterprises. The same applies to the hospitality and tourist trade. We must do all we can to help them get back on their feet. These talks/tasting will go ahead at some stage - hopefully soon.
Piotr Nahajski- Marlings Viticulturist and Winemaker
Marlings Vineyard is a fabulous story of a small vineyard in the UK, England, Hampshire and the New Forest. In this podcast we learn what its like to be at the cutting edge of a new and interesting wine style and region. What to plant? How to plant? What to make? This is 'Farm to Plate' at its best!
- Daisybank Boutique Bed and Breakfast is owned and run by Cheryl and Ciaran Maher. There is a close family connection to everyone here at the Winepod! That, however, is not the story. No, the story is that Daisybank is an extraordinary experience. It has won numerous awards and, situated in Brockenhurst, is constantly mentioned as one of the very best places to stay in the New Forest.
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Stefano Gagliardo's family make some of the finest expressions of Barolo from vineyards (Piedmont: NW Italy) that his father Gianni took charge of in the 1970's. The very best land is essential to producing quality Nebbiolo grapes and that's what we find every time we are fortunate to taste a Gianni Gagliardo Barolo.
In this podcast Stefano explains the intricacies involved in working the land organically with an increasing emphasis on biodynamic principles. He also tells us how he microvinifies some of his finest plots to make unique wines that answer solely to their tiny terroir, as MEGA designated Cru wines (Menzioni Geografiche Aggiuntive -additional geographic mentions), why he favours large barrels and lots lots more.
The Gagliardo team and family. A class act.
Nebbiolo continues to hold sway as Italy's finest grape and Barolo it's finest wine. Alongside these Gagliardo has always worked with the Roero Arneis, Favorita (a Vermentino grown away from the sea!) and Moscato to make white wines, Nebbiolo for Langhe Nebbiolo, Barbera for an Asti of that name and now also for the new Tenuta Garetto label from the equally new NIZZA DOC- one of my favourite styles of Barbera ever!
"Our land is alive and clean. We take care of our vines one by one, because each one is different from the others. We make wine by seeking the minimum technical intervention, following the principle of knowing more in order to be able to intervene less. In wines we seek balance, elegance, purity of expression. If a wine does not satisfy us, we do not go out on the market".
Gianni Gagliardo is distributed in Ireland by Classic Drinks
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Wink Lorch published 'Jura Wine' in 2014 and followed it with 'Wines of the French Alps' in 2019. Both books were researched to the 'nth' degree, very well laid out and filled important gaps that had been left behind by almost every wine book before them.
These are books that every wine library, educator and sommelier should have, read and use. They are travelogues, they bring us detailed wine and food knowledge and, most importantly, introduce us to the people and artisans of the regions involved.
In this podcast Wink talks of the pitfalls associated with self publishing and how she became a leading expert on wines that are unique among their peers. We are introduced to the vagaries and brilliance of Jura Wine and then (almost have time to) touch on the wines of the French Alps: Savoie, Bugey and Beyond
Wink is a founding member of the Association of Wine Educators, is a member of the Circle of Wine Writers has contributed to many books and publications and continues to lecture widely. see: https://winetravelmedia.com/about/
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Jim Barry Wines is in the Clare Valley of South Australia. The valley is synonymous with quality wine and even boasts a Riesling Bike Trail!
Jim Barry was an impressive individual - the first professionally qualified winemaker ever employed in the Clare and the 17th Degree in Oenology from the famous Roseworthy Agricultural College in 1947.
60 years ago he began his own operation and today under the guidance of his son Peter and grandchildren, Tom, Sam and Olivia has been named Winery of the Year 2020 by Australia's wine bible, James Hallidays Wine Companion.
The Jim Barry story is facinating. Look it up HERE. Their vineyards are impeccable and their wines are sensational.
In this podcast Sam Barry joined us (via a Zoom link) to talk about growing up in a wine family and how proud that family is in carrying on the Jim Barry legacy.
(The Jim Barry Wines are distributed in Ireland by Cassidy Wines)
“Sometimes it takes longer than a lifetime to do a lifetime's work.” Jim Barry
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
De Loach is one of the very great wines from the Sonoma Valley in California. In this podcast Director of Wine at de Loach, Brian Maloney, talks to us about growing up on a farm in Sonoma, joining the wine trade and ultimately, under the stewardship of the Boisset family, becoming one of the foremost authorities on winemaking across the region.
Brian tells us about how he brings out the best from Zinfandel, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (and then mentions Ribolla Gialla!) His wines are soft, generous, crisp and characterful. They reflect terroir and Brians skills, can be drunk young and age well.
As with all of our podcast these days we recorded this via Zoom and our trusty H6 recorder. Thanks to Liberty Wines Ireland for their help in making this magic happen.
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Before everything locked down we had the distinct honor of chatting to Villa Maria viticulturist Stuart Dudley. The occasion was the premier of the Villa Maria movie 'Vintage'. It was a suitably glittering launch held at the Stella in Rathmines and hosted by Irish agents Barry Fitzwilliam. and yes, I managed to forget Stuart was the viticulturist and not the winemaker!! Blame the popcorn.
Stuart entertaining Tomas Clancy at the Stella event
Vintage follows the major players as they take on the task of bringing grapes in for a vintage in the Marlborough region of New Zealand. This is a hands on movie best viewed with a glass of Villa Maria close by! It's a really great watch and highly recommended. Watch a trailer HERE.
We recorded this podcast on a make shift 'studio' at the stage in Rathmines just before the movie began. My photo doesn't do us justice. It was quite innovative and Stuart was brilliant.
Villa Maria continues to make great wine. They can only do this by growing great grapes. That's Stuart's job spec and this is his podcast.
For more on Villa Maria listen to our Villa Maria podcast from last year with Villa Maria legend Angela Lewis.
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
In this episode we are joined by Neasa Miquel. Neasa is from Ireland and has worked alongside her husband Laurent to make the Laurent Miquel family estate in the Languedoc into one the finest of its kind. Visit their website. It's an informative trove about the Miquel estates and the wines of the Languedoc.
This podcast was recorded via Zoom as Neasa (along with the rest of France) is in lockdown at the family farm. How are they coping? What are the wines that the Miquel label brings to us? How have they been so innovative over the years in championing Viognier, Syrah and Albarino from the south of France? Listen to the podcast!
The Laurent Miquel wines are brought to us by the team at Dunnes Stores while a couple of estate labels are also imported by O'Briens Wines.
Neasa, Laurent and Kevin Ecock at a Dunnes Stores tasting 2018
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Clearly a few days can make a difference! I recorded with Marius Kotze (la Motte and Leopards Leap) when he was in town just a few weeks ago. He was participating at his agents' (Classic Drinks) portfolio tasting. Brilliant event held at the Market Bar on Fade Street. Packed to the rafters with customers and filled with excellent wines.
This interview followed on from an earlier thirty minutes spent with Marius last year. Listen to that episode HERE. Our podcast today must, by the very nature of how Cophid19 has affected us all, be treated as a time capsule. Incredible three weeks.
Marius told us today that,' We cannot sell in any channel in the local market and we are not allowed to export at this stage . We hope government can give us relief after the 21 days to at least export . The harvest is in the cellar, so they allowed as to make the wines but we cannot sell. For our tourism business it is disaster because both our restaurants are shut down so once things are back to normal again we have to find creative ways to get the tourist back to SA and also back to our vineyards'.
I expect the word 'disaster' was chosen with a healthy dose of precision.
Keep Safe and Keep Well.
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While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
There is no doubt that many island wineries will find it hard to 'tough it out' this year. Many depend on a tourist market to drink their wines. There are no tourists. Other's are totally dependent on export markets that have, for the time being, ceased to trade. And yet their grapes continue to grow, their vineyards continue to need maintenance and their families need to be looked after. Tough times.
Recently the WinePod recorded a fascinating interview with Jose Gonzalez, owner and winemaker at Can Xanet in Majorca. We wish him, and his colleagues across the island, well.
In this podcast we learn new grapes, old ideas, new innovation and a willingness to face adversity. This is what Islanders have always had to do. Hopefully their current difficulties will not leave scars when the good times return.
The Can Xanet Wines are distributed across Ireland by Tindal Wine Merchants.
------------------------------------------------------------------------While all restaurants in Ireland are closed right now they WILL open again. We all hope that this is soon. We should remember that many of these, including the wonderful Monty's of Kathmandu, are family businesses. They are often small and brilliant and when they do reopen they will need our support more than ever. Keep Safe and Keep well.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
A Prophet on St Patrick's Day! A coincidence and a welcome one.
The world and the world of wine is packed full of great people and great stories. Right now as we battle against something we can't see and, hopefully, an enemy most of us will never feel we need to believe that what we have achieved to date is worthwhile and that we will be able to pick up the reins again in the near future. Keep Safe and Keep Well.
Prophet's Rock is a winery in Central Otago on the South Island in New Zealand. It's winemaker is Paul Pujol. They make some of the finest and most natural wines in the world. Paul has a fine story to tell and we are so glad he came in to the WinePod to tell it to us.
Prophet's Rock wines are distributed in Ireland by Gilbeys/ Bibendum.
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
The WinePod recently met up with Jenna Bruwer of Springfield Estate - one of our MOST favourite wine estates in the whole world! Why? Honesty.
Springfield is in Robertson, South Africa. The Bruwer family has been running the Estate quite simply for a very, very long time.
In this podcast Jenna tells us how they make their wines and why they are unique. It's amazing, for instance, to see how different the two Sauvignon Blanc wines (Life from Stone and Special Cuvee) are and then find that their grapes are grown so close to each other.
It's equally fascinating to hear that the family loses the odd vintage completely as they focus on being natural wine makers - sometimes it just doesn't work!! Bonkers or Brilliance?
Enjoy this podcast and have a look out for Springfield Estate wines at a store or restaurant near you. In Ireland the wines are distributed by Classic Drinks.
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
The WinePod met Warren Gibson recently for a podcast chat with a view to understanding how his wines at Trinity Hill are among the most awarded in the world.
Trinity Hill is a modern winery situated on the North Island of New Zealand in Hawkes Bay. Their vineyards are planted on the unique soils found on the Gimblett Gravels - reckoned to be New Zealand's premier red wine region. In their own words Trinity Hill has a, 'philosophy of "Quality rather than Quantity" ... controlled yields ensure the intensity of flavour and elegant styles for which Trinity Hill is renowned'.
This is a fascinating podcast. We learned all about the brilliance of the Gimblett Gravels and even had time to taste Warren's Icon wine 'Homage'. Fabulous!
Trinity Hill is distributed in Ireland by Liberty Wines
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
At the recent SuperValu Spanish Wine Sale Wine Fair I met up with Bernardo Hualde from Gonzalez Byass. Our 'studio' was a piece of a corridor. Thanks for putting up with me Bernardo!!
In my head when I hear the name Gonzalez Byass I still think 'Sherry and only Sherry'. I also think Top Class, Quality and Tio Pepe.
Image shows wine journalist Leslie Williams attempting to hone his Tio Pepe venenciador skills at the SuperValu Spanish Wine Fair.
Nothing wrong with this other than its 'old thinking' and way behind the cue ball! Today Gonzalez Byass is, of course, Gonzalez Byass Sherries but IS ALSO the owner of a host of additional wineries both in Spain and abroad. See HERE for the full list that includes incredible names as Jackson Estates, Domain Wachau and Neil Ellis.
In this podcast Bernardo focuses on the Gonzalez Byass wines that are available at this SuperValu Sale. They include a fabulous Gewurztraminer from Vinas del Vero in Somontano and an intriguing ACE Kicker Big Bet Blend from Tierra de Castilla.
Along the way Bernardo also guides us through Gonzalez Byass Sherries - sure we wouldn't have it any other way!
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Casa Santos Lima is a big player in the world of wines in Portugal. It is also a family owned and run company.
The company and its ancestral vineyards are situated near Lisbon. The wines that they produce today straddle the entire country and include regions such as the Douro, Algarve, Alentejo and Vinho Verde.
Four generations of the Santos Lima family has been making wine from just north of Lisbon and today accounts for 40% of all wines in that region!
Access to fruit from across so many vineyards in Portugal allows Casa Santos Lima to produce a great variety of unique wine styles.
In this Podcast Sebastiao Garcia Export Manager at Casa Santos Lima tells us all about this fascinating company and its wines. Along the way he tells us of the delights we will miss out on if don't explore Portugal and its wines!
Portugal is one of the truly great wine producing nations. It has a unique collection of grapes and this allows it to produce a unique collection of the most fascinating wines available to us. At the heart of this is Casa Santos Lima. Enjoy the story.
The wines of Casa Santos Lima are distributed in Ireland by Classic Drinks.
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Chile is an exceptional country to grow vines in. Indeed, it is also the leading country of origin on our shelves here in Ireland and our brand leader (by quite a margin) is the Santa Rita label.
Vine growing in Chile is mainly concentrated in valleys running away from the Andes towards the Pacific Ocean. Over time the unique characteristics of these valleys and their contribution to ripening grapes have been analysed and studied. This has led to Cabernet Sauvignon perfection from the Maipo and crisp Sauvignon Blancs from the Casablanca Valleys. It's a great story. Have a look at the Wine Folly web site, explore each the main valleys and see how they are being developed.
Vina Aresti is unusual in Chile. It doesn't try to explore multiple valleys but instead focuses all of its winemaking from grapes grown in the one valley - the Curico. This is the largest of the 'wine valleys', lies 200 kms south of Santiago and has an incredible range of microclimates and soil types. See HERE for a fabulous and detailed account. It's a great download.
Vina Aresti winemaker Juan Ignacio Montt dropped in to the WinePod and explained all! (The Aresti labels are sold in Ireland through the SuperValu, Centra and Musgrave Retail Partners outlets)
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Lenz Moser is an extraordinary and very affable winemaker.
It has always been a pleasure meeting up with him.
Lenz is an Austrian with a tremendous history of promoting Gruner Veltliner wines from Austria. For the past ten years, however, he has been making wine from grapes grown in the Ningxia province of China. The winery is called Chateau Changyu Moser XV and lies just to the west of Beijing. Ningxia is China's premier grape growing region and Changyu is China's leading wine producer.
The labels that Lenz brought with him to Dublin late last year (imported and distributed by Gilbeys Bibendum) were both Cabernet Sauvignon based - one was a white wine and the other a red wine. Both had been produced from the same crop of grapes. Now that IS a fabulously interesting story. Wine from China? Yes, please.
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Georg Lingenfelder has a rich history to draw from. His family has been making wine in the Pfalz region of Germany since 1520! Georg is the 14th generation of Lingenfelder winemakers. Have a look at the Lingenfelder history on their website HERE. It's a captivating story.
Georg visited the WinePod late last year at the O'Briens Wine Festival held at Dublin Castle. He told us of his family and their wines. It's a great story and one that continues to evolve as Germany reaps the benefits of warmer summers.
See HERE for a listing of Lingenfelder wines available in Ireland. See our blog at WineIreland.blog for reviews.
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Every time I meet José María I learn more about one of Spain's most magical wine regions - Navarra. He is impressively generous with his time, passion and knowledge.
Tandem Wines is a boutique winery established in 2003 by José María Fraile, winemaker Alicia Eyaralar and, as they tell us, 'a small group of wine-loving relatives and friends'. The result is a collection of inspiring wines marketed under fabulous labels from a region that deserves wider recognition.
Listen here to José María tells us all about Navarra, Tandem and its wines. Then head out to O'Briens Wines (import and distribute Tandem) and pick up a Tandem Label. You will not be disappointed! These wines are exacting in their representation of the Yerri Valley, high altitude vines and immaculate winemaking. My favourite? Which to choose? Maybe Immacula - after all the name means 'without blemish'! Or how about Ars in Vitro - Art in Glass …. they're all worth looking out for! Oh, and lets not forget the Ros Rose produced by Lynne Coyle MW, Director of Wine at O'Briens, in association with Bodega Tandem. It's really very good indeed.
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Kevin and Kimberley Judd held a Greywacke lunch and tasting at the Cliff Townhouse recently. I had never met either before. I am now so glad that I have. Wonderful people.
This podcast has a few restaurant noises in the background! Busy place. Bear with us though because when Kevin gets into his stride he brings us more than a few gems of wisdom.
The 'Greywacke' label has some of the finest wines made. This year I was happy to recommend the Greywacke Wild Sauvignon 2016 as one of the '100 Awesome Wines' as published by the Association of Wine Educator's. (Yes, I'm a member!!) It was one of my favorite wines of the whole year.
What is Greywacke? Where does it come from? What makes it so special? Why do I have a Greywacke Pinot Noir poster on my office wall? These and a lot more (not the last one) are answered here by Kevin Judd. Indeed, he goes further and gives us an insight into the future of winemaking in New Zealand.
Enjoy
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Valpolicella, Amarone, Oltrepo Pavese, Montalcino, Maremma Toscana, Manduria Puglia, Paternoster Vulture, De Buris
These are all Tommasi Estates and Tommasi Wines in Italy. Each is magnificent.
In this podcast Pierangelo Tommasi brings us on a journey through time and place. Along the way he explains the differences between the Passito and Appassimento processes, between Valpolicella and Amarone della Valpolicella, between growing grapes in the North of Italy and those grown in the South.
THIS IS A SUPER STORY OF A FAMILY MAKING GREAT WINES.
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Robb Wines invited me to a tasting of the wines of Ben Glaetzer recently. Fabulous I said. A wine legend that I had never met and whose wines from the Barossa had never crossed my lips! Perversely I knew the 'Heartland' wines from the lesser known region of Langhorne Creek south of Adelaide. Such are the vagaries of wine distribution! Ben had decided in the 1990's that Langhorne Creek fruit had fabulous potential. He has, with partner Nick Keukenmeester, achieved this. Heartland wines are so accessible that its web site statement rings true every time I read it, 'You can Taste it From Where You are'.
I arranged a half an hour podcast. Brilliant. Homework done on the Glaetzer Wines (only) I headed to the venue. (Excellent by the way - Milltown Golf Club).
My first introduction was to Nick! Great. I only had two mikes - one for me and one for Ben. …. I had no idea that Nick would be there also. Hold on. It's Bonus Time for the podcast .....
The Glaetzer Wines hold within their bottles the very soul of Barossa Shiraz. They are low intervention wines made from grapes grown on very old vines (up to 110 years old!) in the Ebenezer area of the northern Barossa. In this podcast Ben explains the styles and love behind his extraordinary labels. In addition, both Ben and Nick bring the Langhorne Creek Heartland Wines alive for us. It really is a secret and almost hidden region that needs to be one no longer!
Thanks to both Ben Glaetzer and to Nick Keukenmeester for the time, energy and wines. It was fabulous meeting you both. Your wines are magnificent. Thanks to Robb Wines for the event and distribution of these wines.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
The De Martino family has been growing grapes and producing wine in Chile since the 1930's. Today their wines are among the most awarded, most sought after and most interesting produced in South America.
Here's a sample: One of the best wineries in Robert Parker's 'Extraordinary Winery Awards'; Alistair Cooper MW places Viejas Tinajas Cinsault into Decanter as one of the finest of its kind in the world; De Martino listed by Wine & Spirits among the top 100 wineries in the world.
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Sebastian De Martino dropped in to the WinePod recently. He tells us in this podcast of how his family has explored and continues to explore vineyards from all across Chile; why they have always been organic; their use of old tinaja's - and how they find them; and much, much more.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Waterford Estate is one of those special places in South Africa that excels in making high class wines.
The Estate is in the Blaauwklippen Valley in Stellenbosch. This is one of the areas in the world where blue skies blend down onto majestic valley slopes which in turn flow to vibrant and expertly tended rows of healthy vines.
In this podcast winemaker Mark le Roux guides us through the region, the Estate and its wines.
Make no mistake about it, South Africa produces some of the finest wine grapes in the world. Central to what happens to these are winemakers, such as Mark, at Estates such as Waterford. These wines are magnificent. Listen to Mark tells us why.
Enjoy
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
David Gleave MW set up and runs Liberty Wines. Whenever Liberty has a tasting there he is, welcoming and helpful.
Liberty Wines' portfolio tastings are among the best attended in the wine trade. They are shoulder to shoulder filled with industry professionals quite a few of whom are young, energetic, curious, knowledgeable and the future of our trade. Once a year they are also attended by more wine producers than attend any other trade tasting in the calendar.
The Liberty Wines web site tells us they have won,
IWC Merchant of the Year 2018, 11-times winner IWC On-Trade Supplier of the Year, four-times winner IWC Wine Educator of the Year, 18-times winner IWC Italy Specialist Merchant of the Year and more
Impressive.
The WinePod caught up with David at a recent Liberty tasting in Dublin. The background hum and atmosphere is all part of the event!
We began with how a future Master of Wine and trade industry leader began his career by landing a job in a bar in Dublin that just happened to have a fabulous wine list.
This is a great story and proves that the wine industry is open to everyone who wants to enter. We might not reach the heights that David Gleave has but the opportunity is there to take hold of. Enjoy.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
What is Vintage Port? What is the difference between 2016 and 2017 and why is it unusual to declare two vintages in a row?
The Fladgate Partnership comprise three Port Houses. Each is magnificent. They are Taylor's, Fonseca and Croft. Each is different to the other and each has its individual House style.
Chris Forbes travels the world as an ambassador for the Partnership. He is a complete expert on Port and, of course, each of the three Houses in the care and ownership of Fladgate.
Chris recently came to Dublin to present the 2017 Vintage. He generously gave his time to the WinePod. It's a fabulous story. This is our chance to learn from the expert. Enjoy.
Distributed by United Wines.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Pablo González-Calvo De Miguel travels the world representing the Garcia Family Wines. They are among the finest wines made in Spain.
The family operates out of Ribera del Duero. Their ambition is to make the finest wine possible.
The Garmón label is produced from Tempranillo (Tinta Fina) vines that are between 40 and 80 years old in the east of Ribera del Duero. The vineyards are as high as 1000 ms above sea level.
Mauro, from Bodegas Mauro just to the north of Tudelo del Duero, is produced from 80 hectares of the most brilliant, ancient and stony vineyards. It's a 90% Tinta Fina/10% Syrah blend. See HERE for a fabulous video!
The San Román and Prima labels come from TORO where some of their oldest vines are ungrafted in phylloxera free soils! These are genuine pioneering wines. .. and they really do make great videos. see HERE!
The Garmon wines are distributed by Cassidy Wines.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Piper Heidsieck Champagne is one of the greatest brands in the world. It is also one of the most refined drinks available.
Over the years the brand has been synonymous with the movies - its first 'appearance' was in Laurel and Hardy's 'Sons of the Desert' in 1933! Today Piper Heidsieck is the official Champagne to both Cannes and the Oscars and continues to appear in a great many movies.
The official Piper Heidsieck site introduces their wine maker Emilien Boutillat as, '... this son of a Champagne winegrower has excellent command of all aspects of the viticulture and winemaking, and truly excels in the art of tasting and blending.'
The WinePod caught up with Emilien recently and explored the intertwined worlds of Champagne, Piper Heidsieck and, of course, Emilien Boutillat himself.
Piper Heidsieck is imported to Ireland and distributed by Liberty Wines.
Enjoy.
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
SuperValu has a French Wine Fair running right now.
It has some really excellent wines and fabulous value.
The WinePod dropped in to interview a few of the producers who came to town to launch the Fair. They have really great stories to tell!
Kevin O'Callaghan, SuperValu Wine Buyer, tells us why these Fairs are important and what make this one stand out from the crowd.
I give a lengthy breakdown of the wines and personalities involved in this podcast across at our blog page in WineIreland.blog. Just as this is a Fabulous Listen the blog is a Great Read!
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Twenty years ago the wine scene in Ireland was, with one exception, well established. The missing element was a Wine Bar.
When it opened the Ely Wine Bar at Ely Place in Dublin 2 revolutionized our awareness of wine, how we drink wine on a night out and, importantly, how a range of wines might be served 'by the glass'.
Indeed, it was super to find wines that weren't oxidized served in grubby paris goblets by publicans who really didn't want to know anything about wine at all!
Erik and Michelle Robson opened the Ely with no guarantee of success whatsoever. There were some tough times ahead.
Today the Ely operates out of number of engaging outlets, is highly respected and runs some of the most important wine events in the Irish calendar.
In this podcast Erik brings us through the years of developing the Ely Experience. Enjoy.
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Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Scott McWilliam recently presented a truly wonderful tasting in Dublin. It arrived to us in three distinct flights. Each was fascinating.
Scott's family makes some of the most awarded wines in Australia at McWilliam's Wines home to the McWilliam's and Mount Pleasant labels.
Our blog over at WineIreland.blog guides us through the tasting which culminated in two of the finest wines we have tasted this year - the Mount Pleasant Lovedale Semillon and the Maurice O'Shea Shiraz 2014.
After the tasting Scott chatted to us at the WinePod about how his family makes some of the finest wines in Australia.
Thanks to Ampersand Wines and also to the Australian Embassy where the tasting was held Indeed, thanks to Ambassador Richard Andrews for the use of his office for the podcast interview!
On an aside it is brilliant to see that McWilliam's presented the Maurice O'Shea Award 2019 to Robert Hill Smith of Yalumba. This is a coveted award to an organisstion, event or individual for outsanding contribution to the Australian Wine industry. Listen HERE to Robert when he visited us at the WinePod earlier this year!
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Terras Gauda is a winery in the O Rosal sub region of Rias Baixas in Galicia. They make the most brilliant Rias Baixas wine from Albarino grapes. By this I mean an enormous volume of very ripe, peach like fruits followed on the palate by a distinct rich, Hay and mineral spiciness. Delightful is too small a word!
In this podcast we are joined by Mar Dopazo from Terras Gauda. Mar Guides us through Galicia and beyond. This is the story of brilliant and modern wine making in Spain.
The great news is that Terras Gauda has expanded into other wine making regions of Spain. Now we can have the same quality wine making from Pittacum in Bierzo and Quinta Sardonia in the Ribera del Duero.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
In this episode we chat with Hilde Loulier, export director at Maison Brotte one of the finest estates in Chateauneuf du Pape - home to the legendary la Fiole du Pape.
Maison Brotte also brings us wines from most of the major Rhone appelations. in each case these are wines of the highest quality made with the finest care and diligence.
Our recording with Hilde was our very first for the WinePod. It has taken this long to publish because of my own inefficiency - that's a long story .. but we got there in the end.
The Brotte label signifies trust and quality. Hilde tells us how that came about, what Brotte brings us today and quite a lot more. It's a great listen. Enjoy.
Thanks to Brian Hogan of Cassidy Wines (Maison Brotte agents in Ireland) for the image.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Prosecco is now in vogue as a sparkling wine of choice. This is a relatively recent development. It is not long since Prosecco was viewed as a downmarket wine in a market that chose other wines such as Cava, and even Asti Spumante, a long way before Prosecco was even considered. Champagne was, of course, further ahead still.
Now Prosecco graces the best of occasions - weddings included. It is often chosen first!
What did we know. Hindsight is such a leveller of our ignorance!
the Dal Bianca family knew! They have been making the very finest of wines from the best hills in Prosecco since the 1940's. Their belief in those hills has been rewarded by both the very finest of sparkling wines and also by their hills' recent elevation to the Unesco World Heritage List.
In this podcast Federico dal Bianca tells us in a precise, and at times humble, delivery why and how his family are custodians as well as winemakers. His knowledge is an education for us all who want to know more about one of the world's great sparkling wines and why Masottina is so brilliant.
They tell us on their website that , ....'Like a staggeringly beautiful painting, or a statue with a stunning likeness, these wines convey the inimitability – the uniqueness – of these hills.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Thomas Bachelder is one of the most interesting people in wine today! He is an absolute font of information, a raconteur of the highest order and a great winemaker.
How does he do it? What brought him from his home in Quebec to the vineyards of Burgundy, Oregon and Niagara in his quest to make great wine?
In this episode of the WinePod we explore these questions and focus on what makes 'Great Taste'.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
There is nothing quite like a new venue for a Wine Fair.
Loads of Light, Began Early, Great Wines.
Last month the WinePod dropped in on the Classic Drinks' Summer Wine Fair here in Dublin. It was aptly and imaginatively titled,
'New, Pink, Bubbles'
and held at the really must see revamped Cafe en Seine on Dawson Street.
We recorded a number of the wineries that were present. First up we asked Hugh Murray, Classic Drinks' Sales Director, what the Fair was all about.
Hugh was followed by Champagne Pannier, Stonewell Cider from Cork, Domaine Montrose from the Languedoc, Prado Rey from Ribera del Duero and finally by the wonderful Bisol from Prosecco.
Wonderful properties producing wonderful wines.
Something for everyone in this podcast!
Douglas Green Bellingham (DGB) is the largest privately owned collection of wineries in South Africa.
Greg Guy International Director for DGB came in to the WinePod to discuss South Africa and its wines.
Since we recorded this DGB has been honored by the MUNDUS VINI International Awards as Best South African Producer. This places DGB among the world's greatest producers.
Brands within the DGB stable include: Boschendal, Bellingham, Brampton, Franschoek Cellars, Douglas Green, Tall Horse, The Beachhouse.
Wines in South Africa are at an all time quality high point and Greg Guy of Douglas Green Bellingham tells us why. This is a brilliant insight into the business of the wines of South Africa.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
Paul Speck is one of three brothers who run the highly successful Henry of Pelham winery on Canada's Niagara peninsula.
Henry of Pelham works with a number of mottos two of which tells us that their vineyards and wines are 'Tradition Reinvented' and 'Not Just Good Wine - Beautiful Wine'. Both are true!
This episode is a fabulous introduction not just to Henry of Pelham but also to the joys and quality of the entire Canadian wine industry. Currently Aer Lingus Business Class serves the Henry of Pelham Baco Noir - an extraordinary depth of rich, ripe bramble fruit and has recently served the Henry of Pelham Chardonnay -one of the very best examples of cool climate chardonnay's available. These are really great wines.
Grab an atlas. Settle back. Pour yourself a generous one and Enjoy.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the exceptional Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu. Looking for a very different and quite brilliant night out, staff event, celebration? Contact Shiva at Monty's at 016704911 or shiva@montys.ie
In this epsisode I chat with Marcos Fernandez, Head Winemaker of the award winning Dona Paula vineyard in Argentina.
Dona Paula is one of the labels within the fabulous Santa Rita Estates. The other four - Santa Rita, Carmen, Terra Andina and Nativa are in Chile.
Marcos visited Dublin recently (Marcos is on the left: WinePod is on the right!) to take part in the fabulous Bloom Festival at which Dona Paula had entered a Show Garden titled, 'A Matter of Altitude'. To the delight of Dona Paula and Santa Rita the Dona Paula garden won the Overall Best in Show Garden Award!
In this podcast Marcos guides us through the amazing Dona Paula vineyards, its wines and people. Enjoy.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - an excellent place to host your next event or celebration.
Contact Shiva at 01 -6704911 or HERE at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
I was fortunate to be invited by BWG(Spar, Londis, Mace, Eurospar) to visit the Poggio al Casone vineyard in Tuscany.
We arrived at a resort of the highest quality nestled into the middle of some of the prettiest organic vineyards in Italy!
For two days Piergiorgio Castellani instructed us into how his family have developed very high quality wine estates to make top class wines.
A Castellani labelled wine can be trusted to deliver. These are people who really understand Sangiovese and have a vision as to where they would like to bring it.
Organic viticulture is now central to everything Castellani does. So is high tech! Drones, GPS and indeed robots delivering pheronomes to the vines! Its all here.
Many thanks to BWG for this opportunity and a genuine thank you to PierGiorgio for his patience and interest.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the exceptional Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu. Looking for a very different and quite brilliant night out, staff event, celebration? Contact Shiva at Monty's at 016704911 or shiva@montys.ie
In this episode Duncan Browne guides us through the world of the absolutely fabulous Gusbourne English Sparkling Wine.
I don't usually use the phrase ' off the charts' with respect to high quality in wine - mainly because its actually quite a rare thing! Nevertheless, that's exactly what I thought on each of the three occasions I had to taste these wines.
The Gusbourne vineyards are in Kent. They don't hold back with their ambition. its goes,'Our Vision is Simple. We Strive to Create the Finest Wines in the World'.
Today the wines of Gusbourne are carried by more Michelin starred restaurants around the world than I have the time to list here! The Vision would seem to be working. The vineyards are immaculate. The wines are very impressive.
Listen here to Duncan as to how this impressive venture was born, why Kent and what is produced. It's a great story and really well told.
Sorry about the background 'atmosphere'! But it was a great launch ...
Leading Irish grocer Dunnes Stores recently brought in a range of white wines from the Reine Pedauque stable in Burgundy. In this podcast Savinien Legelaux from Reine Pedauque guides us through the delights of the label and of Burgundy itself.
Wine, Food and Passion. Enjoy
Burgundy is a place in Eastern France where magic happens! With just two principle (Chardonnay and Pinot Noir) and two minor grapes (Aligote and Gamay) winemakers manage to make extremely fine wines.
We need to bear in mind that Burgundy is quite long and very narrow. Its vineyards are cooler in the north than the south and cross over a multitude of slope types each sitting on top of a wild assortment of fractured geologies.
Over the years the vineyards of Burgundy have been analysed and divided into smaller and smaller of Appellations.
Does all of this confuse us? Not a bit of it - so long as we get to taste wines from the region at an affordable price. Thanks Savinien.
Bibendum is one of the very best distributors of wine across the UK. Historically Gilbeys was THE best of the best in Ireland. As with everything time and economic developments have a habit of showing us that being the best is never an end in itself! Everyone these days, it seems, has to keep moving, developing and changing.
This month Bibendum launched a fascinating tie up with Gilbeys hereinafter (and forever?) to be called 'Gilbeys with Bibendum'.
The new venture will allow Gilbeys to introduce a very wide range of wines and wine styles into Ireland with relative ease and little fuss.
Michael Saunders is CEO and founding member of Bibendum. He chats here with the WinePod about how he began Bibendum and more importantly what he sees the tie up with Gilbeys will bring to Ireland.
Great to see that our brand leader in Ireland Santa Rita is already handled by both Bibendum and Gilbeys.
As part of the launch WinePod couldn't resist having a chat with Lenz Moser from Austria about his work with Chateau Changyu Moser XV winery in China. He was showing both a red AND a white Cabernet Sauvignon from China - and they are very good indeed!
Finally we also spent a few minutes with Maria Otero of Adegas Galegas in Spain - how can we resist the wines of Galicia - ah, the grapes of Godello, Mencia and Albarino!!
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the exceptional Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu. Looking for a very different and quite brilliant night out, staff event, celebration? Contact Shiva at Monty's at 016704911 or shiva@montys.ie
Villa Maria is on every wine shelf across Ireland. It's a staple for restaurant lists. It's a label that delivers on a promise of consistent quality, value and excitement.
Angela Lewis has worked with Villa Maria for many years now and shared her story and that of Villa Maria itself with the WinePod. It's a great story!
Villa Maria is New Zealand's most awarded winery, is a member of New Zealand's 'Family of Twelve' and was this year voted the third Most Admired Wine Brand in the World.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - a really excellent place to host your next event or celebration. Contact Shiva on 01-6704911 or Here at the Santa Rita Wine Room web page.
O'Briens Wines imports the Guerrieri Rizzardi wines from the Veneto region of Italy. The family history on their land goes back to 1678 - an incredible journey!
The WinePod met up with Giuseppe Rizzardi, owner and winemaker, on his recent visit to the O'Briens Wine School at Donnybrook during which he presented a brilliant Amarone Masterclass (see WineIreland.blog) and a comprehensive introduction to each of the wine styles of the Veneto.
This recording has all the hustle and bustle of busy wine school preparation in the background! It also has some fascinating insight into some of the finest Amarone wines on sale. This is a genuine Master of the craft welcoming us into his world. Enjoy.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to us with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - a great venue to host your next special event, celebration and meeting.
I've always been a great fan of the wines from Nautilus on New Zealand's South Island. They seem to be perfect every time!
For this episode we were privileged to be joined by Clive Weston of Nautilus Wines. Clive brought us to the heart of what makes this great family owned winery tick. Along the way we find vibrant, young to oaked and even aged Sauvignon Blanc wine styles.
Pinot Noir makes a graceful appearance. Chardonnay and others are introduced also. It's a fascinating story told with passion and integrity - just like the wines themselves.
Nautilus is a proud member of the Family of Twelve - Twelve Exceptional New Zealand Wineries.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to you with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu. It really is great place to host your next event/training/celebration!
This Episode of the WinePod explores the wines of Leopard's Leap from Franschhoek in South Africa. We were joined by Sales Director Marius Kotze.
What a great range of wines Leapard's Leap is!
I suppose it has to be as it's sister label la Motte ranks among the finest wines in the world. Both labels are represented on the Irish market by Classic Drinks.
Marius guided us through the history of Leopard's Leap and its current wine offering.
A real point of interest is the winery's genuine support for the survival of the Cape Leopard. Have a look at the Cape Leopard's Trust site to learn more.
The WinePod is brought to you with the assistance of the wonderful Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu in the heart of Dublin city centre. Book a group in for a Wine Tasting today. You won't be disappointed!
Robert Hill-Smith is one of the great names from the Australian wine industry. He is the fifth generation in charge at the Yalumba Winery and has just been joined by the sixth - his daughter Jessica.
Yalumba is a founding member of the prestigious Australia's First Families of Wine.
Yalumba is a winery at Angaston in the Barossa Valley of South Australia. It is also a world respected label bringing us wines from the Barossa and Eden Valleys and Jansz from Tasmania. Everything from Yalumba is quality, value and innovative.
Robert joined me at the WinePod on his recent visit to Ireland. We recorded at Whelehan's Wines. Yes, he tells a good story.
Thanks for listening. Spread the word and please Subscribe. We are now also on Spotify, iTunes and Stitcher.
Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to you with the assistance of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's. THE perfect setting for your next important event.
Irish supermarket SuperValu held a Spanish Wine Fair recently. It was fascinating because it broke many of the norms for a supermarket tasting.
- It had both suppliers and winemakers in attendance.
- All of the wines were premium.
The WinePod spoke with SuperValu Wine Buyer, Kevin O'Callaghan, at the Fair.
In addition we were joined by Felix Solis who showed us his la Unica whose every bottle has a unique hand-painted label and is a selection of the best wines from Pagos del Rey (Rioja), Olmedillo de Roa (Burgos) and Morales de Toro (Zamora). Extraordinary.
Carmen Puche from Bodegas Castano told us all about her wines from the fabulous region of Yecla in Murcia.
Mick O'Connell MW was on hand to tell us all about some high end wines from Bodegas Torres while Pablo Sampedro guided us through the Basque region of Rioja Alavesa with his Finca Labarca and Pago de Labarca wines from Bodegas Covila.
Finally, Raquel Santalaya showed us the fabulous 500 Manos from Carinena.
Enjoy these stories from across the amazing vineyards of Spain!
Don't forget to Subscribe. Kevin Ecock's WinePod is brought to you with the help of the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's.
Pamela Walsh and Brett Stephenson showed their first Moineir Strawberry Wine at the Bloom Festival in 2016. It was an instant hit with a wide range of critics - food, wine and consumers! Quality, originality and passion.
Today Wicklow Way Wines markets Strawberry, Blackberry and Raspberry Moineir Wines from a custom built winery at Newtownmountkennedy in County Wicklow, Ireland.
I paid a visit to Pam and Brett and we had a chat about how their venture came about, how the wines are made and what plans they might have for the future. Great story! Fabulous Wines ...
Kevin Ecock's WinePod with the Santa Rita Wine Room at Monty's of Kathmandu - a great place to book a memorable event.