The week in pictures

Brett Donaldson, viticulturist at the Ihumatao Vineyards surrounding Villa Maria’s Auckland Winery, inspects his grapes before beginning the Pinot Noir harvest today.

Fells held its annual portfolio tasting at One Great George Street in Westminster on Tuesday, where Manuela Falcione from Torres was on hand to take db through its range of Spanish wines, which included the recently released Altos Ibéricos Parcelas de Graciano – a DOC Rioja made from 100% Graciano – for the UK on-trade.

Across the hall, Symington Family Estates were busy enticing visitors to its stand with chocolate, showcasing its recent partnership with Rococo Chocolate. It also had on pour a very special bottle of 1966 vintage Port, produced by Graham’s the year before it was bought by the family in 1970. The 50-year-old Port is due to be released later this year.

Across town Enotria&Coe was busy hosting its annual tasting at the Old Truman brewery in Shoreditch – its first following the merger of Enotria and Coe Vintners in August last year.

Following a media briefing Troy Christensen, CEO of the company, revealed exclusively to db that the Wine and Spirit Trade Association’s plans to publicly announce its pro-EU position against Brexit.

Strongbow Hard Apple Ciders this week announced the launch of its latest television ad campaign starring actor Sir Patrick Stewart. The humorous new commercials will showcase Strongbow’s range of flavours by poking fun at Sir Patrick Stewart’s impressive acting range.

The first ad can be seen below:

In London, a protest group celebrated a temporary reprieve from demolition for a much loved corner of London where two popular local pubs are based with a jolly promenade in Victorian costume.

Earl’s Court Area Action Group invited residents to join HM Queen Victoria and the Prince of Wales as they visited Empress Place and its much-loved Edwardian pub named in his honour to denounce their impending demolition by Capco.

Linda Wade, Chair of ECAAG attended as did Andrew Slaughter MP for Hammersmith.

“We are losing so much of our built heritage and sense of place in London that it means appreciating what we still have takes on an added significance”, Linda Wade, Chair of ECAAG, said.

To cheers from participants and spectators, Capco staff pulled down their marketing suite’s blinds when residents in Victorian fancy dress sang the national anthem outside their Lillie Square showroom opposite Empress Place.

The demolition of Empress Place and two adjacent parades of shops on the Lillie Road by Capco entity Earl’s Court Partnership Ltd was due to start on the 11th January, 2016.

Empress Place comprises two rows of attractive Victorian workers’ cottages in Hammersmith and Fulham. On the corner is the Edwardian Prince of Wales public house and a few doors up on the Lillie Road is The Imperial Arms.

Thanks to outraged Hammersmith and Fulham residents’ application to list the Prince of Wales pub as an Asset of Community Value, demolition of this area has had to be temporarily stayed.  

db attended the launch of The Owl bar this week, a cosy cocktail bar tucked underneath Balham latest restaurant, Foxlow.

It is the first ‘standalone’ bar venture for Foxlow, the sister restaurant of Hawksmoor, and features a 35-cover bar in the basement of the restaurant which has its own separate identity. It will have a changing list of ten drinks, alongside a selection of snacks.

Nibbles included smoked almonds, nocellara olives and Cobble Lane Kabanos, as well as boards of Neal’s Yard Cheeses with membrillo and chutney, washed down with Hawksmore’s well-know beer cocktail, Shaky Pete’s Ginger Brew – a foaming tankard of gin, ginger, lemon and London Pride.

Other cocktails on the list included The Ultimate Gimlet (Hepple Gin, cardamom and pimped-up lime cordial), Dr Grey – a mixture of blended and peated whiskies with lemon, ginger and bergamot, and gin and sherry-based Tom and Jerez, alongside an uncluttered wine list featuring three white and three red wines.

On Monday db popped down to the Sharp’s Brewery London Beer Week Hub in Ely’s Yard off Brick Lane in east London for a lesson on food and beer pairings from beer sommelier Ed Hughes.

Food pairings came courtesy of Cornwall-based chef trio Zack Hawke, head chef at Nathan Outlaw’s The Mariners, Padstow; Paul Ainsworth, head chef at Michelin-starred Number 6 in Padstow; and Paul Ripley, former Michelin-starred head chef at Rick Stein’s Seafood Bar in Falmouth.

Continuing on the beer theme, stay tuned to thedrinksbusiness.com next week four Ed Hughes’s top 10 beer and food pairings. db is also upping its beer focus with its first ever Beer Masters competition, set to take place at the end of March.

Stéphanie de Boüard of Château Angelus was in town this week to introduce a new Angelus coffee table book written by Jane Anson to the UK wine press. She celebrated the launch with a lavish lunch at Hélène Darroze at The Connaught.

The Angelus flowed generously during the lunch, culminating in the perfumed 2006 vintage, which is just coming into its prime.

Also on pour was the 2008 vintage of the grand vin and the 2012 vintage of second wine Carillon d’Angelus, which de Boüard would like to make more of.

To pair, we enjoyed Limousin sweetbreads with cauliflower and Muscat grapes; and pork with pumpkin, dates and North African spice ras el hanout

In Pursuit of Balance hosted its inaugural tasting in London this week, which was attended by co-founder of the movement Rajat Parr, who was on hand to pour his sensational Sandhi Chardonnays.

Also in attendane was Jamie Kutch of Kutch Wines, who was full of the joys of spring and pouring his Pinots, Chardonnay and a new rosé.

Not only does Gavin Chanin of Chanin Wines make delicious Pinot Noir, he designs their label artwork too.

Also in town this week was Randy Ullom, the longtime chief winemaker of Kendall-Jackson in California, who told db that he thinks Sonoma makes superior Cabernets to Napa.

db was delighted to be invited to a Tuscan wine dinner hosted by Diana Frescobaldi at the family’s new Frescobaldi restaurant in Mayfair, which boasts an impressive vine leaf ceiling.

Wine writers including Guy Woodward (pictured here with Diana) were treated to a decadent four-course dinner featuring rabbit ragu and veal cheek with black truffle, which was paired with three different vintages of the Syrah-based Ammiraglia from the Maremma – 2001, 2009 and 2006, in which the 2011 shone.

There was also time for a spot of theatre this week as db moseyed over to the Old Vic for a performance of Henrik Ibsen’s celebrated late-era play The Master Builder. Half-time refreshments were generously supplied by Taittinger and the performances of the lovely Ralph Feinnes and vivacious Sarah Snook in the lead roles were as scintillating as the Champagne. (Photo courtesy: Manuel Harlan)