Joseph Berkmann, restaurateur turned wine importer, dies aged 94
The founder of Berkmann Wine Cellars and a driving force in the evolution of Britain’s wine trade, Joseph Berkmann, died two weeks ago at his home in St Tropez, aged 94. Honoured with the drinks business Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020, we republish below the tribute first written to mark that occasion.
Joseph Berkmann, the founder of Berkmann Wine Cellars, was honoured in 2020 by the drinks business with a Lifetime Achievement Award.
At the time, he was still at the helm of the London-based distributor he founded in 1987. Berkmann pioneered many things we take for granted in the wine trade, from consumer wine guides and comparative tastings to Beaujolais Nouveau.
“Good and bad times are the different faces of the same coin. It’s a very difficult time for the hospitality business, so more than ever we shall need a good drink.
“I raise my glass to everyone in our beloved industry, in appreciation for this honour and in the hope and expectation of the brightest possible future,” Berkmann said when he received the award.
Born and raised in the Austrian Tyrol, before entering the trade, he worked as a waiter, which gave him a thirst for wine.
Partner Content
Before settling in England in the ‘60s, Berkmann lived in Germany, Switzerland, Libya, Rome, New York, Caracas and Istanbul, siring six sons with four wives.
Two years after arriving in England, he opened a French restaurant called Genevieve, despite having never been to France, and swiftly went about building a group of Gallic-inspired venues, which eventually led him to the world of wine and the publishing of the Good Wine Guide in 1973 with journalist Allan Hall.
At the start of that decade, he began importing Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau into the UK in a deal decided on a handshake; a venture that morphed into Genevieve Wines, founded in 1964 to supply his restaurant customers with the wines found on his menus for at-home consumption.
Before launching the company that bears his name, Berkmann set up a wine firm in New York with Alexis Lichine.
Motivated by a passion for wine rather than money, having wrapped up his restaurant business in 1982, five years later, he launched Berkmann Wine Cellars, the day-to-day running of which is now looked after by his son Rupert.
The company remains the largest family-owned and run wine importer in the UK.
Related news
Former Enotria CEO joins Berkmann Wine Cellars
Berkmann offering 50,000 bottles of wine to indie on-trade venues
