▻ Omnibus XXV
Episode Summary:-
Another busy month of news and views in this month’s Omnibus, sadly not all of it very pleasant. To commence, John Stimpfig looks back on the life of three great wine names who have left us. Hubert Trimbach was the 11th generation of the Trimbach family whose gorgeous Alsatian wines have such a following. He was the sales director for more than 50 years, travelling the globe and making friends and customers wherever he went. He passed away at 85 years old and is survived by his brother Bernard, his nephews and grand-nephews and nieces. Riesling lost another champion in the form of John Vickery, acknowledged master of Riesling in Australia, where he crafted examples in the Clare and Eden Valleys. In 2003 he was acknowledged by his peers as Australia’s greatest winemaker. John also reports the sad news of the passing of Xavier Gramona, of Cava fame. An accident in the cellar led to his early death at the age of 64.
Two major winery sales have caught John’s eye. The first was Hambledon Vineyards, which has been bought by the wine merchant Berry Brothers & Rudd and Symington Port. A huge endorsement from one of the world’s most renowned fine-wine retailers and the world-famous Port House. The other sale is Bride Valley Vineyards, which was founded by the late Steven Spurrier. It has been bought by two Dorset entrepreneurs.
In one of the ugliest stories The Wine Conversation has ever reported on, John also looks at the ongoing inquest into modern slavery in the vineyards of Champagne during the 2023 harvest. Fifty-two undocumented workers from Senegal, Mali and Gambia were found housed in appalling conditions, fed on bunches of grapes and rice. They are now being looked after by the Salvation Army. There are other incidents under investigation too, one which concerns the treatment of 150 Ukrainian pickers and four deaths of pickers due to heatstroke in the unusually hot weather during the 2023 harvest. John explains that third-party sub-contractors are often used, and many producers and growers no longer provide accommodation.
On a positive note, there was good news for the wines of Austria, with the announcement that Austria has officially established the legal basis for a new classification of single vineyards which will see plots divided into Erste Lage (premier cru) and Große Lage (grand cru). Each vineyard needs to make an application, and the criteria for being awarded the classification is based not only on terroir, but critics’ scores and prices as well. Over in Spain, John picks up on a story first reported by Tim Atkin MW: Rioja is facing a crisis, not only because of a surplus of wine, but the Association de Bodegas Familiares de Rioja (which represents the boutique producers) has walked out of the decision-making body of the region’s Regulatory Council. There has been a long-running feud over how the votes are allocated. The Bodegas Familiares de Rioja only have 8 votes out of 100, despite representing 50% of the producers. Not a good time not to be unified, John and Sarah agree.
Weather watch – floods in Chile and South Africa, hurricanes in Greece and news that the Spanish government is putting aside 12 billion euros for agriculture to help deal with climate change. If John’s news this month has made you want to reach into the cellar for a particularly strong bottle, wait: There is cheerful news from Berry Brothers & Rudd, who have raised over £350,000 for “My Name’s Doddie Foundation,” the charity which supports the fight against Motor Neurone Disease. Lizzie Rudd and her team cycled 325 miles to Pol Roger in Epernay in four days to raise funds – proof indeed of the marvellous wine-trade spirit.
Over in the US, Elin McCoy has had a particularly busy month with most of the wine world’s main players in New York. Our heroic US editor has been attending breakfast, lunch, dinner and late-night events in order to bring Wine Conversation listeners up-to-date with the most exciting wine launches and tastings. First, though, she reports on the one-billion-dollar sale of the US luxury winery Daou Family Estates in Paso Robles, California, to the Australian giant Treasury Wine Estates, owner of Penfold’s The winery was started by two Lebanese-American brothers who purchased the land in 2007 after selling their technology company. It is a major deal, Elin explains, as it is a luxury brand, and it is not in the Napa Valley.
Then Elin attends a vertical tasting of Torrontes by Susana Balbo, one of Argentina’s top winemakers. “What can I say about Torrontes, I was dubious, but I am now convinced,” Elin reports. Then she was impressed with Quilceda Creek in Washington State’s “Tchelistcheff,” named after the great winemaker Andre Tchelistcheff. It is a single clone of Cabernet Sauvignon, from a single vineyard. Both Sarah and Elin believe that the wines of Washington State need more attention, especially as they are considerably less expensive than the wines of California. Then it was time for lunch with National Basketball Association star Tony Parker, who is part owner with Cos d’Estournel proprietor Michel Reybier of Champagne Jeeper and Château La Mascaronne in Provence. Next year he will launch a wine from his own estate, Château St-Laurent in the Côtes du Ventoux, Elin will be certain to report on it.
Tawny Port is fashionable in the US at the moment, with restaurants finding it the ideal pairing with cheese. Elin talks to Adrian Bridge of Taylor’s Fladgate who has been spearheading the trend, and recently launched Golden Age Tawny, a 50-year-old blend. Further, four wines, all around US$1,000, have just been released, and no, they weren’t DRC. Champagne Bollinger “La Côte aux Enfants,” an Ay Grand Cru from a unique eponymous plot, 100% Pinot Noir. Next up, Armand de Brignac “Blanc de Noirs Assemblage No. Four,” again a 100% Pinot Noir cuvée. From Australia the new vintage of Penfold’s Grange, very impressive, bold and broody, Elin finds. The last of the thousand-dollar wines is made by Paul Hobbs, a blend of Napa Valley-floor Cabernet Sauvignon from the 2015 vintage. Elin and Sarah are thrilled to hear that this year’s vintage in California is looking to be superb. Cool summer and a long, slow-ripening autumn are producing wines which vintners claim are the best for years.
Finally, the astonishing news that Rudi Kurniawan, the counterfeiter who spent seven years in prison for making fake wine, which he sold for millions of dollars, is back in business. It has been reported that he held a dinner in Singapore for seven people, pitching his fake wine against the original bottles, which included the 1990 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. The word is that the diners preferred the fakes… Elin is investigating and The Wine Conversation will be reporting back. Sometimes you couldn’t make the news up.
Running Order:-
-
0.00 – 12.47
“John Vickery was judged by his peers as one of Australia’s greatest winemakers.” – John Stimpfig
– John Stimpfig looks back on the life of Hubert Trimbach, John Vickery and Xavier Gramona.
– Purchase of Hambledon Vineyards by Berry Brothers & Rudd and Symington Port.
– Sale of Bride Valley Vineyards.
– Modern slavery and deaths in Champagne. -
12.48 – 33.45
“Essentially it is a power struggle between the big volume and small, more quality producers in Rioja.” – John Stimpfig
– New legal basis for vineyard classification in Austria.
– Rioja rows and economic woe.
– Weather watch – floods in Chile and South Africa.
– Berry Brothers & Rudd raise over £350,000 for charity on 325-mile bike ride. -
33.46 – 42.00
“What can I say about Torrontes, I was dubious, I am converted.” – Elin McCoy
– Treasury Wine Estates buy Daou Family Estates in Paso Robles for one billion dollars.
– Vertical tasting of Susana Balbo’s Torrontes.
– Quilceda Creek launches “Tchelistcheff”. -
42.01 – 01.04
“California 2023 harvest – superb, superb, superb.” – Elin McCoy
– Elin McCoy lunches with NBA star Tony Parker.
– Adrian Bridge talks to Elin about the success of aged Tawny Port in the US.
– The new US $1,000 bottles being launched.
– California harvest report.
– Rudi Kurniawan is back in business.
News and views aplenty in this month’s Omnibus, good, bad and damn frightening. Great wine and art in Provence, Bollinger’s new launches, exciting award-winning Chinese wines, Old Vine Hero Awards, Mouton Cadet for Gen Z, and the annual conversation about En Primeur prices plus climate change predictions (spoiler very frightening). Brought to you by our Founder Sponsor Santa Rita Estates