Kevin Ecock's Winepod

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 ... )

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.

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 o

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'.   --------------

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

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 He

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. -------------------------------

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

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 recentl

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

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 an

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 y

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! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Wh

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 n

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!

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

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 su

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

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 d