We spend time with Albert Ahrens in the Graft offices to talk about the advent of the South African wine revolution, how to do packaging just right, and the importance of soul in wine.

Albert was winemaker at Lammershoek in the Swartland, before stints in Champagne, Priorat and the Rhône Valley, returning home to work on a variety of projects before setting up on his own. He drives 40,000km per year between vineyards, making wine his cellar in Wildepaardejacht, a serene location beneath the Du Toitskloof mountains, just outside Paarl. Then there’s his MCC, under the separate House of GM & Ahrens label and cellared in Franschhoek – the only bubbly maturation cellar in the centre of town – further adding to the odometer. These are terroir-driven wines from all over the Cape, taking in the Swartland, Voor-Paardeberg, Stellenbosch (Bottelary Hills to be precise), Franschhoek, and Elgin, with more to come from Helderberg, Robertson, Paarl and Tulbagh. Wines that, so Albert says, express their “address” first and foremost, rather than the cultivar..

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We talk to Jacob Leadley, English winemaker extraordinaire, about how a casual conversation had round the family dinner table took him from winemaker at Hattingley Valley Wines, to co-founder of England's most exciting and innovative new wineries; Black Chalk.

Black Chalk is the personal project of award winning winemaker Jacob Leadley and his family. After 8 years making over 120 English Sparkling wines in Hampshire he has recently turned his attention to producing the critically acclaimed Black Chalk.

Sourcing fruit from top growers in Hampshire, Black Chalk is about quality without compromise, "it is a delight to be able to focus my time and energy creating wines that I feel really showcase what Hampshire can do so well, purity of fruit, depth, weight and balance."

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We catch up with Sam Coverdale at Rosewood London to ask him about his near miss with the 9-5-daily-grind in Canary Wharf to learn oenology and viticulture alongside an heiresses to one of the world's largest wineries, finding your voice in an industry loaded with greenwashing, and his take on whether or not Pinot Noir is indeed the greatest.

Sam Coverdale established Even Keel in 2006 with a vision to create drinkable, elegant wines that celebrate the individual strengths of Australia’s wine regions. Since 2009, he has specialised in premium, single-vineyard wines from the Mornington Peninsula, under the Polperro label, using a mix of organic and biodynamic viticulture principles.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.