Tell us about the moment you first became interested in wine
My parents are Francophiles, and most of our family holidays were split between Brittany and the Languedoc. My dad is a wine enthusiast, and I have fond memories of watching him scour the shelves in French wine shops and supermarkets to find a particular bottle. His interest very much sparked my own.
Describe your wine list at Caper & Cure and Carmen Street Wine
Sitting at around 60 bottles, Caper & Cure has a fairly traditional wine list, but always with a key focus on well-made, sustainable European wines. The list changes slowly throughout the year, and premium bottles are sourced from more well-known appellations, as they sell much better in the restaurant than more adventurous options.
At Carmen Street Wine, however, we can play a lot more, offering a constantly varying list with all sorts of rare, indigenous and wonderful wines by the glass. The bottle list hosts more than 150 wines, with a strong lean towards low-intervention and biodynamic practices.
Over the course of your career, have you had any wine-related disasters?
We once had a whole shelf collapse in the restaurant. I walked into work as one of our overzealous servers was trying to squeeze one last bottle onto an already overloaded shelf. She stepped off the ladder and moved out of the way just as the whole thing came crashing down. Thousands of pounds’ worth of juice flowed down the stairs just as Daddy G from Massive Attack was coming in for dinner.
Name your top three restaurant wine lists
Little French in Bristol has a lovely, long list. Freddy Bird and his team have put together a great selection, with a good choice of entry-level to top celebratory bottles. Bar Crispin in Soho is a small bar with an exciting list. Wines by the glass are written up on the board and they always offer an interesting, dynamic choice, with a focus on low-intervention wines. I also love the list at Bistro Paul Bert in Paris. I’ve been there a couple of times, including again last week. It’s a very long list with wines sourced from all over France, including some great finds from the Jura — one of my favourite regions.
Who do you most respect in the wine world?
Matt Wilkin MS. I worked for Matt when he had The Princess Victoria in Shepherd’s Bush and his knowledge is incredibly inspiring. He seems to have won all the accolades — from gaining the title of South Australia’s first Master Sommelier to winning UK Sommelier of the Year — yet he’s very generous in sharing his knowledge and passion.
What’s the most interesting wine you’ve come across recently?
We bought a few cases from La Boussole, a small winery run by Maxence Lecat in Baden, Germany. The ’23 Nord is a really interesting Chardonnay, made using the black Chardonnay method with native yeast and aged for 18 months in Burgundy barriques. The wine has a really pronounced nose, slightly reductive, a complex palate and a lovely long finish.
What are the three most overused tasting notes?
Crowd-pleasing, easy-drinking and strawberry notes.
What’s the best value wine on your list at the moment?
I’m really enjoying the 2018 Ballarino from Valdonica Winery in Tuscany. It’s a 100% Vermentino skin-contact wine: full-bodied, gastronomic and aromatic, with well-balanced complexity. We’ve got it on for £10 a glass in Carmen Street Wine. It’s a bargain.
What is your ultimate food and drink match?
Bone-dry Muscadet and oysters.
Old World or New World?
Old World.
What is your pet hate when it comes to wine service in other restaurants?
When servers try to pull off the foil (capsule) from a wine bottle at the table — especially when it gets stuck — instead of cutting it. And when servers smell the cork before serving the wine. I’m not sure they know what they’re smelling for half the time.
Who is your favourite producer right now?
Raul Moreno from Sanlúcar de Barrameda, near Jerez in Spain. Raul worked for many years as a chef, including with Marco Pierre White, before turning his hand to winemaking. I was lucky enough to visit his winery last year and he makes some incredibly interesting wines — for example, Femme d’Argent, a blend of Palomino and Syrah made in chestnut barrels and aged under flor. It’s a unique wine, full of complexity.
As a restaurant and wine bar owner, what question do you most get asked by customers?
It’s either: “Gosh, it’s a tough industry, such long hours… how do you do it?” or, “Have you tried all of these wines? It’s alright for some!”
Which wine-producing region or country is underrated at the moment?
Austria produces some excellent wines, but you rarely see them on lists, and our suppliers don’t show us many. A lot of Austrian winemakers I’ve come across follow organic processes, and the wines are often great value. I’ll always try a glass of Austrian Blaufränkisch if I see it by the glass.
It’s your last meal and you can have a bottle of any wine in the world. What is it and why?
I think I’d have to go super-premium and choose a bottle of Romanée-Conti. I’ve never had one, but if I owned one it would no doubt sit on the rack for years, waiting for ‘that’ special occasion. If it was my last wine, I’d either savour every sip or revel in swigging a bottle worth thousands.