Tell us about the moment you first became interested in wine
I needed a red, a white and a sparkling wine for my former Mexican restaurant, Killer Tomato. I knew Liberty Wines had a huge range, so I signed up with the very lovely James White. James invited me to its portfolio tasting at the Oval, where I walked in and saw more than 300 wines, including some of the very fanciest stuff. My mind was blown by the fact that I could walk around and taste everything. I was hooked after that.
Describe your wine list at Chishuru
It’s 100% French. I’m not a fan of ‘United Nations of wine lists’, where you have something from Okanagan, something from Colchagua and something from Bekaa – I’m much more interested in something focused. Having a 100% French list enables us to go deeper and helps the team concentrate on one country. In the words of Jon Bonné, France is the “soul of the world’s wine industry”.
Sometimes people ask why we don’t list any South African wines, but the distance from Lagos to Burgundy is shorter than the distance from Lagos to Johannesburg.
Over the course of your career, have you had any wine-related disasters?
I was at 67 Pall Mall for my leaving lunch with Rob and Marie from Enoteca da Luca. We’d brought some bottles, the team had kindly set out Zalto glasses and we opened a Biondi-Santi. The sommelier offered me a taste, but I waved her away because we were paying corkage and I was responsible for the wine. It was cork-tainted and she had to wash four fancy glasses. Since then, I’ve smelled every wine, even if I’ve brought it myself.
Name your top three restaurant wine lists
I’m a sucker for favourable margins, so The 10 Cases in Covent Garden, the very eccentric Golborne Deli & Wine Store in west London and Vantre in Paris.
Who do you most respect in the wine world?
Walter Speller deserves an MBE for Nebbiolo Day.
What’s the most interesting wine you’ve come across recently?
One of the most fun things in wine is finding producers before they hit the big time. Domaine Mayard’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape is that kind of wine – it made me re-evaluate the appellation. I’ve got two bottles left in the building to last me until the autumn and I can’t guarantee I won’t drink at least one myself.
What are the three most overused tasting notes?
Mineral, linear and racy.
What’s the best-value wine on your list at the moment and why?
Condrieu ‘Les Vallins’ from Christophe Blanc at £97 is both typical and distinctively fresh. I like pouring it for sommeliers and telling them it will change their minds about Condrieu – and it does.
What is your ultimate food and drink match?
Osso buco with risotto alla Milanese and Paitin’s Barbaresco Serraboella Sorì Paitin.
Old World or New World?
Old World.
What is your pet hate when it comes to wine service in other restaurants?
Putting white wine in an ice bucket warrants nothing less than the death penalty.
Who is your favourite producer right now?
Fumey-Chatelain in the Jura – we’ve got five of their wines on our list at any one time. They have the killer combination of being typical, tasting like handmade wines and offering great value.
What question do you most often get asked by customers?
Has anyone told you that you look like John Malkovich?
Which wine-producing region or country is underrated at the moment?
Alto Piemonte. Production is small and there’s no ‘hero’ wine beyond Conterno’s Gattinaras, which are only just getting started. It doesn’t help that the region is in the shadow of Barolo and Barbaresco. I love the wines and it’s an amazing place to visit – the Conterno winery alone is worth a special trip.
It’s your last meal and you can have a bottle of any wine in the world. What is it and why?
It’s a toss-up between a 1980s La Coulée de Serrant from Nicolas Joly – visiting the domaine was one of my all-time favourite wine experiences – and a 1994 Trebbiano d’Abruzzo from Emidio Pepe. I tasted the latter at a seminar at Vinitaly three years ago and I’ll never forget it.