The four-wheel drive pulls up and we pile out – Marco Pallanti’s two Jack Russells (Bach and Masetto) leading the charge as they tumble down and into the vineyard in front of us. The vines stretch down a steep slope, three triangular slithers slanting severely to a point, forming a natural amphitheatre, and Siena’s iconic tower just visible on the horizon, 20km to the south. CEO Lorenza Sebasti, her and Pallanti’s son Arturo, our Buying Director Corentin Margier and I are standing in Castello di Ama’s Montebuoni vineyard, which gives its name to their Riserva bottling. It’s the final stop in our tour of the various sites that make up the property’s 75 hectares of vines.  Just tasting Castello di Ama’s wines tells you that this is a special place, but of course there is no substitute for getting your feet on the ground, walking the vines and seeing the site yourself. Since four Roman families re-discovered this hilltop site in the 1970s, it has been lovingly restored, with significant investment in the vineyards and winery – and the original 55-hectare estate has grown to 115 hectares today (with 75 hectares of vines and 40 of olive groves), not to mention the extensive art collection that dots the property.  The vineyards are spread across four valleys, with each site within a 1.5-kilometre radius of the winery in Gaiole-in-Chianti. For winemaker Pallanti, this proximity is one of the keys to quality, not only allowing them to really understand each site, but also ensuring there is minimal time between picking fruit and getting it into the winery. For each parcel, they aim to have the fruit in the tank in under two hours. The property all sits between 420 and 530 metres above sea-level, on the higher side for the region and another defining element for Castello di Ama, lending their wines great freshness and finesse.  The northern flank of the estate is the 16.1-hectare La Casuccia, dominated by stony clay soils and surrounded by stone walls. Here the “rich, fat soil” (as described by Arturo Pallanti) is home to largely Sangiovese, with one historical parcel of Merlot. The tenderloin of the property, it produces opulent and expressive wines, and a single-vineyard Gran Selezione is made in only top vintages (as for Bellavista).  Moving south you come to San Lorenzo which forms the foundation of the eponymous Gran Selezione, a wine made every vintage. While the vintages from 1982 to 1990 were made exclusively with fruit from this vineyard, it has evolved to become a blend of plots – including fruit from Bellavista and La Casuccia in particular in the years they aren’t made. The soils here are chalky yet with plenty of clay-rich schist – a site that doesn’t have the extremes of Montebuoni, Bellavista or La Casuccia, but brings together some of the best characters of them all in its 16.5 hectares.  Sandwiched between San Lorenzo and Bellavista lies L’Apparita, the special three-hectare plot of Merlot that is behind Tuscany’s first – and one of its most iconic – Merlot wines. Clay, chalk and the altitude (500 metres) create a wine that has both power and freshness. The neighbouring Bellavista produces some of Castello di Ama’s most powerful, yet fine and floral, wines – and is home to their oldest vines. South/southwest-facing, its 22.5 hectares of vines (around 80% Sangiovese, with the remainder Malvasia Nera) bask in the sunshine, sitting in stony, clay-chalk soils. In top vintages, they produce a single-site Gran Selezione from Bellavista (first made in 1978) – an impressive and age-worthy wine.  The final piece of the puzzle is Montebuoni – where we’re standing. Pallanti and Sebasti purchased this 14.7-hectare slice of vineyard in 1997, naming it after the village opposite. Arturo tells us how as a child he once tried to ride his bike up the slope – a mistake he never made again. The gradient here is so drastic that even driving down it in a pick-up frays the nerves, working from the chalky scree that feels destined to leave the wheels skidding, down to the more clay-rich foot of the vineyard. The vines here are divided between Sangiovese (around half the site), with Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Malvasia Nera – and the wines reflect the site’s angular slopes, pointed and driven with a backbone of bright acidity.  It’s been over 40 years since Pallanti arrived at the estate, and over 30 since Sebasti took over as CEO. Together they have nurtured this remarkable property, weaving together the threads of these special vineyards to craft wines that set the benchmark for the region. Neither are set to retire any time soon, but now Arturo has returned to join the family business – adding to the complex patchwork that defines this soulful estate.  Explore all Castello di Ama listings or read more Editorial 

We have long championed the wines of Castello di Ama – an estate that crafts some of Chianti, and Tuscany’s, best wines. We visited the property to dive into their special terroir; here we walk you through their patchwork of vineyards       

Walking you through top Chianti Classico wine estate Castello di Ama’s terroir – visiting La Casuccia, San Lorenzo, L’Apparita, Bellavista and Montebuoni

Exploring Castello di Ama’s vineyards

Piecing together the puzzle at Castello di Ama

Domaine de Montille is one of the most historic estates in the Cote d’Or, founded in 1730 and family-run and owned ever since. Today Etienne de Montille is the ninth generation at the helm.  The De Montille story through the ages is a familiar one in Burgundy in which for a long period there was a dwindling of holdings as more and more of their prized vineyards were agonisingly sold off to make ends meet during the lean years of the early twentieth century. Etienne’s father, Hubert de Montille took over the estate in 1947, aged just 17, by this time the domaine had just 2.5 hectares to its name. Etienne’s father knew that he had to change tack if the domaine was to survive and worked both as a vigneron and a lawyer to finance returning the estate to its former glory. Like his father, Etienne used his earnings as a lawyer to build up the domaine’s acreage, including a novel acquisition approach that in 2005 saw him acquire one of the region's finest Premier Cru sites - Vosne-Romanee Premier Cru Les Malconsorts – neighbouring the Grand Cru of La Tache.  The estate now produces over 35 cuvées from appellations throughout the Cote d’Or. Etienne talks us through the De Montille’s bumpy history, its extensive vineyard acquisition in recent years, how he learnt to make white wine from his brother-in-law (who just so happened to be Jean-Marc Roulot), as well as mapping out the different flavour profiles of his favourite sites at the heart of the domaine in Volnay and neighbouring Pommard. 
The history of the domaine 
Based in Volnay, the De Montille estate has had its fair share of ups and down. It once had one of the finest portfolios of vineyards anywhere in the Cote d’Or (including Bonnes Mares, Musigny and Amoureuses), before these famed sites were sold off to make ends meet. Hubert de Montille on taking over the estate in 1947, brought renewed fame to the domaine, being one of the first in Burgundy to domaine bottle his wines and whose Volnay 1er crus quickly became some of the finest in the appellation. At this time, 90% of all Burgundy was made and bottled by the large négociant houses.  
Whilst historic estates such as Domaine de la Romanee Conti, Georges Roumier and Armand Rousseau were bottling their own wines, it was the Marquis d’Angerville of Volnay that no doubt set a trend in the Cote de Beaune by bottling his own wine, starting in the 1930s. Marquis d’Angerville chastised the exploitation of the main negociants at the time, who in response refused to bottle his wines, forcing him to bottle them himself.  As Etienne explains the Marquis d’Angerville was an important figure in Burgundy at the time, not only setting the trend of domaine bottling in the region but also becoming one of the main instigators behind developing the AOC framework of the Cote d’Or, mapping the official boundaries of the Grand Cru and Premier Cru sites, a process that began in 1935. 
The distinct influence of Hubert de Montille 
The De Montille estate became famed for Hubert’s single-minded approach of making wines how he wanted them, austere and built for long ageing, making them fairly unapproachable in their youth. He was also known for his minimal chapitalisation, a method which he discovered accidentally by miscalculating his sugar levels on one of his cuvees in the 1959 vintage. It was only a couple of years later that he discovered how much better this cuvee aged than his other wines of the 1959 vintage and therefore adopted this approach going forward.  
Whilst, as Etienne explains, chapitalisation (the addition of sugar to the grape juice prior to fermentation to increase alcohol levels) in top estates in the modern era is very rarely adopted, it certainly didn’t harm the estate’s reputation when critics in the '90s started to raise concerns over over-chapitalisation as a worrying trend in the region.  Whilst over-chapitalisaton is rare today, the process is still adopted in the wineries when necessary. Very rarely spoken about amongst vignerons, Etienne describes it as similar to the seasoning of food. Certain cuvees in certain vineyards may benefit from a light chapitalisation or even acidification if required; two processes that remain contentious outside of Burgundy. With De Montille famed for low chapitalisation and long ageing wines, the domaine's reputation continued to grow. 
Etienne takes on the domaine 
On taking over the domaine in 1998 (following a staggering 50-year stint by his father), Etienne de Montille was an early advocate of organic farming. He continued to grow the estate, incorporating more Chardonnay vineyards to what was previously exclusively a Pinot- Noir producing domaine. Their first white wine vineyard purchase was the 1er Cru Puligny Montrachet Le Caillerat bought by Hubert in 1993. Etienne learnt how to make white wine under the guidance of his brother-in-law, who just so happened to be Jean-Marc Roulot and only helped see the domaine’s reputation grow.  Etienne recounts how Jean-Marc Roulot had a similar route to winemaking in that they both had successful careers outside of wine before returning to their family estates. Jean Marc Roulot is an actor, and was based in Paris at the same time Etienne was working as a lawyer there. Having both a separate career and being a vigneron, Etienne believes, made them both very open-minded in their second profession as winemakers and Jean-Marc Roulot was happy to share his knowledge in white wine production as well as them both being more innovative with their methods.  
Having two professions was a tradition passed down from one generation to the next of the de Montille family, with one of the siblings always working in legal services either as judges or lawyers. Etienne explains how it was in fact Hubert de Montille’s work as a lawyer looking after the estates of Monsieur Chatron that led to the acquisition of De Montille’s first chardonnay vineyard – Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru Le Caillerets – one of the finest sites in Puligny neighbouring the Grand Cru of Montrachet.  
Hubert worked as his lawyer advising him on how to pay off his inheritance fees in order to pass down the estate to the next generation. To do this he had to sell off some vines and offered Hubert to buy the Le Cailleret vineyard in Puligny to thank him for his services. Although not an experienced white winemaker, with Jean Roulot recently marrying his daughter, it seemed to be the perfect opportunity to get him on board and teach the young Etienne his white wine philosophy. 
A novel acquisition approach  
Etienne’s experience as a lawyer gave him the confidence to incorporate a novel approach to acquiring vineyards in the Cote d’Or at a time when vineyard acquisition was and remains a contentious issue for vignerons in the region. It led to Etienne successfully buying up vineyards including one of the Cote d’Or’s greatest sites: Vosne Romanee 1er Cru Malconsorts, neighbouring the Grand Cru of La Tache. Etienne explains that although his father had successfully taken his 2.5 hectares estate to 10 hectares over a 50-year period, the land prices of Burgundy were becoming too expensive for this to continue.  With the Malconsorts vineyard along with the vineyards of the Thomas Moillard domaine put up for sale, Etienne thought the opportunity was too good to miss and approached the Seysses family (Domaine Dujac) to see if they would be interested in setting up a land company, buying the land together and using minority shareholders to finance the acquisition.  
These minority shareholders would then rent out their share of the land to the two estates and were often paid back in wine. Back then, Etienne states, it was the first time ever in Burgundy that two smaller family estates had bought a larger property. Etienne pioneered the legal structure to favour the vignerons with the controlling share and it became a popular method that was copied all over Burgundy by other vignerons following their success. Etienne states “this is unlikely to happen again, land in Burgundy between now and 2005 has gone up by almost 12 times the value”.  Despite this, Etienne successfully managed another huge acquisition following the financial crash of 2008 when he purchased Domaine de Puligny Montrachet. This estate was a property he had managed ever since he returned back to Burgundy from Paris in 2001. At that time it was owned by a bank and following financial pressures of the economic crash in 2008, viewed the estate as a non-performing asset and therefore put it up for sale. Due to Etienne’s connection, he was given first refusal.  Since taking over the property in 2009 an EU law that came into practice in 2017 banned the use of an appellation name to be part of a domaine name, so since 2017, the wines under the original Chateau de Puligny Montrachet have been incorporated into the De Montille domaine, increasing their holdings to a total of 37 hectares (20 in red; 17 in white) in 35 separate appellations. 
Etienne de Montille's winemaking philosophy 
But Etienne’s skills are not only in acquisition. He was an early advocate of organic farming, practising organic principles from 2003. He also changed the style of the De Montille wines making them less austere than his father’s with his influence coming through the wines from the 1998 vintage onwards. Etienne incorporates whole bunch fermentation but varies the quantity depending on the specific terroirs.  
Identifying the nuance of each site and how much whole cluster to use is the key to his red winemaking, ranging from 20% to 100% whole bunch depending on the site. He carries out no cold soak prior to fermentation which takes place at ambient temperatures with low-level extraction, punch downs are carried out only when necessary. All wine is aged in barrel between 5% to 60% new oak depending on the site and vintage conditions, followed by a long élevage prior to bottling. The approach to white wines, under the influence of Jean-Marc Roulot’s teachings, is to be very conscious of preserving the acidic backbone of the wine providing a precise length and expression of terroir. The wine is barrel fermented followed by long élevage (12 months in barrel) and aged further on the lees in tank - 2 to 6 months with one racking. The percentage of new oak again varies depending on the specific plots, ranging from 5% to 50% new oak barrel. 
Mapping Volnay and Pommard’s Premier Crus  
Etienne states that all the top Volnay Premier Cru sites are on the middle slopes of the appellation. Whilst slightly varying in topography and exposition, Etienne believes the flavour profiles of each of the vineyards is 80% to do with the geology and topsoil of the specific vineyard, with the winemaking of each producer, the vintage variation and the exposition of the vineyards combined making up the remaining 20%.  This highlights the overwhelming terroir influence of these Premier Crus.  Volnay 1er Cru Brouillards  "This is the most accessible of our Premier Crus and what is best described as 'very Volnay'. It has all the characteristics most closely associated with the appellation – pretty red fruit, very juicy, elegant light tannins and very approachable." Volnay 1er Cru Champans "The Champans is similar to Brouillard in its fruitiness and approachability, although the tannins are firmer and slightly more structured.  "But it is a very expressive and immediate, open-style Volnay. We use two-thirds whole cluster in this cuvee."  Volnay 1er Cru Mitans  "The Mitans is the most perfumed and fragrant of the Premier Crus in Volnay. And whilst the Champans is also very expressive, the aromas of Mitans are more serious, not just fruit but mineral too. Here we use 100% whole cluster fermentation." Volnay 1er Cru Taille Pieds "This is the flagship cuvee of our estate. It is the most mineral-driven wine in Volnay. Very spicy, very stony and lots of saline character. The wine has huge depth and a very long finish.  "It is however the least open and the less approachable requiring time in bottle to develop. Even at 40 – 60 years old the wine shows beautiful combination of rose petal, earth, morrel mushroom and truffle character. The wine has so many facets to it."  Pommard 1er Cru Rugiens Bas  "This wine is a planet on its own. It has the elegance and finesse of top Volnay site but with the depth and breadth and structure more akin to top Pommard vineyards. It is Grand Cru quality and the top site in Pommard."  Pommard 1er Cu Grands Epenots "The most classic Pommard in style. Deep clay soils give the wine huge structure, sometimes can be a bit rustic to start with. Tannic, big, powerful wine." 
Pommard 1er Cru Pezerolles "This is the most Volnay-like Pommard 1er cru in the appellation despite being the furthest site away from Volnay. It is the most elegant Premier Cru of Pommard."  Nuits Saints Georges 1er Cru Aux Thorey  Etienne describes how this single vineyard site was bought in the acquisition of the Thomas Moillard domaine, along with the Malconsorts vineyard. When identifying which vineyards to buy in the sharing of the estate Etienne heard that Sylvain Cathiard considered the Aux Thorey vineyard to be amongst the best terroirs in Nuits St Georges and that was enough to persuade him of its potential. The site is certainly more Vosne in profile than Nuits Saint Georges, with fine tannins, elegant structure and beautiful perfumes similar to the vineyards of the much admired La Damodes.
 Explore more Editorial 

Etienne de Montille talks us through the De Montille’s bumpy history, its huge growth in vineyard acquisition, how he learnt to make white wine from his brother-in-law, Jean Marc Roulot, as well as mapping out the different flavour profiles of his favourite sites in Volnay and neighbouring Pommard.

Domaine de Montille is the most historic Cote d’Or estate. Etienne de Montille talks about the Volnay wine estate's bumpy history and its huge recent growth.

The Genealogy of Domaine de Montille

Domaine de Montille: The genealogy of the estate

Adrianna Catena (Catena and El Enemigo) – 1999 La Tache, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti “Christmas in Argentina is a summer affair – the days are long, and the heat is intense. This year we will gather with family and friends at our home in Mendoza, spending the day together – lunch and a siesta – before dinner on the 24th. I live far from my parents and these are special moments, so we pick our wines for the memories too! They'll include an Adrianna Vineyard White Bones Chardonnay (my mother's favourite), and some Nicolás Catena Zapata (1999 or 2004, perhaps). My father also has a Burgundy collection and always makes a trip to the cellar at some point in the evening, reappearing with a cheeky smile and something extraordinary – like a 1999 La Tâche. For the end – what we call the sobremesa, that long and magical moment after the meal when we are all still gathered at the table, sharing old stories and laughter – a 2008 Vin de Constance.”  Isabel Ferrando (Domaine Saint-Préfert) – 1990 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Spéciale, Domaine Henri Bonneau “What I love! First Champagne – maybe a great bottle of aged Champagne, either Selosse or Agrapart (the opposite of Selosse). Ideally around 20 years old – for aperitif. After that a white Burgundy – maybe a great Meursault or Puligny-Montrachet. I love Henri Boillot’s Clos de la Mouchère, that would be a great choice. For the red, it is going to be the 1990 Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Spéciale by Henri Bonneau because I love this man. I remember him with a lot of tenderness and it will be a lovely bottle to share with the family. And to finish a 1995 or 1997 Sardat Mallet, which is a lovely sweet wine from the Languedoc-Roussillon... Then for New Year I think probably L’Ermita from Alvaro Palacios. I don’t know which vintage I have in my cellar and an old bottle of Ch. Latour for sure. For a white wine, it will be a German Riesling from Markus Molitor. The spirit of opening wines, opening to a new world. I love that! And it is me who is doing the cooking – capon, fish and truffles.”  Matthieu Mangenot (Domaine Long-Depaquit) – 1995 Ch. Lafite Rothschild “Christmas usually offers the occasion to open a wide variety of wines, especially when the family come from various parts of the planet (Washington DC, São Paulo, various parts of France…), bringing back a few fun things. But when it comes to eating and celebrating, serious things are beginning and I can’t skip Burgundy, at least for a part of the banquet! 2016 Chablis Grand Cru La Moutonne, Domaine Long-Depaquit in magnum would be a perfect candidate to pair with our Christmas dinner, especially the seafood part. I love the pure and saline expression of the Chardonnay in Chablis and the fleshy-zesty character that La Moutonne shows with ageing, a combination of structure, refinement and elegance. This 2016 vintage also has a personal meaning for me for two reasons: first because the climatic conditions in spring 2016 were dramatic with a major frost that really made this vintage difficult to make, as well as a rare and unique product. But also because my son Léon was born just before harvest, so this vintage is his! While re-exploring my personal cellar, I came across a bottle of 1995 Ch. Lafite Rothschild, remaining from a series of six I was offered while a trainee at the estate in 1999. I think it is high time to celebrate more than 20 years of activity as a winemaker and we will take this opportunity to pay tribute to this monument from Pauillac! Other wines I will be opening include 2015 Domaine de la Chevalerie, Cuvée Bretêche Rouge, 2019 Crozes-Hermitage Cap Nord, Domaine Combier and 2018 Meursault, Chevalières, Domaine Henri Germain. I like this domaine for it’s personal vision of Meursault, insensitive to more trendy styles.” Luca Martini di Cigala (San Giusto a Rentennano) – 2009 L’Apparita, Castello di Ama “Marco Pallanti and his son Arturo from Castello di Ama visited us in late October, then we visited them a few days ago. I swapped some older bottles of San Giusto with a 2007 Chianti Classico Vigneto Bellavista and a 2009 L’Apparita especially for this year’s Christmas table. The 2007 vintage produced very powerful wines and despite expectations has got good ageing potential but is already drinking well. The 2009 is a medium-power vintage, easy to drink in a relative short time but now in perfect condition. We are looking forward to drinking both this Christmas.”  Desiree Reid (Cardrona) – N.V. Cardrona Otago Pinot Cask, Single Malt Whisky “The day will start with a glass of Bollinger, while the children open their stockings, and the Christmas ham bakes in the oven. Later that evening I’ll finish with a dram or two of the Cardrona seventh birthday release – Otago Pinot Cask. The perfect way to finish a Southern Hemisphere Christmas.” Alvina Pernot and Philippe Abadie (Domaine Alvina Pernot) – 2014 Champagne Cédric Bouchard, Roses de Jeanne, La Haute Lemblé Blanc de Blancs “We love Cédric Bouchard’s Champagnes because he works his Champagne cuvées in the same way as what is done in Burgundy. Each bottling is one terroir and one vintage. For the reds we will be opening 2012 Petite Siberié from Domaine du Clos des Fées – a great producer from the Languedoc-Rouissilon as well as a 2010 Vega Sicilia Unico and a 2005 Ch. Haut-Brion.” Marco Ferraresso (Guado al Tasso) – 2013 Guado al Tasso Matarocchio “I have always spent the Christmas holidays at home with my family. It may seem trivial but it is an opportunity to open something of my own with them, as the rare times I haven't done so they almost got offended! This year will be an opportunity to let them taste the 2019 Guado al Tasso which represents a lucky and sought-after vintage for me. Lucky because mother nature has been merciful, sought-after because it goes in the stylistic direction that we like for this wine. Another wine that I would like to open for them is 2013 Matarocchio. With this vintage the Cabernet Franc has kept a strong varietal identity with a beautiful balance between acidity and tannic structure, a wine that should be in its full maturity and with which I hope to give a moment of happiness to my loved ones."  Christian Leusder (East Asia Whisky Company) – Ch. Rauzan-Ségla “It's really the simple stable stuff that takes centre stage during Christmas drinks. To start the evening a nice crisp Yebisu, Asahi SuperDry or a Suntory Premium Malt. The main course usually goes well with sake or red wine, depending on the cuisine of course. My favourite reds this year are Ch. Rauzan-Ségla's Margaux or Ch. Pape Clément from Pessac. When it comes to after-dinner drinks: the one and only Christmas spirit is Irish. Nothing beats a Baileys to remember what Christmas tasted like when you were allowed a sip of what the grown-ups were having once a year.”  Read more Editorial

Christmas and the New Year offer the perfect opportunity to open special bottles with family and friends – but what do the people behind the world’s finest wines and spirits drink? We caught up with some of our favourite winemakers and distillers and asked them what they will be uncorking – and why

We find out the special bottles some of our favourite winemakers and distillers are uncorking this Christmas

What producers are drinking this Christmas

Quiet, even subdued, cautious, the Neal Martin on my screen is quite different to the garrulous character I’d imagined from his writing. On the page (or more often these days, the screen), Martin pokes fun at the wine industry, his articles often opening with satirical fiction that doesn’t hold back.  His reports and tasting notes are littered with music references (think Primal Scream and The Smiths rather than Wagner and Bach), and mentions that are sometimes pointedly popular – his first Bordeaux en primeur report for the Wine Advocate (taking over from Robert Parker) opened with a line from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. On our call, however, each word feels deliberate and considered, confident, but with a definite wariness that doesn’t quite fade.  Aged 50, the Vinous writer’s trajectory to wine stardom is unusual. Born in Essex, Martin grew up in a household that didn’t drink wine, so nor did he. In fact, he had no interest in it and blagged his way into the industry. In 1996, having lived in Japan, he applied for a role sourcing wines for a subsidiary of Japan Airlines: the only hitch that he didn’t know anything about wine at the time.  “I lied my way through the interview. I went to an off-licence the night before. Memorised some of the labels. I just reeled off a couple of names… [they] thought I was into wine and gave me the job,” he tells me, still rather bemused by their decision. Coincidentally Martin returned to the same shop last year, where unbeknown to him, his tale lives on as local offy legend – the famous wine taster that got his start right there in Leigh-on-Sea (with the owners even deeming him worthy of several selfies).  Unashamedly a terrible employee, he spent much of his time in his role for Japan Airlines starting his wine writing career (although it also sounds like there was a fair amount of lunching too). “I was kind of bored one lunchtime, bought a book on computer coding. I found I could make a webpage, and just kind of built the original wine-journal.com when I should have been working,” he says. From the novelty of creating a site, he started writing his own tasting notes. At that time the great wine writers were Michael Broadbent, Steven Spurrier and Hugh Johnson – English gentlemen, in short; charming, wonderful, but – for many – unrelatable, very “high culture”, as Martin puts it. He set out to be “more down-to-earth, funny, irreverent”.   “At the time, there was nobody else really doing that. There was this huge audience that liked to drink Bordeaux – but also liked Radiohead.” It struck a chord – and soon his self-built site was getting over 500,000 hits per month. No wonder therefore that in 2006 Robert Parker – then still at the height of his fame – approached the music-minded Englishman to join the Wine Advocate team.   Of course, Parker was renowned for not just the power of his palate and revolutionary points system, but for his personal tastes. Many argue that his preference for intensely ripe, high-octane, new-oak-aged styles shifted the entire world of wine – pushing producers to craft wines that would earn his favour. “Especially more to the end of his career, he had a certain palate… but people always forget that he reviewed German wines and Alsace and so on. So it becomes a little bit of a cliché,” Martin says of his once mentor.  The world of flavour is undeniably subjective, yet Parker was – by some – damned for just that, daring to express his personal preference. Total impartiality when it comes to the matter of taste seems impossible. After I ask whether or not he feels there’s room for bias in wine writing, Martin is clear: “I think a critic should stand up for what they believe in. Anyone can say the First Growths are great, DRC is great. I’d rather read someone who has a definite view on something, whether they like natural wines, or orange wines. Stand up for what you believe in. Then it’s up to the reader to decide.”  In fact, he goes as far to say, it’s potentially the lack of difference in views that has led to wine criticism becoming “a bit beige” in recent years – because now it’s a career, something upon which people depend for their livelihood. “It’s more of a risk if you say this famous name didn’t produce a great wine,” Martin notes. The danger of losing access to wines that are far beyond most critics’ budgets is a threat to the independence of wine writing, but also a massive obstacle to new voices in the industry. It’s an especial challenge given many of the wines Martin reviews – in particular older vintages – might only be pulled out at private dinners, hosted in producers’ homes. The very nature of wine – limited in production and fleeting in its consumption – leads to a reliance on the hospitality of its makers. Martin argues that for that exact reason the most independent “critics” are arguably those he describes as the “grands amateurs” – those who can afford to buy the world’s finest wines, and therefore say what they want.   Martin, however, feels there’s a line to be found where he can maintain distance yet be friendly – and, importantly, speak freely. He highlights Laurent Ponsot’s 2015s – which he gave relatively scathing scores – but, having known Laurent for many years, Martin was happy to tell the vigneron outright that he thought they were picked too late.  As for Martin, he had a lucky start with access to unbelievable wines in what he deems a “golden era” for fine wine in the 1990s, when top Burgundy and First Growths remained affordable for the many – and were poured freely by the trade. “I’ve never taken that for granted. Some of the wines I drink… they’re what my friends earn in three or four months. I never drink a wine and I’m blasé about it. But I’ve been around long enough to say what I think.”   Preserving his voice has always been of key importance to Martin – not willing to compromise on keeping his distinctively tongue-in-cheek tone, but also offer something more than just a tasting note. “When I joined Parker, it was an easy decision – he was a kind of god. But at the same time I wanted to make sure I could still write in the way I wrote,” he tells me. “Anyone can taste the wines and add a number, but for me it’s more interesting to create something that’s interesting, gives you insight… that’s the challenge: to write something people don’t expect,” Martin says. Does he feel he’s achieving that? His answer: “When my primeur report comes out, read the first three paragraphs and let me know.” [We spoke at the end of April, just before the report was published.]  For Martin, his love of music is integral to his work. Indeed, it seems that way – the record player and stacks of vinyl visible behind him on our Zoom call, his Instagram feed almost equally split between sleeve covers and labels – and he feels that it makes him a better writer. He looks back to Hugh Johnson (an avid gardener) or Michael Broadbent (pianist and art enthusiast) for precedent. “Wine can be a boring subject – but it’s when you put it with other things that it becomes more interesting,” he says.  Case in point is his recent article on Grand Mayne, he tells me: “It’s more about time, and parenthood, and… kind of sad in a way. To me, that’s the kind of counterbalance to the dryness about wine. It smells of strawberries and it’s 92 points. There’s the other side to the story – that’s the harder part to write, but for me it’s more satisfying.”  Indeed, he even self-published his book Pomerol (in 2012) to avoid the unwelcome interference of editors. In 2017, Martin made the leap to Vinous – joining fellow Wine Advocate alumnus Antonio Galloni’s new venture, and while he’s kept his voice, he’s also had to learn how to be edited “which was… quite a challenge for me at first,” he admits. “But actually now it’s something I really needed. I think they make better articles, it makes me think a bit more about writing.”  There have been a lot of bottles over the years (Vinous alone holds over 21,000 of his tasting notes), but it was a bottle of 1982 Montrose that started everything. “It wasn’t the best wine I’ve ever had by a long way… It’s a disappointing 1982,” he says. “Enjoy with modest expectations” reads his note from 2017 (88 points – upgraded to 91 points at his most recent tasting in 2018). Disappointing it may be, but it’s the bottle that made him sit up and take wine seriously, realising why people obsessed over it – although he’s clear that, for him, wine isn’t everything.  “Wine is my job – if it didn’t pay I couldn’t do it. I love wine, but I don’t think I’m obsessed with it. I don’t drink wine every day, and it doesn’t bother me if I don’t. If you think wine is everything, you’re missing something,” he says, frankly. I wonder how much this perspective has been shaped by Martin’s quadruple bypass surgery two years ago – a skirmish with the other side that has forced a visibly drastic lifestyle change, and about which he has been vocal.  In Martin’s own words, it’s a “bizarre set of circumstances” that set him on his wine-lined path, yet here he is, his pen and palate working in combination to make him one of the world’s most influential wine writers. While the golden era that allowed him to enter the industry might be over, he feels that – despite now being “very, very expensive” – in some ways wine is more accessible than ever.  “I meet so many more people from so many walks of life. I love it when you sit around the table and everyone’s from different countries. But as soon as you put a wine in front of them – everyone’s on the same level.” While one can’t argue that Martin champions the “everyman” reviewing the world’s finest wines, it’s remarkable in many ways that he hasn’t erred from his original purpose. Though the Essex-born critic doesn’t seem comfortable under the spotlight, on the page he’s at ease – free to fight against the pomposity of wine, with an irreverence and knowing self-ridicule that has put him front and centre in the industry – whether he likes it or not.  Read more Editorial 

Neal Martin – now of Vinous, previously the Wine Advocate – is one of the world’s leading wine writers. Sophie Thorpe talks to the determinedly off-beat critic about his path into wine and why there’s much more to life than brilliant bottles

Neal Martin – now of Vinous, previously the Wine Advocate – on his path into wine and why there’s much more to life than brilliant bottles

Neal Martin, striking a chord

Neal Martin: striking a chord

There are interviews, and there are conversations. And this meeting with Italian cashmere tycoon, Brunello Cucinelli, definitely falls into the category of the latter. Cucinelli has conquered the world with his products, his perception of style and beauty, and has published a book outlining his particular approach to doing business which he defines as “humanistic capitalism”.   This distinction between interview and conversation is a necessary contemplation; understanding the meaning behind the words, selecting them carefully, tasting each of them in a silent meditation. This is, in fact, the first step to allowing you into Cucinelli’s world, where external quality is just as important as inner quality. To him, as to late 18th century German philosopher Kant, beauty is a moral interest.   The word “interview” is composed of two parts: “inter”, which implies reciprocity, and “view”, which refers to sight; each looking at the other, trying to truly see. It is not a given that this is always successful.   A conversation, however, is different. The word derives from the Latin “conversari”, composed of “con” meaning “with” or “together”, and “versari”: to reside, to find oneself. It is a meeting – a graceful way of getting to know each other, or getting to know each other better. It is a way to agree upon certain behaviours and visions in order to truly share a physical place, as well as a state of being. In this conversation, we meet Brunello Cucinelli in Solomeo, Umbria, Italy. He reminisces that, The New York Times once published a map of must-see places in Italy – in which Solomeo was included along with Venice, Florence, Rome and Naples. Cucinelli states this with no small amount of pride.  Despite the lockdown, and an obligation to talk through a screen, encouraged by both the pandemic and by a sense of caution, Solomeo is truly the location of our meeting – and not just because Il Sogno di Solomeo (The Dream of Solomeo) is the title of his book, in which he recounts his life story, the roots of his success, and his vision as an “entrepreneurial custodian”. Solomeo enters through the window, breathing audibly in the background of the words and thoughts which define our conversation. It speaks through Cucinelli’s expressions, bringing to light a kind of organised peace within his sense of time, its horizons are centuries-old, and reside in diligent silence. It speaks of a knowledge acquired through generations passed, to be shared with generations to come.  We are in Umbria, just 15 minutes from Perugia and only one hour from Florence. Only 800 people live in Solomeo – a stunning, almost-abandoned medieval village brought back to life by skilful restoration work led by Cucinelli over the last 25 years. The village of Solomeo was revitalised as an allusion to Rome, the city of Emperor Hadrian’s soul, according to French novelist and essayist Marguerite Yourcenar. Creativity needs a “genius loci”, a safe space. Cucinelli restored a village that was “robust, useful, and beautiful”, as instructed by Vitruvius. Onora tutti gliuomini (“honour all men”) is the inscription displayed in Solomeo’s Piazza delleArti, and is also the motto which inspired Cucinelli’s humanistic capitalism. He believes gift-giving to be one of the kindest forms of the soul, and he loves to give presents of homemade oils and wines; believing that, in every gift, there is also a piece of Solomeo.   Cucinelli’s love of philosophy, and his habit of allowing the great minds of history to dictate his approach to beauty, is also a lesson Cucinelli learned in youth as a farmer, when he used to pull the ox plough and till the fields. In the evenings, his father would encourage him to admire the beauty of those ploughed fields, the neat ridges stretching over the hills.   His sensitivity to the idea of living in harmony with nature was born from this, as was his ability to recognise that there is greater value in that which is carried out with beauty in mind. His more practical attention to the selection of raw materials also stemmed from these roots – his respect for producers and collaborators, and his ability to think in terms of centuries, not years. All this has rendered Brunello Cucinelli one of the world’s most famous luxury brands.   Beauty is also a form of truth. As three Buddhist monks remarked to him, upon visiting him in Solomeo, there are three things which cannot remain hidden: the sun, the moon and truth. In order to live well, beauty requires you to take care of your soul, your mind and your body. This is why, at Cucinelli’s company, at half past five in the evening, the computers are switched off, the working day completed. The body, mind and soul need a life outside work, to be able to look themselves in the eye and overcome the “soul-ache” that creativity can also help to alleviate.  To him, beauty is also a business method; his humanistic capitalism was not cast aside even during the crisis sparked by Covid, during which time Cucinelli did not let a single employee go, or ask for any discounts from producers or suppliers. This is part of an ethical business vision which considers humanity as an end, and never as a means; it is defined by considering the businessman as a “custodian of creation”. Developing this idea of being a custodian, Cucinelli sees that luxe can be interpreted as an orchestrator of sustainable development.   Brunello Cucinelli smiles. He likes the words of 15th century Florentine Republic ruler, Lorenzo the Magnificent – “How beautiful is youth, / though quickly it does flee! / be happy if you want to: / for tomorrow may not come” – which recall an Italian sense of national pride. Although home to only 0.7% of the globe’s population, Italy boasts one of the the world’s top 10 economies; it excels at quality manufacturing and craftsmanship; it offers a welfare state which leaves no one trailing behind. He sees a great country and a golden era, in spite of the crisis. He does so with a pinch of the “Italiote”, as Plato called the people of Syracuse when he reached Sicily from Greece, “a population which feasts twice a day and never goes to bed alone”.  We are also like this, he says, before returning to consider the ideas of creativity and responsibility. “It really is possible to live in harmony with creation. And this makes us custodians, not consumers. I also think of my product as something to be desired, something to be inherited. That is why I chose cashmere. I wanted something that was already precious. I’ve learnt to transform it over time. I’ve made mistakes, had teachers and guardian angels that have helped me and taught me. But the principle was already clear to me, right from the beginning: to create beauty, you need to begin with something beautiful, from an exceptional raw material. And you also need to believe that it will last for centuries, not for years. Before it became fashionable, we had already opened a restyling and reusing department for our garments. Because, for a jumper to be beautiful and precious, it must also stand the test of time.”   “Verum factum”, as stated by 17th century Italian political philosopher Giambattista Vico: nothing is true unless it has been done. The humanistic capitalism in Solomeo is evident: an art of Renaissance-style trading which has taken over the world, yes. But it has done so with honour. It possesses a beauty which is markedly exclusive, moving against the crisis of civilisation. It is something that manages to make itself be considered as rare, something precious, only for you. It requires time, artisanal hard work and precision, fighting against the culture of impatience. In fact, Solomeo’s theatre is crafted from hand-cut stones, with walls built to endure. The company itself is located within a restored factory which opens out onto gardens and spaces where it is impossible not to inhale the surrounding beauty.  Most of the employees and managers within Cucinelli are young: this is because they are hard workers. It is also because beauty and fairness produce brilliance. Cucinelli is the one to engender this genius. “Oh, myesteemed men!” (O miei stimati uomini!) Cucinelli quotes Marcus Aurelius. It is from this statement that he has learnt to recognise value, to respect and admire, and to never rise above dignity. He applies the concept of remote working only when strictly necessary, because creativity dwindles and becomes degraded by a lack of human contact.   The story of humanistic capitalism is so long to recount (and so wonderful to hear) that Cucinelli has summarised it within his book, Il Sogno di Solomeo. These ideas, typically influenced by previous generations, took inspiration from the manual The Book of the Art of Trade by Benedetto Cotrugli – an Italian merchant during the Renaissance era – which speaks about “getting rich honourably”. One can choose whether to be “a seeker of work or a creator of work”: therefore, an entrepreneur is someone who creates development for themselves and for others. On one hand, there is the revaluation of the role of whoever decides to take this risk; on the other, there is the idea that they are doing so by enforcing a strong sense of ethic. A sort of return to business. An important lesson.  Cucinelli notes that, in Cotrugli’s story, this is fulfilled out of duty rather than pleasure. The death of his father in 1438 forced him to abandon his studies and take the reins of the family business. This was during a time when Italy was bestowing the Renaissance upon the world; and Cotrugli, who originated from Ragusa (currently known as Dubrovnik – which, at the time, was considered the fifth Italian Maritime Republic), was catapulted to Naples, in an environment where ethics and morals evidently left a lot to be desired. The family business, and by extension, he as the owner, “bought wool in Barcelona; turned it into cloth and thread in Florence and Prato, to then sell it on again in Constantinople and Venice”. Cotrugli travelled, visiting cities which formed the heart of that golden era. He breathed in the air of Florence, which was, at the time, Europe’s most powerful guild, and produced figures such as Donatello, Masaccio and Brunelleschi.   Among the 15 golden rules for “getting rich honourably” outlined within The Book of the Art of Trade, Cucinelli feels a “deep resonance” not only because of its modernity and its entrepreneurial insight, “but mostly for the system of values it imposes and passes on”, to “get rich honourably” by creating work and development with consistency. And he thinks back to the crisis, echoing the words of Roman statesman Marcus Tullius Cicero, as quoted by Cotrugli: we must not waver in the face of adversity or lose ourselves in our own prosperity. “Let’s talk about what this year has brought us, not what it has taken from us,” he states.   And this is the truest representation of a dedicated and kind businessman, who has spent half his time gazing up at the stars and loves to watch a fire flicker because it makes him “drunk on pleasant thoughts”. Life is blessed. We eat only what we must, so that there is enough for everyone. There was Seneca, there was Epicurus, and now there is the wonderful dream of Brunello Cucinelli and his beloved Solomeo. He spends his years contemplating centuries past and considering those to come. This, in itself, is a rare form of immortality.  In 2011, Cucinelli planted vines in the valley below Solomeo, and the first vintage of the wine made from this special site – 2018 Castello di Solomeo – is available from FINE+RARE. Read more about the project. This article was originally published in FONDATA, Issue One

As Brunello Cucinelli launches his new wine project – Castello di Solomeo – we dig into the philosophy of the designer behind Italy’s cashmere empire. Educator and business guru Germana di Falco sits down with the fashion icon to discuss his philosophy on business and life itself 

Italian cashmere tycoon and fashion designer Brunello Cucinelli on his new wine project Castello di Solomeo and his business philosophy 

Brunello Cucinelli – the fashion philosopher

Brunello Cucinelli: the fashion philosopher 

Waterford founder Mark Reynier speaks to Gavin Lucas about his obsession with terroir, traceability and transparency – and how his radical approach is driving unprecedented scientific research into the flavours derived from barley grown on different soil types

Waterford founder, Mark Reynier, discusses his obsession with terroir, traceability and transparency – and how his approach is driving pioneering research 

FONDATA: The Waterford Revolution

The Waterford Revolution

Bache-Gabrielsen

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