Where We Are Now

Last Monday, our last load of grapes, Barbera from Piemonte, arrived at the winery and we got to work. The Barbera was a last minute replacement for the unfortunate loss of Sauvingon Blanc and Merlot we were supposed to be getting from Bordeaux.

Despite that, the Italian grapes were more than up to the task, coming in looking beautiful and sailing through the sorting table in the winery. After triage, the grapes were quickly put into the stainless steel tanks and within a day or so we had added our yeast and let them start fermenting. The Barbera is still fermenting as we, er, type, but we expect it to be done soon and going into barrel. Gavin has also filled 2 integral barrels with the Barbera grapes to see how they ferment in the oak.

We had some juice left from the 4.6 tonnes of grapes so Gavin decided to make a rosé! Exciting stuff! The rosé is already in tank and  we’re hoping it will be ready in time for our launch party. As there was so little of it we’ll probably save it for in-house events, so if you get a space on one of our first public tours in November you might be lucky enough to try it!

Gavin at Work in the Winery

We’re really busy right now getting ready for our grand opening in a few weeks. We’ll be giving tours of the winery everySaturday, starting on Nov 9th. Tours will cost £15 including a tasting of some of our wines, and afterwards you can have a drink and something to eat from our pop up bar.

If you want a bit more in-depth experience in the winery, we’ll also be offering “Winemaker for a Day” sessions, where you will learn what’s in a winery, how wine is made, and even blend your own bottle to take home.

We'll also be holding regular Supper Clubs on the second Monday of each month, starting with Nathan Green, head chef at Michelin star restaurant “Restaurant Story”, on the 11th of November. Be warned, we think that one’s going to sell out very quickly, but if you don’t get tickets, December will bring another exciting chef to London Cru.

Be sure to join our mailing list if you haven’t already. This way you’ll be the first to hear about events at London Cru and when tickets go on sale. We’ll also be offering some free tours once we open to the people on our mailing list, but you didn’t hear that from me!

Harvesting at Mas Coutelou

Last Sunday a few of the London Cru team travelled to Puimisson in the Languedoc-Roussillon to visit Jeff Coutelou. We were there for the harvest of the beautiful Cabernet Sauvignon grapes he had agreed to sell us for our first vintage. If you know Roberson Wine you will have heard of Jeff and Mas Coutelou. To say we are fans would be an almighty understatement. He is without a doubt one of the purest, most genuine and gifted winemakers we have ever worked with. We were jumping for joy when he said he was interested in our project and would sell us some of his amazingly well-cared for fruit.

The reason we were lucky enough to get our hands on it is because a few years ago Jeff made the decision to only work with indigenous varieties like Carignan, Mourvèdre, Syrah and Grenache. His grandfather had planted the Cabernet vines and he can’t bring himself to pull them up, so he’s been selling the grapes to a local co-op, but he treats them exactly the same as his other ‘children’, with an incredible amount of love and attention.

Jeff and Gavin at Mas Coutelou

The thing I find most inspiring about Jeff is that he feels his purpose on this earth is to care for his land and vines, leave the earth in a better state than he found it and spread love and joy through his wines. He is so sure and content about his reason for being here that he only sleeps 4 hours a night (“my mind is always on my grapes”) and sees no point in taking holidays (“I get so much love and joy from my vines, my grapes and the people who drink my wines, why would I need holidays?”)

The fruit was pristine, incredible for an organic, biodynamic grower who uses purely natural methods in the vineyard, and after a long day picking with Jeff’s team (who all seem to idolise him) the refrigerated truck was packed up ready to set off for London. We’re please to say it arrived this morning in perfect condition and is being processed downstairs in the winery as I write this. Now we just need Gavin to make wines as good as Jeff’s. No pressure Gav!