Tell us about the moment you first became interested in wine
Meeting such a great sommelier (she is called Alessandra too) and wine list at The Dairy has without doubt been my initiation to wine. I realised a world of artisanal products, family stories, passion for wine and love for the environment which I wasn’t aware of. This changed my life and made me want to know and learn more about wine.
Describe the wine list at OMA
I like to describe OMA’s wine list as a trip around the Mediterranean Sea. It is a journey through the coastline, the islands of Europe, starting from Greece and moving to the west, offering varieties of flavours and styles, including some fine coastal South African wines. All of the 450 plus wines have been sourced carefully from producers we admire, with stories that we are proud to share.
Over the course of your career, have you had any wine-related disasters?
In Bermondsey Larder I organised the first “meet the winemaker” dinner planning to host Francesco Pozzobon of Tenuta Foresto (where I was going to spend one month harvesting in Piemonte the following summer). Francesco sent the wines for the event directly from Italy as he was flying to London on the day of the event. The day before the event, the wines haven’t been delivered yet. Not only did the wine never arrive, but the winemaker’s flight had a five-hour delay, so I had to run the ‘meet the winemaker’ with very little wine and, even worse, with no winemaker.
Name your top three restaurant wine lists?
Noble Rot Mayfair, Trivet and Mountain (all in London).
Who do you most respect in the wine world?
One of my mentors in wine has been Nino Barraco, a winemaker that I deeply respect not only for his friendship and wines, but for his strong morals and ethics. Nino has created a beautiful community around him, with the people he works with and with other winemakers and friends. He’s a man of a great integrity and I will always be grateful to have had the honour to chat with him driving around the southwest of Sicily, while I was learning about winemaking.
What’s the most interesting wine you’ve come across recently?
Blanc de Coteaux 2020 by Apostolos Thymiopoulos 2020 is a wine that has recently surprised me. Apostolos is considered the Greek red wine master, but he also makes a bunch of other things including a fantastic rosé and this Blanc de Coteaux, a blend of Malagousia, Assyrtiko, Vidiano and some Aidani, aged in amphora. The result is unique; with stone fruits, orange peel and sweet spices on the palate, light tannins and smokiness. The value is outrageous.
What are the three most overused tasting notes?
Dry, aromatic and mineral.
What’s the best value wine on the OMA list at the moment?
We have an aged sparkling Xarel-lo on the list which gives me goosebumps, the Cru blanc 2011 by Sicus. The wine is excellent, full of balanced development, plenty of character and one of the best wines I have had this year.
What is your ultimate food and drink match?
Aromatic Alsatian skin-contact (like a Sylvaner) with Thai food.
Old World or New World?
I can’t help it… Old World.
What is your pet hate when it comes to wine service in other restaurants?
I think of myself as a quite easy-going person, but I do get a little itchy when wine glasses are topped up too much. The other thing is asking for a recommendation based on styles/tasting notes and receiving 20 plus recommendations.
Who is your favourite producer right now?
Viki Torres, she has been my inspiration for the last few years. She is a winemaker based in La Palma, the most northwesterly island of the Canaries, which is also that one with most volcanic activity. With a focus on organic and low-intervention winemaking, the production is limited and highly sought after with Victoria’s wines achieve a level of purity and intensity that very few can match. She maintains seven hectares of vineyards planted with native Canary Island grape varieties and looks after vineyards and winery all by herself. You know when you meet somebody, and you just want to be them? That’s how I feel about her.
As a sommelier at OMA, what question do you most get asked by customers?
‘Are you Greek?’ is a very popular question, but also get ‘is Greek wine actually good?’ a lot.
Which wine producing region or country is underrated at the moment?
The last thing I want is to sound biased but after a 10-year career in wine, I never paid much attention to Greece before starting focusing on the OMA wine list. Studying and tasting Greek wine along with our wine director Emily Acha Derrington, in the last few months I came across a new path; educational, inspirational and a ‘new’ world of wine and wine styles. I am amazed by the quality and the potential of wine from Greece and the Greek islands.
It’s your last meal and you can have a bottle of any wine in the world. What is it and why?
I’d be more focused about the company than the wine itself. But I think I‘d pick Rocce Rosse 2017 by AR.Pe.Pe, fine Valtellina Nebbiolo (chiavennasca in the local dialect) as it’s, for me, the best expression and also a wine that brings up my best memories not only in my career but generally in my life.