Uncorked: Freddy Bird
Tell us about the moment you first became interested in wine
Phil Howard’s uncle, Julian, used to keep his wine in our cellar at home. He used to call up ahead of a visit for the weekend and suggest a few bottles to pull out and would then plan meals in our kitchen around what he’d like to drink. I was in my early teens but was always included in trying what was on offer (and always loved helping in the kitchen - my dad had a great vegetable garden, meat was from local farms and friends had built a smoker in our garden). I think the idea that wine was chosen before food was cemented in my mind at this early age.
Describe your wine list at Little French and 1 York Place
Growing! I want to have the most exciting and diverse list in the city. Not for the sake of it but because I feel that every time you dine your experience can be totally different purely based on your wine choice. The excitement that comes from tasting new wines whilst knowing the food and service will be great. My knowledge is ever improving but I still feel out of my depth regularly. As a result I taste, a lot. I try and add to the list seasonally, changing the by the glass list to reflect the time of year and to influence by cooking decisions. Little French is predominantly French with a smattering of other stuff whilst 1 York place has a broadly European vibe with plenty of wines from the new world as well.
Over the course of your career, have you had any wine-related disasters?
I’m clumsy. I’ve smashed more than I’d like to admit but probably the worst would have been post-lockdown. After a heat wave, I discovered that about 50% of my stock had got far too hot. Worrying about everything else at the time I hadn’t thought to move the bottles. I opened bottle after bottle that ended up in the sink. Thankfully not our cellar stock but it was still painful!
Name your top three restaurant wine lists
Any of the Noble Rot sites. They are always my go to in London. La Pineta (in Livorno, Italy) is one of many restaurants on our chef’s truffle trips over the years and a great introduction to some incredible wines. The list here was as exciting as it was daunting and confusing but I remember a long night of Cantina Terlan Quartz sauvignon and a vertical tasting of Sassacaia. And finally La Ciao del Tornavent in Treiso, a place we visited on another truffle trip with an epic cellar
Who do you most respect in the wine world
Almost impossible for me to answer. My restaurant suppliers are my window to the wine world and their patience and knowledge is invaluable to me. They’re relationships built on friendship rather than simply selling their wines. Tasting our menus together and helping to match wines and training our staff at all sites with incredible passion. They’re as much a part of the restaurants as our teams.
What’s the most interesting wine you’ve come across recently?
I recently tasted wines from Viuva Gomes (in Portugal’s Colares region) - all the vines are gobelet planted and the canopy trails along the ground. On this occasion, most interesting doesn’t mean a firm favourite of mine but distinctly different.
What are the three most overused tasting notes?
Flabby, dry and funky.
What is your ultimate food and drink match?
Without wanting to sound like a decadent slob, I look forward to my Christmas breakfast every year. Fried egg flavour crisps, the largest tin of Sturia Oscietra caviar my budget will afford and a bottle of Louis Roederer Philippe Stark Brut Nature 2012. I’ve only got one bottle left though so for 2025 I’ll have to come up with an alternative.
Old World or New World?
Old.
What is your pet hate when it comes to wine service in other restaurants?
Not leaving your bottle at the table - even when you ask them to. Gauge your customer. If they want you to pour for them then pour for them. If they want to pour themselves let them.
Who is your favourite producer right now?
This changes so frequently but as we speak it’s Danbury Ridge. I think since Brexit I’ve been incredibly down on celebrating anything British - until I tasted their Chardonnay. I’ll be packing one in my bag next time I head over to see the French in-laws. Stunning wine.
As a chef, what question do you most get asked by customers?
‘What do you cook most at home’. And the answer is roast chicken. Because it’s different every time you eat it. It all depends on what you’re drinking…
Which wine producing region or country is underrated?
I can only really go on my experience with my customers. Guiding them towards Chardonnays and Pinots from Hemel-en-Aarde (in South Africa) when they bite their lips at the price of the Burgundy they quite fancied. Initially cautious, they’re quickly turned.
It’s your last meal and you can have a bottle of any wine in the world. What is it and why?
I’m torn between being nostalgic and opting for something that first got me in to wine but if it’s my last meal and it’s money no object, a magnum of Raveneau Les Clos and an enormous plate of hot buttery shellfish. Ideally on a boat on the warmest and calmest of days off the coast of south devon and sharing it with my family.
