The Premier Cru - Wine Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

We welcome Ed Templeton to The Premier Cru, who is the Co-Founder of Carousel. What differentiates Carousel from other restaurants?

Well, they have a weekly chef in residency programme, inviting new chefs each week from across the world to showcase their cuisine to London customers. It is a culinary hub where you can explore different cuisines, cultures and real creativity. On top of that they also have a wine bar and a Mezcaleria acting as more casual spaces in which to enjoy Carousel if you don't feel like fine dining.

Given we invited Ed to join The Premier Cru - you guessed it - they also have a brilliant wine programme, run by Joshua Bratt, who also runs a series of wine raves called Close Ties. With a weekly changing menu, they need a strong wine list to pair with an eclectic range of dishes.

Join us as we discuss how:

• Carousel was founded
• To run a weekly chef in residency programme
• The Carbonara King caused havoc this year

We also try three brilliant wines from the Carousel list:

• Carousel "House white", by Valle Reale, Abruzzo, Italy, NV
• Vi di Taula, by Els Jelipins, Penedes, Spain, 2022
• VB1, by Selvadolce, Liguria, Italy, 2019

You can also follow @The_Premier_Cru on socials to keep up to date with future episodes and behind the scenes snippets.

Hedonism Wines has to be one of the most luxurious retail experiences in the UK. Think of it as a wine Disneyland including chandeliers made of wine glasses, multiple large format bottles and some of the greatest wines you can get your hands on!

Hugo and Ben welcome Julien Le Doaré, General Manager of Hedonism Wines, onto the podcast. In the episode we discuss:

• The vision behind Hedonism Wines
• The range of wines available
• Expansion into hospitality via a Michelin star restaurant

We also taste 3 wines from the Hedonism range that you can purchase online:

• Alkemi, Xinomavro Rose, 2022
• "Clos des Epeneaux", Pommard, Comte Armand, 1990
• "Le Desir", Verite, 2013

You can also follow @The_Premier_Cru on socials to keep up to date with future episodes and behind the scenes snippets.

The Premier Cru are on tour, visiting Austria for a wine festival called Karakterre! The festival lasts 2 days and showcases over 200 central and eastern European producers, who practice either organic or biodynamic viticulture. Throughout the week, producers open their doors to visitors, whilst bars and restaurants across Vienna provide tastings and parties alongside the main event.

Community is at the heart of Karakterre and we welcome Marko Kovac, Co-Founder of of the event, to The Premier Cru to tell us all about it. This week we discuss:

• What it's like to run a leading wine festival
• The community that underpins Karakterre
• Austria's most exciting wine producers and regions

Check out and subscribe to our Substack. We will be connecting you with our guests and developing our community. Expect wine recommendations, recipes from chefs and much more!

You can also follow @The_Premier_Cru on socials to keep up to date with future episodes and behind the scenes snippets.

This week is all about Gusbourne, one of England's leading wine producers!

Hugo and Ben welcome Laura Rhys MS, Head of Wine at Gusbourne, to discuss their success and acclaim since launching their first wines in 2006.

We discuss:

• What it takes to become a Master Sommelier
• Gusbourne's approach to viticulture and winemaking
• The development of English wine since the 80's
• And how English wine is perceived on the international market

And we tucked into these three wonderful wines from Gusbourne:

• Blanc de Blanc 2019
• Blanc de Noir 2019
• Pinot Noir 2022

Check out and subscribe to our Substack. We will be connecting you with our guests and developing our community. Expect wine recommendations, recipes from chefs and much more!

You can also follow @The_Premier_Cru on socials to keep up to date with future episodes and behind the scenes snippets.

Hugo and Ben welcome Honey Spencer to The Premier Cru.

Honey is the lady of the hour in the UK wine scene. Alongside her husband, she recently launched a fantastic restaurant called Sune, which has already been nominated for the best opening of the year as part of The National Restaurant Awards.

As if that was not enough excitement, Honey has also just released a new book called ⁠"Natural Wine, No Drama: An Unpretentious Guide"⁠. The book expertly does what it says on the tin.

On this episode we introduce you to both Sune and Honey's new book, whilst tasting three wines available on the restaurant wine list:

• Riesling, MIRA
• Vino bianco "Arcese", Vittorio Bera & Figli
• Les perles du Mont Blanc, Domaine du Gringet

Check out and subscribe to our Substack. We will be connecting you with our guests and developing our community. Expect wine recommendations, recipes from chefs and much more!

You can also follow @The_Premier_Cru on socials to keep up to date with future episodes and behind the scenes snippets.

In contrast to last week's ep with Corney & Barrow, this week we continue on the theme of Bordeaux but this time looking at New Wave Bordeaux - what the &*%$ is that I hear you say!

Hugo and Ben welcome Benedict Butterworth, founder of Benedict Butterworth Wines, onto the podcast to give us an overview of the modern state of play in Bordeaux. BBW is an independent wine importer and retailer with a focus on the innovative, wacky, and creative superstars you wouldn't usually associate with the most famous wine region in the world. 

We discuss:

• China and climate change (sounds like a Trump special!)
• Snarky Bordelaise politics including Cheval Blanc and Angelus
• Grape varieties you've never heard of
• And Ben attempts a Geordie accent, hawey the lads!

And we tucked into these three beauties for Benedict's portfolio:

• ⁠Chateau Cazbonne, Comme en 1900⁠
• Vielles Chapelle, Les Amuse-Gueles⁠
• Chateau Tapon Saint Emilion Grand Cru ⁠

Follow @The_Premier_Cru to keep up to date with future eps and behind the scenes snippets.

Subscribe to our ⁠Substack⁠ as well to access more exclusive content with our guests.

It's May, which can only mean one thing. The Bordeaux 2023 En Primeur Campaign has officially kicked off.

Hugo and Ben welcome Ida Weatherall, Sales Executive at Corney & Barrow, onto the podcast to provide an introduction to Bordeaux as a wine region and buying wine En Primeur. Corney & Barrow are one of the UK's oldest wine merchants. There is no one better to provide an introduction to Bordeaux, one of the most historic and prestigious wine regions globally.

We try 3 fantastic wines all available as part of their En Primeur campaign:

• L'Aurage 2018
• Chateau la Grave a Pomerol 2017
• Chateau Rocheyron 2015

Follow @The_Premier_Cru to keep up to date with future eps and behind the scenes snippets.

Subscribe to our Substack as well to access more exclusive content with our guests. This week we will be providing a vintage report and some en primeur recommendations shared directly from the Corney & Barrow team.

Hugo and Ben welcome Margaux Aubry, Co-Founder of Naughty Piglets, onto the podcast.

Naughty Piglets is a fantastic restaurant based in Brixton, serving seasonal modern European food alongside 200+ organic and natural wines.

At the beginning of 2024 they started a chef residency programme which will keep the vibe of the restaurant changing throughout this year.

On the ep we discuss:

• How they got started and what Jay Rayner had to do with it
• The time Andrew Lloyd Webber asked them to set up a second restaurant
• Margaux's pairing Comte and Vin Jaune straight from the bottle

And Margaux brought along 3 fabulous wines from the Naughty Piglets list:

• Maupertuis Puy Long Chardonnay 2022
• Marcel Lapierre Morgon 2022
• Tony Bornard Vin Jaune

Check out and subscribe to our Substack. We will be connecting you with our guests and developing our community. Expect wine recommendations, recipes from chefs and much more!

You can also follow @The_Premier_Cru on socials to keep up to date with future episodes and behind the scenes snippets.

Hugo and Ben welcome Tom Gearing, Co-Founder and CEO of ⁠Cult Wines⁠, onto the podcast. Cult Wines specialise in fine wine investment and combine a deep passion for wine with financial and technology expertise. Their latest innovation is ⁠Cult X⁠, an app helping users to easily trade and invest in fine wine. They can now cater to both complete novices and to experienced wine investors. Look them up now!

Not only is Tom a wine investment guru, but he is also a media superstar having featured on The Apprentice. You can see highlights of his time on the show here - this is a "must" watch (after our podcast episode of course)!

In this episode we look at:

• how Cult Wines was founded
• what makes wine a great asset class
• building the perfect wine investment portfolio

We also try 3 investment grade wines selected by Tom:

• Bannockburn Chardonnay, Felton Road, 2022
• Cuvée 910, Clos des Vignes du Maynes, 2019
• Les Suchots, Vosne Romanée, Domaine Grivot, 2009

In big news, The Premier Cru is also launching a Substack account, where we will be connecting you with our guests and developing our community. Expect wine recommendations, recipes from chefs and much more! Our first articles will be dropping this week, showing you the best performing investment wines released since 2000! Subscribe to hear more...

You can also follow @The_Premier_Cru on socials to keep up to date with future episodes and behind the scenes snippets.

In 2019 Mark and Matt set up Levan, a restaurant in Peckham serving contemporary European dishes, inspired by the ‘bistronomy’ movement and their favourite eateries in Paris, Copenhagen, Barcelona, Stockholm and Berlin. They have a huge wine list with a real focus on Jura.

A year or so later Bar Levan opened right next door, which is a cosy wine bar, bistro and shop serving natural wine and food from Tuesday to Saturday. Think pickled mussels and crisps, comte, and Vin Jeaune by the glass!

In this episode we look at:

• What it takes to set up and run Peckham's leading wine focused restaurant and bar
• And Mark takes us on a deep dive of the Jura

He also brought also these for us to try:

• Yves Dupont Cremant
• Domaine Labet En Chalasse
• Valentin Morel Trousseau Les Trouilotts

Follow @The_Premier_Cru on socials to keep up to date with future episodes and behind the scenes snippets.