On the Grapevine

With Philip Goodband MW, Constellation Europe.​

Philip Goodband is one of those rare people who is not only a Master of Wine but also has real 'hands on' experience at every level of the wine industry with a special interest in the on-trade.

His achievements include responsibility for the launch and development of the top performing Stowells brand and managing directorship of Grants of St James's.

Now it is your chance to ask a real expert for the answers to your questions - send your wine questions to jvar@gurchoyvpna.pbz​. The person or pub submitting the 'Star Question' as chosen by Philip each month will receive a bespoke training session for their outlet run by Constellation Europe.

Store and preserve​

• How do you best store and preserve wine once opened?​

All wines, once the bottles are opened, need to be protected from oxygen or consumed within 24 hours. If not the "Vacu-vin" system using special one-way stoppers and a vacuum pump will keep wine in good shape for approximately four days. This is the limit as even this method removes some of the aromas and flavours over a number of applications. Good news is that white wines protected in this way can still be stored in the fridge. Reds will be happy on the back bar if not close to the lighting!

Tip:​​ Good practice is to date the bottle at first opening.

Open for business​

• Which is the best bottle opener to have and what is the correct way to open the bottle?​

In my experience the best solution is to use a "Waiters' Friend". The compact folding design has a small knife to cut around the top of the capsule. After removing this the spiral wire screw and the lever hooked onto the rim of the bottle will make cork removal really easy.

Look for models which have a slide feature for easing "sticking" corks. If a lot of bottles are to be opened each day, a bar mounted corkscrew will do the job, but please remember to follow the capsule cutting drill first or the screw will punch its way through the top and the jagged result will look dreadful!

Tip:​​ For extra-difficult, stuck or breaking corks using the Waiters' Friend stop halfway, screw in further and lever once more.

Star question:​ An offer to suit the image​

• I own a sports pub aimed at 25 to 45-year-old professionals. How should I best target my wine offer?​

Image-conscious young men and women professionals greatly appreciate a choice of wines from fashionable grape varieties and well-known brands. I suggest the following for starters:

White wines:

• Chardonnay from Australia, which now comes in both unoaked and oaked styles. Hardys Chardonnay, or Chardonnay blends, are approachable easy drinking styles with great flavour.
• Pinot Grigio from Italy is popular, but is now also appearing from a wider range of wine producing countries such as California. Just the right light white to suit most palates.
• Sauvignon Blanc from Chile, such as Stowells or Veramonte. More tropical fruit flavour and less expensive than from New Zealand.

Red wines:

• Californian Ravenswood Zinfandel is a perfect match as the brand has almost cult status
• French Merlot from Stowells has been one of the best and most consistent for many years.
• Shiraz is a top seller from Australia, or for a change try Shamwari from South Africa.

Tip:​​ So called dual varietal wines, i.e. blends of two grapes, add interest and can be a talking point.

This month's star question comes from Andy Thompson, licensee of the Colliers Wood Tup in South West London​