Hello and Welcome. I have a deep passion for wine which goes back many years and love sharing that passion with other people through wine courses and tasting events. With particular love for English wine, support is needed to develop my wine courses into the full ‘wine experience’. Funding will go towards a lease for a community venue for running my wine school, courses and events and to sell wine from (£2500 3 mths advanced). Stock and equipment is required (£10000) along with developing and marketing the wine tourism side of the project (£2500). I will also be purchasing grapes from English vineyards I have worked with previously to make 1000 bottles of my own wine as from October. Although this is about wines in general, having managed one of England’s finest vineyards, Wickham Vineyard in Hampshire, I will be putting a huge emphasis on local English wines. I worked with Wave 105 Cash for Kids charity and Sainsburys Hedge End Planets Pancreatic Cancer Charity hosting wine tasting evenings to raise funds for these causes and money raised here will also go towards organising further and bigger events for these and other charities.
As a country we spend £11 billion a year on wine and this figure is set to increase. That equates to 11 million bottles of sparkling, 676 million bottles of white wine, 645 million bottles on red and 174 million bottles of rose. Imagine spending that sort of money on a product that you know very little about. The Solent Wine Experience aims to teach people the fundemental aspects of wine giving you the confidence to choose wines you know for sure you will enjoy. Aimed at both the total novice and for people who wish to learn more.
From Merlot to Mourvedre and Chardonnay to Chenin, there is a vast amount of wine out there each giving a different style and taste. Wine is all about enjoyment and we all have different tastes, so through wine courses and tasting events, you will get to discover which style of wine you prefer, therefore gaining maximum enjoyment out of the wines you purchase. You will be able to purchase wine expertly picked to suit your own individual tastes. The courses will cover subject matters such as the business of wine, how wine is made and will focuss on the major growing regions of the world. The wines I will be stocking will be smaller producers from around the world. ‘Harder to find’ wines and wines that have a story to tell. You wont find any of the big brand names you can purchase everywhere else, they will be individually sourced from the back and beyond but with a huge emphasis on quality and value for money. I am not just another wine merchant selling wine, I am selling the whole story and experience of wine. This is an opportunity to get involved with the wine makers themselves and build relationships with the vineyards directly.
Wine tourism is a growing industry and through vineyard visits both here in the UK and abroad, The Solent Wine Experience also provides a social and emotional element to learning about wine. We will visit wine regions such as Champagne, Bordeaux and the Loire along with Tuscany and Puglia or perhaps Rioja and Oporto or Sussex and Hampshire? They can be pre-planned or bespoke to suit your interests. These visits will provide producers with much needed support in terms of research and business expansion. This is particularly needed in the UK where wine making is still a young but establishing industry. With over 25 years of experience in the wine trade, which includes looking after Harrods Wine Department, a buyer for Annabels Club in London and Estate Manager of Wickham Vineyard, you can be sure of expert advice and an expert service.
The Solent Wine Experience – Don’t just drink wine, experience it!