The London Wine Fair in pictures

The London Wine Fair sprung to life at Olympia for the second year running, painting west London red, white and rosé.

One of db’s first pitstops was a meeting and tasting with Roberto Cremonese and Michela De Bona of Prosecco producer Bisol. During our chat, Cremonese warned that we could be facing a global Prosecco shortage this summer due to increasing global demand paired with a poor 2014 harvest. Time to start stocking up…

We may have found the reason for the global Prosecco shortage…

During the fair, Wirra Wirra brand manager at Gonzalez Byass UK, Ben Wyse, was busy trying to find the perfect blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Merlot for the 2014 vintage of the estate’s signature red, Church Block.

He also asked visitors to come up with their own blends, which were judged by Wirra Wirra managing directo Andrew Kay. The winner scooped a bumper luxury hamper crammed with cheese and Wirra Wirra wines.

 db‘s Rupert Millar decided to give it a crack and…

…didn’t come last at least.

At the Négociants UK stand Roger Jones of The Harrow at Little Bedwyn championed unique food and wine matches with Alex Layton of Négociants, including seared tuna, curried spices and minted yoghurt with Nautilus Estate Chardonnay 2013. During the session, Jones spoke about the misconception that Riesling and Gewürztraminer pair well with curry, instead extolling the virtues of Chardonnay as the ultimate pairing for your madras.

Another daring pairing was foie gras and salted caramel macaroons with Pewsey Vale The Contours Riesling 2009.

Cars seemed to be a theme of this year’s fair – at the Mentzendorff stand we spotted this chocolate brown 2CV belonging to Michel Chapoutier.

And here’s the same machine weighed down by (left to right) Mentzendorff’s James McKenna, db‘s Patrick Schmitt, and the same wine importer’s Andrew Hawes and Alan Montague-Dennis – who will be reunited in 10 days time as they set off on the Tour de l’Oc in aid of The Benevolent (which you can read more about here).

Fresh from scooping a double at the db awards, picking up best wine company of the year and a lifetime achievement award for Nick James (centre), we were wowed by the vibrant primary colours of the trio’s trews. A fourth member of the Pol team was sporting a pair of pale pink legs, but sadly we failed to snap them…

….as if that would happen!

Going large on the car theme, the Pol boys proudly presented their land rover draped in a California flag (above), and managing director James Simpson MW sits back as the fair draws to a close (below).

Along with a Land Rover and Citroën, this year’s wine fair contained this camper van from Carmen. 

Back on the Mentzendorff stand, Spanish winemaker Javier Hidalgo presented his latest offering, a new En Rama bottling with a beautiful vintage label.

Neil McGuigan, CEO of Australian Vintage and IWSC President for 2015, took to the competition’s LWF stand for a masterclass focused on his brand’s broad portfolio.

Commenting on the importance of wine competitions, McGuigan said: “You can make fantastic wines but you have to go out there every year and continue to lift the bar in a blind tasting – then you know how good you are.”

As cycling fans around the world gear up for the Tour de France, Champagne de Castelnau has launched this special “Edition 2015” design for its Brut Reserve NV. 

As official Champagne to the Tour’s organiser ASO, Castelnau will be on pour in all VIP areas during the race and will also be running promotions in the UK, including the chance to watch competitors cross the finish line in Paris.

Roberson won the award for the coolest stand of the fair, where they presented their new selection of wines on tap.

Blink and you’ll miss them – ahead of Cape Wine later this year, some of South Africa’s most exciting and experimental winemakers were pouring their wines at the fair, including Duncan Savage (far left), Adi Badenhorst (in green) and Alex Starey (beside Adi).

On the Hatch Mansfield stand, temporary tattoos featuring the intricate designs on a new range from Te Awa Winery in New Zealand were being branded on the brave.

PR guru turned gin maker Helen Cheshire found she had competition in the hair stakes when master of wine student Daniela Shelton turned up at the press centre sporting a fetching pink bob.

Helen was later spotted carrying this bizarrely painted plastic sheep at our awards. We never did find out why.

The pink theme continued on the Benevolent bus, manned by David Cox and his trusty rose-tinted companion.