I started by asking what had made Tony get into the wine business. He said that the driving force for him was the desire to work for himself and the business started in 1969 with his company Bordeaux Direct. His interest in wine grew from a visit to France as a student on an archaeological dig when he stayed in Bordeaux with a Monsieur and Madam Cassin at their vineyard. The Cassins sort of ‘adopted’ him, introducing him to the food, culture, and wines of France. After university he had no job, so returned to Bordeaux to stay with the Cassins while he attended university there to learn about wine. Following this M. Cassin suggested to Tony that he might sell his wines and that is how Bordeaux Direct came into being. Tony started by cold mailing about 100 people and received positive responses from two who purchased wines from the new company. One of those two said that he’d put Tony in touch with others who might purchase wines from him and this, effectively, was the start of this very successful wine empire.
As Laithwaites developed, the company became more and more involved in the production of wines that they were selling, sending experts to potential new suppliers worldwide investing time and effort in developing their wines, then leaving them to get on with the business of production. Their ethos being that good wines can be made anywhere provided that you have the right ingredients and winemaker.
So what about the future? Well, Tony said that they are planning to introduce more flexibility into their mixed case offerings allowing customers to adjust what’s in the deal, provided that they select wines that are in the same price range – good news for people like me, who avoid buying mixed cases because there may be one or two wines that I’m less fond of. He also said that Laithwaites plan to open an outlet similar to The Arch, in Manchester. Plans are in their infancy, they are currently looking for a site, but in the short term they have targeted a shop in the city which should be opening in 2011.
So, having heard about the rise of this consumer-friendly international wine merchant, I left, clutching my bottle of Tony’s favourite wine, eager to open it but having been advised to leave it at least a week to allow it to settle before doing so.
I later shared the bottle of Le Presbytère 2004 over a meal, as ever tasting it before eating. It has a lovely bright ruby red colour and on the nose I got fresh lively blackcurrant and blackberry notes that were sharp giving the anticipation of a hint of acidity. On the palate there was bold blackcurrant, it has an acidity to it and blackberry notes follow through on the palate. This is a fine wine with big flavours and medium tannins. With our meal, of steak, the tannins were tempered and the blackcurrant and blackberry flavours became more lively, it was an excellent pairing. I could quite see why it was Tony’s favourite, it’s a lovely mouthful on its own, and becomes brighter and more alive with food. This is certainly one to look out for. It retails at £19.99 through Laithwaites, well worth searching for, but sadly it’s produced in very limited numbers, so may not be easy to get hold of – worth asking about though.
I wish Laithwaites well on their first anniversary at The Arch and with their plans to further develop their relationship with their customers and in developing new markets in different countries. Long may they continue to be successful and provide good service to their customers.
For more information about Laithwaites and their wines go to www.laithwaites.co.uk