BLOG – March 31st

Whilst our new website is being developed, I’d like to take this opportunity to tell you a little bit about ourselves and our business. Tivoli Wines was established in 2010 by Kai and Caroline Horstmann who, after 6 years building the business up from the ground and attracting a loyal customer base along the way, decided to relocate to Devon and sell the business to the us – Dave and Helen Dodd – in December 2016.

This is our first business venture, having spent the last 15+ years working for major retailers across the globe in areas of marketing, finance, format development and retail strategy. We both love the fast-paced, and occasionally scary, nature of retail so decided to set up our own business –  we quickly embarked upon the WSET route to wine enlightenment and ended up making an offer for Tivoli Wines. Now the fun really begins……….

So what’s in store for Tivoli Wines? What’s our USP? Will we specialise in French, Italian, New World, Organic Wine, Biodynamic Wine, will we run wine tasting events for the Cheltenham public, offer official WSET courses or set up an area for sample wine on-site? We’ve been asked these questions many times over the past few months so it’s about time we provided some answers.

I suppose the many years of listening to the corporate boll*cks from big retailers must have had an impact – as we have created corporate VALUES of our own for Tivoli Wines. Our core values focus around three customer-related principles. We want to ensure that all the wines on our shelves are of sufficient QUALITY, and have put in place processes so that all team members taste (and vote) on each new wine coming into the shop. We will also be setting up customer tasting panels to ensure that we don’t get caught up in the hype of new wines and obtain feedback on what our customers really want and what they’re willing to pay (feel free to contact us if you’d like to get involved in this).

Our second principle is VALUE, which doesn’t necessarily mean we offer wine at ‘Supermarket Prices’. To us, VALUE means that the customer is getting the best quality wine for a price they’re willing to pay. Everybody wants to ensure that they’ve got good deal, whether it’s at the £6.99 entry-level for a South African Chenin or with a 2005 Chateau Lynch Bages for well in excess of £100. We want to ensure that we have the best quality Italian red for under £10, the best quality Bordeaux for under £20 or that we can offer Veuve Clicquot champagne at a price below what the supermarkets charge (I was quite proud of this, hence our numerous tweets on the matter!). The team are constantly searching for deals so we can get top quality juice in front of you at the cheapest possible price.

Our final company value is, to me, our most important. It’s EDUCATION, and this is an area which we intend to invest significantly. We find the world of wine fascinating and we want to share our knowledge without bombarding customers with confusing terminology or extensive tasting notes which are aimed at wine critics and connoisseurs rather than “Joe Public”. We firmly believe that the language around wine needs to shift away from the traditional note form, and become more engaging to today’s time-poor, tech-savvy consumer groups. We’re working on a plan to change our style of communication to our customers – and you should start to see subtle changes in the shop over the next few months!

Finally, we believe that there’s no better way to educate customers than letting them sample wines which is why we’ve introduced our #FreeTastingWeekends whereby we put upto 5 wines on taste (for free) every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Everyone knows someone who only drinks one style of wine – a NZ Sauvignon Blanc being a favourite – so our aim is to get more people exploring and discovering new wines. I recently had a friend tell me that she doesn’t drink white wine as she hasn’t found a white wine she likes in 18 years of searching. It took us just 15 minutes to find one for her (it was a Gewurztraminer….randomly!). This isn’t a sales pitch either, we encourage customers to sample the wines in peace and quiet in the shop, we won’t harass you unless you ask for more details, and we encourage honest feedback – if you don’t like them, then tell us.

So I hope that gives you a flavour of what’s to come at Tivoli Wines……we have BIG plans for the next 12 months. A new website, to be launched in June alongside our new Wine Club, we intend to change our brand and our in-store communication to make it easier to explore and discover new wines, we’re ramping up our Wine Events from May, either for a more formal, educational session or just for a bit of fun……and then we should be making a major announcement soon regarding our upper floor. Very, very exciting times are ahead.

Dave

Blog 2 - June 2017 - What's all the fuss about Volcanic Wines?

So, what are Volcanic wines?

Volcanic wines are wines produced from grapes grown in volcanic soils, whether that is soil from active, dormant or extinct volcanoes. That’s to say that some winemakers risk their lives day in day out working on vines planted on the side of active volcanoes, to create these special and highly regarded wines. Volcanic wines are produced in these areas because not only do they have their own microclimate but also soils rich in minerals, providing perfect conditions for wine growing.

The black ash left behind from previous volcanic eruptions makes the soils extremely porous and it allows the vines to easily absorb the water they need to thrive. Surprisingly, despite the soils looking very infertile, they are found to have higher levels of potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium and sodium than normal soils, left behind by lava flows. Volcanic wines benefit from these nutrients and together with high quality regional grape varieties and ancient growing methods, they contribute to producing some of the world’s most unique wines.

But how do volcanic wines differ from regular wines?

Yes, we know that all the wine connoisseurs keep hammering on about volcanic wines, but can WE actually notice a difference? The answer is that you should see for yourselves by trying our own selection of volcanic wines! Experts have found that chemical differences in volcanic soils are transferred to the grapes and they cause sensory changes, partly due to an increased minerality in the wines. In simpler terms, volcanic wines are often very aromatic, thanks to the minerals in the soils, and they are commonly perceived to be fresh and saline, with a medium to high acidity that makes your mouth water, making you want to have another sip! You can also normally taste a hint of flint, making for distinctive wines that have an exceptional longevity. Here at Tivoli Wines, we've hand selected some of the best tasting Volcanic wines available for you to try, and picked those that have the distinctive 'volcanic' taste for those of you who are curious about the notable taste differences.

What are the Top Volcanic Wine Regions

There are a number of regions all over the world that produce excellent volcanic wines, and they are not all the most apparent regions that are known to have volcanoes nearby. For example, did you know that parts of Napa Valley in California make volcanic wines? The volcanoes in an area that produces volcanic wines may well have erupted over hundreds, even thousands of years ago, but the soil left behind still creates a hospitable environment for grape growing.

These following volcanic regions may be a bit more obvious:

Mount Etna, Sicily, Italy

This is the most famous region that produces some spectacular volcanic wines. Mount Etna is the world’s oldest active volcano and it is still erupting to this day, with its last eruption happening in March 2017. The principal grape varieties for this region are the red Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Capuccio grapes and the white Carricante as well as Catarratto. Etna was made a DOC (Denominazione di origine controllata – equivalent to AOC in France) in 1968 and so it is a well-established wine region with an incredible history. This is a challenging area for its winemakers, but despite the obvious dangers they somehow still manage to make interesting and extremely delicious volcanic wines! View our Mount Etna volcanic wine selection.

The Canary Islands, Spain

Tenerife is the largest of the Spanish Canary Islands, with Mt Teide, a dormant volcano sitting right at the heart of the island. This makes the island a perfect location for producing volcanic wines; in fact there are a total of five wine regions on the 780 square mile island. White wines are Tenerife’s speciality, in particular an ancient grape variety called Malvasia that is made into a number of wine styles. Again, the volcanic wines from this region have an intense bouquet and have a complex taste of stone fruits with a chalky texture.

Lanzarote is another volcanic wine area that also grows a slightly different variety of Malvasia. In the 16th century ‘Canary wine’ was extremely popular, particularly among European royalty and the likes of William Shakespeare, but that fame quickly disappeared as Madeira came onto the scene. However, it is now making a comeback and the winemakers have a unique way of growing their grapes. The vines are buried in hollows and are also shielded by stone walls, protecting them from strong winds. This individual technique is very labour intensive but helps produce some very distinctive volcanic wines.

Santorini Island, Greece

The Assyrtiko grape is the most commonly grown in Santorini and it is often blended with other indigenous varieties such as Athiri and Aldani to make dry white wines as well as a sweet wine, Vin Santo. Santorini was part of the Venetian maritime state for over 200 years and Italian influences on the island’s winemaking are clearly visible to this day. Still, this volcanic sweet wine is not to be confused with the Tuscan sweet wine, Vin Santo. It has aromas of dried apricots, marmalade and sweet spice which combine with an underlying minerality and high acidity, originating from the Assyrtiko grape. The vines found on Santorini are centuries old as the soils on the island are immune to phylloxera, a pest that in the 19th century destroyed the best part of Europe’s vineyards, particularly in France.

Volcanic wines are definitely something to keep an eye out for, as they are getting more and more popular by the day. And there is a reason for their success! These unique wines, with their perceived minerality and dry extract impart a high degree of finesse, making for a thoroughly enjoyable drinking experience. Fancy tasting the difference? Choose from our expert picked volcanic wines chosen especially by us at Tivoli Wines.