I'm on a course please leave a message after the tone!

It's an age old excuse isn't it that still actually works and I have heard and witnessed it first hand. This time however I was actually on a golf course not a 'Learn how to conquer the world and do what Steve Jobs did' kind of course at top end business college on Victoria Street, London! I was with the very lovely folk at Dale Hill Golf Club (part of the Leaderboard selection of golf clubs). My auntie had the pleasure of getting married here back in June of 2011 and so I had been there before and seen what a grand job they do - their food was terrific, and dare I say it, their wine list was pretty damn exciting too!
This part of Kent is one of my favourites spots in the South East; the ungilating roads that meander through villages unknown to most of us, the quaint little pubs along the way, the small cottages advertising boxes of fresh eggs, honey and jams. All leading to the driveway which always catches me out to the golf club. If a had a rally car it would be the perfect place to perfect a Scandanavian flick!
This time round my class was 7 people that represented Dale Hill plus another couple of their clubs within the group. They travelled from afar to be here...so I simply had to deliver the goods or else I may have found a 9 iron where I would not want it to be! A large room with perfect natural daylight overlooking the 7th whole was where I was situated, so what did I do? I drew the curtains and dimmed the lights for I needed to unleash my mini projector (warning, this is not a euphamism).
Kit setup, glasses cleaned and attendees primed for a couple of hours of Ellis of Richmond style ENGAGEMENT - no such thing as EDUCATION when we speak about wine! Lift off! Where did wine come from? - covered...How is it basically made? - covered... who drinks the stuff?...covered and all from the perpetually engaging (there's that word again!) piece of ingenuity that is the iPad, what actually did we have before iPads....I struggle to remember! I digress though, a few light hearted videos helps to soften even the notion that a wine training session may be a bit boring and that they did. I find showing different types of media helps people to understand certain things a bit better and from past experiences of sitting in the most laborious of training sessions, I will happily vouch for this. So we then went onto the part where we put our senses to the test - the tasting! A small but importantly diverse selection from their wine list which included the marvelous Condes de Albarei Albarino, an unwooded Chardonnay from South Africa (but one that had some 'lees' ageing which the guys and gals now understand what this process is and so can apply their thoughts when tasting) and some other delights. Needless to say, the tasting part of a session is where your instincts should be trusted and your mind open - and I cannot fault any of the staff here for that because they did just that and so made for all the more an ENGAGING session altogether. My thanks to James McTrusty for the organisation part at their end and of course to the rest of the people that travelled from other clubs within the group. I certainly enjoyed it; sharing my passion and enthusiasm for the humble grape and mixing with some lovely people. I will leave you with the wonderful 7th hole at Dale Hill Golf Club, I am not a massive golf fan, but I think I could spend some time here and swing a few bats!

East Beach Cafe in Littlehampton - Buckets, spades and Chardonnays

The day was Monday 4^th March.  The place was East Beach Cafe and the weather was just a little bit good...

A perfect day really for pretending to dig up some sand and produce some ropey looking sand castles, but then I quickly realise that we are in Littlehampton and the beach is that of the stoney kind; one that does not permit such dreamy activity.  That said, the childlike elements I found myself leaning towards quickly became more ‘food led’.  After meeting the lovely Siobhan and her staff at the restaurant, we were sent to our table and handed menus – and there it was, laden with invisible words saying ‘eat me’ and ‘scoff me, I am delicious’.  It was Grilled Dover Sole, caper & shrimp butter and sautéed kale.  Nothing has been easier for me than to order this immediately and if not sooner – so I did.

After a very good feed washed down with water (yes that’s water...I was training in a couple of hours and I needed to focus entirely!) I stepped outside to take some photos because this place truly is in a wonderful location right on the sea front and then I wandered back in to setup for what I was drafted in to do, which was to give the staff a bit of Ellis of Richmond treatment – wine training!

It was very relaxed there anyway which is always great because wine tasting and menu matching needs to right environment and so when the Siabhon and her team of 3 other ladies meandered through the tables to sit down in front of me, I already knew what I was in for...or so I thought.  The ladies here are a real punchy, enthusiastic bunch with a passion for what they do.  They know their menus well and really, all they needed was a steer in the right direction in terms of using their knowledge of their food menu and then linking that up with the key wines on their list.  That’s exactly what we did.  The wines we tasted through were as follows and in this order:

Prosecco Borgo del Col Alto

Tulbagh Chenin Blanc 2012

Pinot Grigio Ca Luca 2011

Azabache Blanco Rioja 2009

Whitehaven dry Riesling 2010
Il Paradosso Nero d’Avola Rosato 2011
Negroamaro Allegri 2011
Azabache Tempranillo

Geoff Merrill Pimpala Road Shiraz 2010

This was the main bulk of their fairly short, but concise and diverse list that encompassed a real ‘mixture’ of wines to tantalise the taste-buds and get those menu matching juices flowing!  We were using the leftover aromas from the kitchen as a way of ‘wishing’ we had turned this into a fully fledged food and wine session, however the chef had gone home for the day  and so the fragrant wafts of delicate freshly caught fish and fennel amongst plenty of other enticing smells, did assist us in working out whether or not the Whitehaven Dry Riesling would pair well with the roast pollock fillet, Jerusalem artichoke, roast beetroot and parsley oil – ooh I think that may work that one...and they concurred.
After 2 hours the end was nigh and the sun began to set over East Beach Cafe but one thing was signed, sealed and delivered:

Great people with some decent know how = happy customers!

East Beach Cafe - for proper fun in the sun!

We're almost there!

We here at Ellis of Richmond all share a few passions; wine of course being the obvious one and not just in the drinking of it either - and let's all be honest, the drinking part is the best part.  But (ooh yes, there is always a but) we are also pretty darn pasionate about sharing our knowledge of wine and all that surrounds it too; food, culture, travel...all these things have a link with wine because wine is not just a drop of wet stuff in a glass ready to be swished and swirled round a mouth, oh no!  When we think of  light, elegent Provence rose, memories or pictures of beautiful scenery with ungilating hills, sounds of nature and al fresco dining all spring to mind.  When we think of deep and rich Shiraz, we'll tend to think of the hot and sunny climes of The Hunter Valley or Barossa Valley in Australia - it is an evocative thing is wine.  That is why in order to bring this to life and to engage with our customers on a personal level, we have decided to have a dedicated Training Manager aboard the good ship Ellis...introducing....me!

I am Scott Malyon and I have been working for EoR for a little over 2 years now.  EoR really is steeped in history and heritage having been around since way back in 1822!  Family run even still today and with a truly second to none portfolio of wines including many long standing 'partners' from around the globe I have been priveleged enough to have been able to learn lots in this space of time.  And so now, the countdown is on!  Let out into the open armed with an iPad, a projector and an armoury of  wineified 'intelligence' - direct from the Ellis of Richmond laboratory!  

This blog intends to advise, engage and let you all know what I am up to and to show the side of Ellis that we plan to build.  Keep 'em peeled folks for more.

Ellis of Richmond - Contemporary Wines Traditional Values