sp#11 - rachel signer: natural wine, italy and anti-optimisation wine culture

in the episode 11 news we skip over the commercial realities of the uk wine trade a decade after brexit, brad ponders about putting afew bids in the auction of rare historic sherries at christie’s, and we couldnt resist wading in on steven bartletts self-hyper-optimisation woes. as an antidote to that author and winemaker rachel signer joins the conversation to discuss her new book, how to drink natural wine, detailing her impulsive journey from brooklyn restaurants to italian vineyards, field blends and falling in love. we finish with a recap of the picpoul de pinet tasting, oyster competition dramas, and a legendary 1978 rhône magnum from the cellar.

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[00:00] – episode 11 opens with reflections on the london wine fair special

[00:00] – live interviews at the fair apparently worked better than expected

[01:15] – brexit ten years later and what it actually did to the wine trade

[06:22] – segue into this week’s guest and anti-optimisation natural wine philosophy

[07:05] – Rachel Signer interview

[07:13] – restaurant jobs, brooklyn and accidental entry into wine

[07:30] – discovering natural wine without formal wine education

[12:27] – food, pleasure and discovering wine culture properly for the first time

[13:08] – falling in love with natural wine, winemaking and her husband simultaneously

[17:32] – natural wine as flavour purity rather than ideology