A review of Wine and Words (Foyles, Charing Cross Road, London 30th April 09)

Some people say that if you don’t drink, smoke or pursue – ahem – other worldly pleasures, then you don’t live longer – it just feels longer. On the other hand, research suggests that a glass of wine a day can add five years to your life.

Between these perspectives lies our modern confusion over pleasure – should we indulge ourselves, or should we abstain? At a Slow Down London evening called ‘Wine and Words’ last week, everyone seemed to keen to plump for the former. But this wasn’t just your average midweek booze-up. Hosted by poet and former wine writer Harry Eyres, natural wine evangelist David Harvey and natural wine producer Frank Cornelissen, the event aimed to introduce people to the ancient way of enjoying wine – slowly, and with words.

“For the classical poets, wine was something magical and mysterious,” said Harry. “It inspired them to conversation and poetry. There can be much more to drinking wine than just glugging it down.”

Frank agreed: “Wine has always been our drug to get in touch with our spiritual side.”

We sampled wines made on Frank’s small estate in Sicily. These wines are made entirely naturally, and have more in common with the wines drunk in ancient Rome than with those we usually sink down the pub. “They may taste slightly strange, but that’s because they haven’t been stripped of their flavour by modern production techniques,” warned David.

So did we get in touch with our spiritual sides? It’s hard to say – but we certainly experienced something. The first wine was poured into our brown cornstarch cups, which apparently open up the wines. It was pale orange and tasted like muddy apples and grapes. Rather than clean tasting, it was ruddy, pungent and real.

“In our era, everything is about speed and technology,” said Frank, the wine warming him to the Slow Down London theme. “The world has gone mad with speed – but when wine is made naturally it is a magical product.”

When the second wine was poured I discovered it had an alarmingly meaty tang. I looked desperately around for moral support before swallowing. But as the finish developed, softer flavours came through, rounding out the initial shock with dark fruits. This is the pleasure that Frank is talking about – taking it slow and allowing the wine to work its magic.

The evening was a lesson in slowing down. We drank no more than a few inches of wine over two hours, but many people still tottered out of the room with smiles on their faces – those natural wines clock in around 14 per cent. And we learned a few new classical poems along the way.

So should we take a Slow approach to wine? The answer – perhaps unsurprisingly from Frank – is absolutely. “Wine invites us to slow down,” says Frank. “It inspires you to stop, unwind and reflect. I think everyone in London probably needs that.”

Chris Cox

Image by pizzodisevo

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