Episode #117
Episode 117: Sergio Verrillo, Blackbook Winery
Send us Fan Mail Joining me on today’s episode of the English Wine Diaries is Sergio Verrillo co-founder and winemaker at Blackbook urban winery in Battersea. Sergio moved from Connecticut to London in the noughties and initially built his career in music before moving into Michelin-starred restaurants including Maze, Tamarind and Chez Bruce. He later studied viticulture and oenology at Plumpton College, graduating in 2014, before gaining winemaking experience in South Africa, California, New Zealand and Burgundy. Together with his wife, Lynsey, he established Blackbook Winery In 2017 with an emphasis on quality, single-vineyard, grower-led wines sourced from vineyards within two hours of the winery. The brand, they say, was born from a love of three things: cool climate pinot noir & chardonnay; the English wine industry; and London. Blackbook’s wines, which are made using wild fermentation, used Burgundy barrels and minimal sulphur, have gained much industry recognition, including most recently WineGB Best overall still wine for its Pygmalion Chardonnay 2023. We talk about what it was like for Sergio growing up as a 'third culture kid' in America, the importance of hospitality and tourism in helping the UK wine industry be a successful one and why he was never going to make wine in the countryside. Find out more about Blackbook at blackbookwinery.com or by following on Instagram @blackbookwinery . Thanks for listening to The English Wine Diaries. If you enjoyed the podcast then please leave a rating or review, it helps boost our ratings and makes it easier for other people to find us. To find out who will be joining me next on the English Wine Diaries, follow @theenglishwinediaries on Instagram and for more regular English wine news and reviews, sign up to our newsletter at englishwinediaries.com .
