Brett Fleming, Armit Wine’s managing director, was born and raised in New Zealand, and retains his Kiwi lilt, but he is ‘one of us’ now. Having applied for and been granted a British passport, his commitment to his adopted country is implacable.
The wine industry needs constantly to make its voice heard to government, and Fleming did not miss the opportunity at the start of the Armit annual portfolio trade tasting on March 10, to launch a withering attack on it. At the same time, however, he was full of optimism that Armit can increase its on-trade business after a record turnout of more than 500 buyers for the tasting at London’s One Great George Street.
"Unfortunately we’re all in the same boat now of being victims of a government that has absolutely no idea about the policies they’re making,” says Brett Fleming, Armit Wines managing director
“Whatever sort of channel you manage within the industry this government are absolutely not dialled in to supporting you,” he declared. “They say they are, their rhetoric is all about pro-business but their actions are very much the opposite. It’s tangible the damage they are now doing – look at all the pubs closing.”
“You’ve got a government that has got no business acumen inside it at all. I’m not getting political but none of the people in the Labour government have had any business experience. Unfortunately we’re all in the same boat now of being victims of a government that has absolutely no idea about the policies they’re making.”
“Look at the minimum wage – I’m all for people being fairly paid but it’s now dawning on Labour that it’s been a disaster because we can’t afford to employ people who’ve got no experience and pay them a wage that would otherwise have gone to someone who does. It’s too much risk. They’re just not listening. So it’s challenging; we have a backdrop where you’re not being supported by the government and you’ve got to be creative.”
Opportunity for growth
Spearheading the expansion into on-trade sales - Svet Manolev, new portfolio director.
“Having said that, I’m a believer that the glass is always half-full, so we’re very much a business that is focussed on aspects of our channel management. The on-trade is an area where we see opportunity despite the challenges it is facing. I think there is a clear opportunity specifically for Armit because we’re under-indexed in the on-trade. We don’t have as many customers as many of our competitors, so therefore there’s opportunity for growth.”
The private client channel has always been very important for Armit, but the exodus from the UK of much of the high net worth community since Labour’s election win has impacted sales significantly. Nevertheless, 250 private clients attended their own tasting that followed on straight after the trade one finished.
The on-trade and, in particular, restaurants, is where Fleming’s main hopes for growth lie. He praised Svet Manolev, who succeeded Nicolas Clerc MS as portfolio director in November, for increasing Armit’s normal registration numbers for its annual tasting from 320 to 600. Manolev, the first Bulgarian to become a Master Sommelier, was recruited from Berkmann, and has extensive experience of fine-dining roles at the likes of 67 Pall Mall and COYA Mayfair.
Fleming paid tribute to Clerc, who worked at Armit for seven years.
“You can’t replace someone like Nicolas,” he sighed. “I miss him daily but Svet thankfully applied and, within two months of him joining, it was clear we had a talent we hadn’t had before in terms of understanding the on-trade, and what we needed to do to be more attractive to restaurateurs. Much of why we’ve got more people here today than we’ve ever had is down to Svet. Our focus is very much on building the on-trade. It isn’t a destination - more a journey. We’re nowhere near what we want to achieve through the on-trade. Svet’s role is very much to accelerate that growth and enjoy further success with the producers.”
New producer signings
Philippe Bouzereau – filling a Meursault gap in the portfolio
Armit’s Italian weighting (23 of its 49 producers being Italian) remains central to its historic strategy, but two new signings, Domaine Phillippe Bouzereau from Burgundy, and Weingut Bernhard Ott from Austria, have excited Fleming. He admitted he was both ‘sad and hurt’ that Querciabella had left Armit last year when the previous owner sold the business, but added that it meant the importer could now make other signings from Chianti (the agreement with Querciabella having been that they would be Armit’s only Chianti producer). To discover more about Armit’s five new Italian producers click here.
Philippe Bouzereau, ten of whose 25 organically-farmed hectares are in Meursault, has filled a notable hole in the Armit portfolio, which lacked a Meursault estate previously. “We’re delighted we now have a Meursault,” Fleming confessed. “We’re lucky to have landed Bouzereau – a lot of that is down to Hannah Mckay, our Burgundy brand ambassador, and also to Svet. It was a big gap we had and I’m delighted we managed to fill it. It remains to be seen if the trade pick it up but I have every confidence they will.”
Certainly, the six Bouzereau labels showed why his wines are so highly regarded. Three 2023 whites (two Chardonnays from Meursault and an Aligoté from Côte Chalonnaise) all showed superbly, while three Pinots (a Bourgogne Côte d’Or 2023, an Auxey Duresses 1er Cru 2023 and a Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot) were similarly benchmark. Duty paid prices varied from £22 - £56.
Bernhard Ott – specialising in Grüner Veltliner
Bernhard Ott represents another outstanding addition to Armit’s stable, and it was no surprise his was one of the busier tables. The Austrian producer, who has two thirds of his biodynamically-farmed 50 hectares in Wagram and the rest in Kamptal, grows only Grüner Veltliner. Why no other varietals? I asked him. “It just works,” he smiled. It does more than that. These are superb wines – pure, mineral and spicy with white pepper notes that are characteristic of the varietal. The three 2024s (Am Berg, Fass 4 and Der Ott) were well-priced at £14-£24 duty paid, and the complex three single vineyard labels from 2023 £36-45 duty paid. Ott, who teamed up with Armit only six months ago, revealed he was selling three times more through them than through his previous importer. To discover more about the wines of Bernhard Ott click here.
“Svet and I get 10-15 emails a day from suppliers wanting Armit to represent them,” Fleming revealed. “Our problem is finding producers that fit the vision of Armit – family-owned or iconic, or will become iconic we think. Bernhard got in touch with us, saying he was looking for a distributor that would add real value to his business. I confess I hadn’t had their wines for quite a long time, but I was blown away by them. I couldn’t get over how good these wines are – they are exceptional.”
Challenging preconceptions
“We are a relationship-led business, not a transactional one. If you don't have a relationship with the supplier, we are just another importer, another distributor. Armit needs to be more than that. We need to add value to everybody that comes into the portfolio, and we need to be able to give the customer – in this case the on-trade – reason to buy from Armit. And a producer like Ott ticks all those boxes. And he’s not Italian, which is the key as Armit isn’t just about Italy, it’s about great producers from anywhere in the world.”
Another perception about Armit that Fleming is keen to modify is that they are only a premium importer.
“Armit has a reputation, and rightly so, for being an iconic importer of more premium wines,” he continued. “As a consequence, as a (trade) buyer, you wouldn’t necessarily think of Armit. I want to challenge that because we have very, very good entry level producers who happen to be extraordinarily good quality. One of the challenges we face is illustrating not that we have absolute entry-point but the £15-20 duty paid bottle. Yes we have our Sassicaias, Lafleur and Leflaive but we also have a huge number of producers that can compete with anybody in quality and price. So how do we communicate that? Well one way is to get the higher numbers of today to come along, taste and discover it for themselves.”
Five wines that caught the eye
Oscar Alegre with son Dario
Bodega Alegre Valgañón, Rioja, Carra Santo Domingo 2023
Ex-engineer Oscar Allegre turned to wine-making in his late 20s and founded this estate 12 years ago with wife Eva Valgañón. This harmonious field blend that has around 50% Garnacha and 30% Viura came from 100-year old vines in the coolest and freshest part of Rioja, in the shadow of the Obarenes Mountains. “We try to make a wine that shows off our land,” said Oscar, who matures the wine in mainly older French oak.
Château Latour, Pauillac de Latour 2018
This beguiling third label of the Medoc first growth is made from organically-farmed young vines that are under ten years old. A higher amount of Merlot (32%) in the blend than the top two labels gives it a softer feel, but there is still plenty of structure from 30% new oak. An ideal wine for restaurants (duty paid £64).
Domaine Vicomte de Noüe Marinič, Marinič Tejca 2eme Cru 2022
A Slovenian Chardonnay from the Brda region close to the Italian border that could so easily be a premier cru Burgundy, but with a duty paid price of £44. Exceptional terroir with mineral-rich clay-limestone soils and schist rock are the key. Fresh and elegant with notes of lemon and nectarine. Drink this and you will think you are in Puligny.
Luca Pasquale, sales manager for Elena Walch
Elena Walch, Alto Adige, Pinot Noir Riserva ‘Aton’ 2018
Elena Walch became the Italian mountain region’s first female winemaker and has achieved international acclaim. Her ‘Aton’ Pinot (£103 duty paid) comes from 75-year old vines at 600m in the Castel Ringberg vineyard. Produced only in exceptional years, it is something of an Alpine icon. The bouquet is highly expressive, with red cherry and redcurrants to the fore. Aged in oak (30% new) for 12 months and then in bottle for three years before release, it is a graceful wine of poise, depth and impressive length.
Tatiana Sieleck, whose family founded Mendel
Mendel Unus, Mendoza 2023
A prestigious Argentine blend from the revered Luján de Cuyo producer. Predominantly Malbec (65%) from a vineyard planted in 1925 in Perdriel, with some Cabernet Sauvignon (25%) from a neighbouring site giving cedar nuance. A dollop of Petit Verdot (10%) adds colour and freshness to a complex wine that has beautifully integrated tannins.
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