London Cru Wine Tour- A Crushing Good Time!

Roses are red, Violets are blue, I’ve toured London Cru …
Have YOU?On Saturday I had an exclusive opportunity with Selena from Oh, the Places We’ll Go to tour Central London’s first winery, so I’m excited to share the juicy details with you, Sunny friends.

Our wine guide for the day, Gavin Monery, began our tour with showing us the steps to beautifully transform a bunch of grapes in to a silky smooth glass of wine.

So, I bet the first question you probably have is- WHEEEEEEEERE’s the GRAPES???

Not here. They’re imported. And this is how it works…

The London Cru wine making process:

First, it begins in August in France and Italy. Grapes are chilled within two hours of being cut in a cooling truck that’s arrived the previous night. They’re stored and shipped in very small containers, and it takes about 36 hours for them to arrive in the UK.

Next, they are carefully sifted through and non-desirable elements are removed. Once passing inspection, they travel down this vibrating table. The grapes move up through a machine and are then squished in to large storage containers for 5-20 days, depending on temperature. After that, they’re moved to smaller tanks within the winery. Here’s a visual:

The wine is then stored in barrels so it can soak some oak and continue maturing.

But, sadly, not all of the wine makes it to the bottle. There’s about a 10% evaporation rate that is referred to as the “Angel’s share.”

I promise… it wasn’t me… 😉

We were lucky enough to sample some of the wines they’ll bottle in June, including Syrah, Barbera, and Cabernet Sauvignon. This vino lover can tell you that so far London Cru has a flavor intensity that absolutely reflects the care and consideration they give to each grape as its aged. SALUTE!

This hot new business venture plans on producing about 13,000 bottles of wine this year. GULP! They’re marketing first to London restaurants and aspire to increase production to approximately 30,000 bottles. DOUBLE GULP!

The two owners (ages 27 and 72), set up the winery deal over a handshake, and there’s no doubt they’re well prepared to take London’s beverage scene to infinity and beyond in just a few months.

If you love wine and want to be in the know about the next hot bit of liquid sunshine pouring over London, visit the London Cru website , read about the winery and sign up for a tour. They’re located at 21/27 Seagrave Rd, London SW6 1RP.

While I was fully prepared to rip off my boots and do some grape stompin’, this was the best I could manage to be involved…

You’ll have to let me know if they trust you to do more on your tour, Sunny friends!

*My tour of London Cru was complimentary. All opinions and pictures are my own and reflect my honest thoughts about the experience.