Interview With Eddy Temple-Morris – The Three Drinkers

The wine world is full of so many different and wonderful personalities, with everyone offering something unique to the industry, in this feature, we speak with Eddy Temple-Morris, a celebrity in the wine world, with over 27 years in the broadcasting industry, appearing on radio and TV, even curating, co-producing and co-composing music for festivals, TV, radio shows, used by shows like Game Of Thrones and CSI, films like Hercules and Upgrade and games like Far Cry 3, so without further ado let’s discover a little about Eddy’s incredible life in the Wine Industry.

Tell Us About Yourself & How You Became Involved In The Wine Industry

“Before my father and I became estranged he did teach me a lot about wine. He bought it en primeur and cellared it, so he could get more bang for his buck. He was an MP, and an honest one, and MPs salaries in the seventies and eighties were meagre compared to what he could have earned as a barrister. The cellar was full of Rhone wine, because, again, that was the best value for money high end French wine. His enthusiasm rubbed off and that, combined with TV wine pundits of the day on things like BBC Food & Drink, gave me the background knowledge I craved, and the understanding of things like structure, tannin, oxidisation, how a barrel or stainless steel affects wine and of course the hilarious vocabulary. I have a very keen sense of smell I absolutely understood Jilly Goolden when she used phrases like “a whiff of tomcat” or “the smell of the tack room”.

“My interest in wine has always been as a lay person and I’ve never been in the industry. Just near it. As an avid cook and an avid eater, I’ve long read wine books and pawed through the annual Johnson’s wine updates. I’ve run my own pop up restaurant and was always involved in the sommelier side of that.

When my dear friend Helena Nicklin asked me to be a presenter of The Three Drinkers, I’ve never said yes to a job offer so fast. That, I suppose, was my entering the industry officially, and for that, and her introduction to the wonderful Aidy Smith, I will be forever grateful.”

Do You Remember Your First Experience With Sparkling Wine? When It Was And What Kind Of Wine It Was?

“My first experience was entirely illicit. I was really young. Still in single figures, when my uncle got married and the British reception, as district from the main one in Iran, was held at my parent’s house. I remember mine sweeping with my brother, polishing off remnants of Champagne from any glasses we could find, while adults several feet above us, were chatting and unaware. I still remember the delightful prickles that the bubbles gave me. If my dad were alive today he’d tell you that by the time we were busted, we were absolutely off our gourds, my brother especially, at two and a half years younger was nine sheets to the wind.”

For Any Fans Of Your ‘Three Drinkers’ Series, Can You Share With Us Any Behind The Scene Moments That Particularly Made You Laugh?

There were so many. Helena dropping a drink on her dress that made it look like she’d had a very embarrassing incontinence episode. My saying how great and reliable Citroen 2CVs are then Aidy almost wetting himself when, almost simultaneously, the indicator stick came off in his hands.

But the highlight for us all, I think was my writing a song about them and performing it with an acoustic guitar in a bar in Cognac. It wasn’t the song but the lyrics that made Helena, Aidy, Ali the director and the camera crew fall about.

The end of the chorus went:

They filled me with their knowledge and their passion.
You can always place your bets,
On a gay man with Tourette’s,
And an Elfin Milf who drinks more than her ration.

Their faces the first time I played it (we had to do retakes) were priceless.
The laughs from the audience at the preview were joyful to hear too!”

You’re A Familiar Voice on Radio and a Presenter on The Three Drinkers, What Future Projects Can We Look Forward To Seeing You Involved With?

“I’m mostly looking forward to another series of The Three Drinkers and I really hope it happens. It was the most fun I’ve ever had in TV.

Away from wine, I’m helping one of my favourite bands of the Noughties, Delays, release a career defining anthology. All of their wonderful albums remastered and given new artwork by dear departed singer Greg who was an amazing artist as well as having a once in a generation voice.

I’ve also organised an incredible charity raffle to meet and hang out with some heroes like Ricky from Kaiser Chiefs or to have me buy you lunch at Virgin Radio. That’s at www.uWin.co.uk and there are more meet and greets being added all the time.”

What Sparkling Wine Producing Countries or Regions Hold A Special Place In Your Heart?

“England! I am really passionate about English sparkling wine and I have a story to illustrate this beautifully.

“The year was 2011 and it had become an obsession of mine to go to the restaurant with the greatest wine list in the U.K. I searched and found The Vineyard at Stockcross in Berkshire. It was a two Michelin star restaurant with a French chef patron. The wine list was as thick as an encyclopedia. So first things first I ordered two glasses of house bubbly to help with the menu and wine list perusal.

The bubbly blew me away so much that I told the waitress repeatedly how amazing it was and asked her what it was and where it was from. This is how the conversation went. I remember it well.

She said “Camel Valley”.
Me: Where on earth is that? California?
Her: No, Cornwall!
Me: What? This is Cornish sparking wine?
Her: Yes.
Me: In a French restaurant?
Her: Um…yes…
Me: With a French chef-patron?
Her: Errrr…yes…
Me: Can you hear that sound?
Her: What sound?
Me: The sound of Napoleon spinning in his grave! This might bore a new channel tunnel!! This is an outrage! A brilliant outrage! You have to tell me more!
Her: Ummm, I think I’m going to have to get the boss.

A while later, between courses, the head chef arrived and introduced himself. Very charming and very French. He thanked me for my enthusiastic feedback and said he was there to answer any questions I had which his young waitress felt a little out of her depth with.

I joked that the British allied forces had won the Battle Of Waterloo but that it was ironic that he, a Frenchman, serving French food, had gone for an English sparkler.

His wise words have stayed with me. He stayed on the battle analogy:

“You have to know when you have been beaten,” he said, profoundly.

He went on to tell me that he had attended blind tastings and that Camel Valley had beaten the celebrated equivalents from Reims and Epernay and everywhere that Champagne had to offer. He said English sparkling wines were regularly beating Champagne, that global warming was shifting the balance of bubble power our way (remember this was twelve years ago!) and that the big Champagne houses were now buying up south facing land in Kent and Sussex and beyond. He went into geology and terroir and completely and brilliantly defended his choice of bubbly for this very fine and elegant French restaurant.

That started a love affair with English sparkling wine and I’ve now moved to Sussex and into its heartland. It’s the best bubbly in the world and you can take that as official!”

Where’s The Most Memorable Place You’ve Enjoyed A Glass of Bubbly?

“Gosh. A few spring to mind. Those beautiful urban evening ones with a backdrop of twinkling city lights and skyscrapers. I saw a great one from Bangkok’s tallest bar, and a fabulous one from a hotel in Canary Wharf, but the most memorable was New Year’s Eve last year. The bubbly was enjoyed from atop a Colombian mountain, in a bar, in the jungle, in a place called Minca. The sun was setting, blazing over the jungle canopy and highlighting the eagles, hawks and condors in the almost endless sky. I’ve never seen anything like it and I’ll never forget it!

Thanks for reminding me!”

www.eddytm.com

Thank you Eddy, for sharing your words, knowledge and experience with us and we at Glass of Bubbly wish you the very best for the future!

Images belong to Eddy Temple-Morris. Glass of Bubbly was granted permission to use them.