Hospitality & Tourism Professionals Day by Irish Hospitality Institute

October 2020

Irish Hospitality InstituteÂ

Phoenix Park, Dublin

Be Progressive - Be Entertained - Be Recognised - Be Part of Us

In this Issue

Note from the President

Welcome New IHI Members

IHI Autumn Webinar Series

Industry News

Be Progressive - Be Entertained - Be Recognised - Be Part of Us

NOTE FROM THE PRESIDENT

Dear Member, Welcome to our October edition of the Hospitality Network News! Our year continues to pace along and we all have become used to living, working and trading in a continually changing environment. Dynamic doesn’t quite cover it. It feels like a step above that and provides us with a challenge to be agile, responsive and positive in such an environment. The past month has seen the Executive team of Tina and Cynthia work hard to make live our Autumn Series of Webinars which will be held monthly going forward. The content for the series has been guided by our member survey which we completed in August 2020. You told us that, Leadership, Managing Change, Mental Health, Sales and HR policy were the key learning content that you would like showcased. Our first webinar in September was delivered by STR’s Sarah Duignan who brought us right up to date with very current information. It was great to see so many of you join this webinar and we hope you will pencil in all future dates in your diary. Don’t forget you can download these webinars at any time on the IHI website if you were unable to attend on the day. Taking a lead from what our member survey identified, we have engaged with Avril Mansworth to deliver our next webinar. Avril will chat through how to identify stress, cope with a changing environment and creating a support network for you. This session is not to be missed; it is scheduled for October 22nd at 10am. Please see our social or click here to register your interest now. I was delighted to facilitate the General Manager Virtual Coffee Morning this month. We had a great attendance from right across the country which added some great insights to our conversation. What struck me most after the call was what a resilient bunch of people hoteliers are … there was not a negative note on the call, instead our key topics for discussion was on mitigating against talent loss from the industry especially at the Mid Management level. The next virtual coffee morning is being held on Tuesday next October 6th – this session is a dedicated HR manager session. As always, I strongly encourage you to continue to use your professional network within the IHI and beyond for advice, mentoring and support especially at this time. Also don’t hesitate to contact us if you need an introduction, a connection or a simple listening ear… we’d love to hear from you. In the meantime, keep safe & best wishes

Oonagh Oonagh Cremins FIHI President 2

NEW MEMBERS

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

Tom McDermott MIHI Managing Director Agility Hospitality

Niamh McCrystal MIHI Event Sales & Marketing Manager Seasons at Guinness Storehouse

Richard Li MIHI General Manager at Croke Park Stadium Catering

Jason Keegan MIHI Operations Director Aramark Northern Europe

Shirley Collins MIHI Regional Manager Aramark Northern Europe

Caroline Lloyd MIHI Regional Manager Aramark Northern Europe

The IHI would like to welcome Charlie Sheil FIHI, GM at The Marker Hotel, as non-executive Company Secretary.

WEBINARS

IHI Autumn Webinar Series Right Here, Right Now with Guest Speaker Avril Mansworth Continuing with our Autumn Webinar Series and in partnership with Restaurant & Hospitality Skillnet, we are delighted to announce Avril Mansworth will be joining us to talk about identifying stress, coping with a changing environment and creating your support network. It is important to note, this webinar should also be attended by your team members as well and anyone else in the industry who might benefit from it, so please feel free to share the details below. A recording will also be available to share for those who are unable to attend.

"Right Here, Right Now" 22nd October 10.00 am Click here to register.

INDUSTRY NEWS

Guestline launches GuestPay: A new, contact-free payments system for hoteliers In the new ‘contact-free’ era, hoteliers will need to adapt the way they process and receive payments from guests to ensure they’re minimising contact, meeting guest expectations and protecting their revenue. Guestline announces the official launch of GuestPay, a simpler payment solution where hoteliers will only have to deal and integrate with one supplier, get their funds quicker and enjoy competitive rates…all whilst providing a secure and reliable payment platform for guests. The current payment process is often complex and the source of much frustration for hotels - involving multiple providers and applications from the guest’s booking, to payment being credited into the hotel’s bank. Efficient processing of payments either pre, or poststay is a vital factor to hoteliers, so cash flow can be managed easily period on period and revenue is tracked accurately. Often the process is fragmented, has multiple windows for potential fraud and has many points of contact. One payment provider Guestline has partnered with TrustPayments to provide GuestPay, a single payment solution, that combines the operational and payment systems (payment gateway, merchant acquiring services and chip&pin terminals) into one centralised hub, ensuring a seamless and swift flow between the booking stage and payment into the hotel’s bank. A single, dedicated omnichannel provider who simplifies the process, negotiates better rates on your behalf and gives you faster access to your funds. GuestPay is here. 5

Contact-free payments Paying securely before check-in couldn’t be easier and gives guests peace of mind for a contact-free arrival. GuestPay enables the guest to settle their invoice or deposit payment pre-stay via a secure ‘Paylink’ that’s sent out from the PMS. Again, another automated, contact-free measure that helps hotels secure revenue and save time that’s also safe and convenient for guests. Andrew Williams, Product Strategy Director at Guestline, explains; “It's no big secret, payment processes within the hospitality industry leave a lot to be desired. For too long, we have settled with work arounds, it is now time to say goodbye to complicated and long-winded payment systems that lack visibility and have steep costs. “Because the properties deal with multiple vendors, they struggle to reconcile payments and quite often don’t have a single view (and audit trail) of card spend for a guest as the details reside in multiple applications. With GuestPay, hoteliers will only deal with one, dedicated omni-channel provider that simplifies the process and gives them faster access to their funds. Through the power of numbers, we have negotiated competitive rates for all 2500+ hotels powered by Guestline so it will save hoteliers money and streamline processes…which ultimately will give them more time to spend with guests.” Secure payments Having a secure, fully integrated platform to make payments on is essential for guests and will help hotels reduce abandonment rates if guests feel that the platform is safe – guests take payment details seriously and need to be assured their details are being processed and stored securely.

GuestPay is designed to lower the risk of fraudulent activity and minimise human error which can occur from working with multiple providers and manual processes. It can also help with chargebacks – non secure payments over the phone quite often run the risk of being queried and charged back, or details are taken incorrectly, resulting in additional time spent and lost revenue. Reduced operational costs By working with a large community of hoteliers, Guestline can negotiate and offer more competitive rates on the hotelier’s behalf to help them reduce transaction fees and save money. With GuestPay, Guestline has established that a 60 room hotel is saving on average £2,000 per annum. John Wallace, General Manager at The Churchill Hotel in York, an early adopter of GuestPay, added: “Since implementing GuestPay, I have saved a significant amount of money for our hotel as well as valuable time. Cashing up is now easier than ever and I’m not losing time trying to balance up. The onboarding team made it really easy for us and having just one portal is brilliant. Guestline support have always been helpful, and now they can look after any payment queries I have too.”

Sarah Abernethy, Director of Account Management at TrustPayments commented: “GuestPay will reduce hidden costs being passed on by multiple providers and improve cash flow. By merging all the applications and services and having one dedicated provider, hoteliers will be able to take back control and reap the benefits. Hoteliers will also gain more visibility over the booking-to-payment flow, as guest payment data will all be stored and accessible in the same secure portal. “We are delighted to be a part of this revolutionary product; it is an extremely exciting time for the industry.” For more information on this, hoteliers can attend the ‘Guest Payments Simplified’ webinar on 1st October by registering here. To request a proposal of GuestPay hoteliers can click here or enquire here.

How is the payment landscape changing? Corporates such as Amazon, Apple, Google and PayPal are becoming more invested in taking control of how their customer payments are handled. As a result, they are beginning to develop their own unique systems for payment processing. This will reduce external costs from the acquirer and give them more control over their own data insights and profitability. Similarly, GuestPay is designed to allow hoteliers to take back control of their guests booking journey through offering one centralised and integrated system, by merging together Guestline’s existing payment gateway solution (e.g. Direct Booking Manager, Channel Manager, PMS and EPoS) with payment terminals (Pin Entry Device) and acquirer services (who settle the payment).

Would you like to Automate your guests journey from start to finish? Would you like to free up your teams time to focus more on the guests in house rather than the manual admin work?

With iHotelligence Automate, we can help you do just that. With our Guest Facing App, which fully integrates with our iHotelligence PMS system, you can automate your guests journey from when they receive their reservation confirmation to when they enter their bedroom in your property. Click on the video link below to view how iHotelligence Automate can work for you.

The Europe Hotel & Resort Goes Green with 100% Renewable Electricity For almost 60 years, The Europe Hotel & Resort has been setting the benchmark for innovation, technology, quality standards and customer service within the hospitality industry in Ireland. We have always challenged ourselves to lead by example and operate with pride. Now more than ever, it is of vital importance for not only the hospitality industry, but also society as a whole to take significant action and account for our responsibility for the environment. We are acutely aware of how precious our planet is and count ourselves incredibly fortunate to be situated in one of Ireland’s most treasured locations, – a UNESCO World Biosphere no less. We challenged ourselves to make a significant, positive and immediate change to how we operate our business, while still maintaining the incredible facilities and level of service that we are renowned for. Additionally, The Europe Hotel & Resort is part of the Killarney Hotels Sustainability Group, which is committed to continuously strive and reduce the environmental impact of our services and activities. For 2020, our focus and commitment is to reduce our Carbon Emissions by 25% and changing our electricity to 100% Green Renewable was an important step in this commitment. One of our Company Core Values is “We Accept Responsibility” and aim at all times to fulfil our responsibility to society in general and the environment. 9

Taking in to account the scale of the resort and especially the energy consumption of facilities such as ESPA at The Europe, we needed a solution that would allow us to maintain our highly regarded amenities for our guests, while upholding our responsibilities to the environment. Operating on 100% Renewable Electricity has enabled us to make a change that will have a direct positive impact. Switching to 100% Green Electricity proved a simple and highly effective way to cut our carbon emissions and reduce our impact on the environment. As a family owned company, integrity has a high status and one principle is continually “thinking of tomorrow today”. “The Europe Hotel & Resort’s location overlooking some of Ireland’s most precious & inspiring landscapes ensures that our duty and respect to our environment is at the forefront of our minds. We are proud to now operate on 100% Green Renewable Electricity and hope that our action will inspire other companies to take further steps towards a greener, brighter future.” - Michael Brennan, Managing Director of Killarney Hotels Ltd. This step is one of many changes The Europe Hotel & Resort has made in their commitment to sustainability. Some of our other key measures include:

Sourcing Responsibly & Locally: The Liebherr Family (hotel owners) own and operate one of the largest farms in Co. Kerry, which is between The Europe Hotel & Resort and The Dunloe Hotel & Gardens. Our farmers rear livestock to produce our own beef and lamb for the hotel menu, thus reducing the ‘food miles’ and ensuring our guests enjoy trustworthy, higher welfare and locally produced produce. The land stretches over 400 acres in the shadow of MacGillycuddy’s Reeks by Lough Lein from The Europe Hotel & Resort to The Dunloe Hotel & Gardens, and the farm is home to sheep and to over 350 head cattle, a combination of Aberdeen Angus, Charolais and Limousin. Historically, sheep and cattle that were reared at the farm were sold at a market or directly to factory, however in the last couple of years it has produced beef and lamb, which proudly features on the hotels’ menus. Seán Moriarty has been managing the farm for over 30 years and meets with the Chefs on a weekly basis to discuss the needs of their dishes. He also works closely with a local butcher to ensure the perfect treatment and aging of the meats. Having a close relationship results in a product of exceptional quality and of higher welfare, which supports the local community.

In delivering our commitment, we comply with relevant environment legislation and take a proactive approach to future requirements and obligations. We seek to conserve natural resources through the responsible use of energy, water and materials. Monitoring and improving our recycling in areas such as energy consumption, reduction of waste materials and water consumption. Work with our suppliers to reduce carbon footprint and reduce the waste generated. Promoting efficient energy management and utilization. Monitoring water usage and encouraging water conservation. Managing waste and developing recycling initiatives. Communicating this policy and relevant environmental control to employees, suppliers and guests. All of the hotel’s ‘to go’ coffee cups and lids are recyclable. The hotel’s ‘to go’ picnic bags are reusable and the containers within are recyclable. The hotel is replacing single use plastic straws with biodegradable alternatives. The hotel also has 4 x electric vehicle charging points onsite The hotel is heavily focused on food sustainability and seasonality. 10

The easiest way for people to show their proof of expenditure is for them to take a picture of the receipt and submit it through the Revenue Receipts Tracker App. All they need to do is indicate that the receipt relates to the scheme.

The stay and spend scheme: how can you make the most of it for your hotel?

It will be active from now (autumn) to spring next year.

So the long-awaited details surrounding the ‘stay and spend’ scheme in Ireland have finally been announced. There’s been quite a lot of discussion and debate over the last week in the hospitality industry as to whether or not the process customers will have to go through in order to claim back will seem too complicated for them to actually bother doing so. We surveyed hoteliers on the issue and interestingly, 79% feel the process may be ‘too confusing’, with 17% saying they think it will ‘work well’. It was previously thought that instead of a tax rebate scheme, the government would provide the public with vouchers, which sounds like a simpler solution, however the logistics may have meant an even further delay in getting things going – and delays are not what the hospitality industry needs right now! Regardless of how it’s done, the activation of the stay and spend scheme is good news for the hotel industry, and will surely provide a welcome boost over these coming months. What is the stay and spend scheme? It’s a scheme that has been crafted to help drive sales during the upcoming ‘off-season’ in the hospitality sector. It will enable people to claim back 20% from their bill, up to a maximum of €125 per person (or €250 for a married couple) in an income tax rebate to those who spend up to €625 (or €1,250 for married couples) in restaurants, pubs, hotels and B&Bs. 11

What can I do to encourage guests to use this at my hotel? Add content on the scheme to your website. The first thing you can do is add a page of content to your website about the scheme. Remembering what we’ve been echoing about giving your guests all the content they need for their stay in your area, do the same thing here. Provide them with all the details in an easy-to-read fashion so they don’t have to go searching for the need-to-knows! Make it as clear as possible. Link back to the Revenue.ie page too, in case they need more information on the fine print. You’ll be pretty familiar with the recurring questions from guests in relation to the scheme once it’s been active for awhile – add these over the coming weeks to your page of content as FAQs. Create packages built around the scheme Let’s stay on the vein of making things easy for your guests – how about creating packages built around what they’re entitled to claim back? €625 is the allowance for one person and €1250 is the allowance for married couples, so by creating inclusive packages, you’d be making it super sweet and simple for your guests to claim back using just the one receipt.

Educate your staff Now especially, at this very early stage, people are still a little unclear as to how this all works, so make sure you educate staff on the scheme and its details. The last thing you want is to have guests turning away in confusion with a head full of unanswered questions. It’s in the details Add it in as a custom message on the booking process, as a pop up message on your CMS & booking engine or as a credit card note on your reservation form – pick one of these, not all three! Be very clear and concise. Like anything Covid-related, you don’t want this information overpowering or taking over your site, you just want to make sure your guests are equipped with what they need, when they need it

If you want to chat to us further email us at hello@netaffinity.com

Click here to listen to Netaffinity's latest episode of Marketing in the Morning Bite-sized episodes each honing in on different marketing topics each week. Clear and concise tips, chats and examples – best consumed with your morning coffee!

Bookassist Now Offers NEW Google Pay Per Stay to Hotels Google Pay-Per-Stay (PPS) offers hotels all the benefits of advertising directly on Google Hotel Ads, and only pay for the clicks that deliver bookings.

Google Hotel Ads is by far the largest of the Metasearch channels. Commanding over 50% of the market and with double digit growth year on year, it offers unrivalled visibility and exposure for hotels. Connected to all major booking engines You donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to be a Bookassist booking engine client to use our Metasearch solution. We can connect your hotel to Metasearch platforms through your Channel Manager or CRS. For hotels that are new to Metasearch, Google PPS is the perfect opportunity to get started. Read More https://bookassist.org/blog/bookassist-offers-google-pay-per-stay-to-hotels/

Rapidly changing recruitment from the Excel Recruitment experts The continuing uncertainty surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic has seen the emergence of localised lockdowns and socialisation rules changing on an almost weekly, sometimes daily, basis. This has meant quick and unpredictable fluctuations for the hospitality industry, with upsurges in staycations coinciding with declines in weddings, conferences and events. What this has meant for the hospitality is that everyone is having to shift their goal posts and react quickly and effectively for the foreseeable future. With national coverage, we at Excel Recruitment have been working tirelessly to ensure we continue to have available, trained and experienced staff ready to step in at short notice to assist with these uncontrollable business fluctuations. Alongside our sister company Futureproof Training we have enhanced our remote working capabilities and enabled many of our existing workforce to retrain and upskill during this time. Allowing us to be perfectly placed to supply any level of temp staff at short notice for short- or long-term commitments in any location nationwide. As the past few months have shown, the key for businesses going forward will be the flexibility to adapt while ensuring seamless service. Excel Recruitment takes the hassle of this out of your hands. For more information, email shane@excelrecruitment.com or call 01 8717 676. 13

New Sales & Marketing Director at The Montenotte The Montenotte Hotel has appointed Ray Kelleher as Director of Sales & Marketing. Ray most recently worked as Group Sales & Marketing Manager at Trigon Hotels and previously as Sales & Marketing Manager at the Clayton Hotel Cork City. He is currently the Chairperson of the Cork city centre forum, is a very well-known personality in the business community in Cork and brings with him a wealth of experience to his new role.

Ray resides in Clonakilty in West Cork with his family and holds a Diploma in Hotel Management & Business Studies from the Dublin Institute of Technology – Cathal Brugha Street. The Montenotte is an award-winning 4-star boutique hotel in Cork City, a member of Conde Nast Johansens. With vast outdoor spaces, stunning Victorian Gardens, and panoramic views over the city scape of Cork, it is one of Ireland’s most instagrammable hotels.

As Director of Sales & Marketing, Ray will provide strong strategic leadership for all sales, marketing, e-commerce and the public relations activity at the hotel as it develops its brand as one of Ireland’s leading Destination City Resort Hotels. Welcoming the appointment, General Manager at The Montenotte Hotel, Brian Bowler, said “I am delighted to welcome Ray to The Montenotte team. With an impressive background and proven track record in the hospitality industry, a true passion for tourism, and excellent connections in the business community, he will be a strong advocate for our hotel. Ray’s creative approach will also bring fresh and unique thinking to our team as we continue to innovate our offering to stay true to our promise to #stayunique”. 14

FREE NOW LAUNCHES FIRST ECO TAXI BOOKING OPTION IN IRELAND New Green Travel Taxi Credit could also incentivise public to choose greener transport options, company says Survey shows that 70% of passengers are more environmentally-aware since the onset of COVID A new “eco” booking option enabling passengers to specifically choose electric or hybrid taxis to support Ireland’s drive to reduce carbon emissions has been launched today on the FREE NOW app. FREE NOW, Ireland’s largest e-hailing app, has been focused on expanding its electric and hybrid taxi numbers over the last few years which now represent 18% of its fleet in Dublin, and the eco booking function, available in Dublin immediately, has been introduced to help customers choose more environmentally-friendly transport options.

A recent survey of FREE NOW passengers showed that almost 70% of people are now more environmentally-aware in their day-to-day routines, including when making decisions on how to travel, since COVID-19, and that 90% of passengers would consider an eco taxi if it was an option available. In addition to launching the new booking option, the ehailing app has suggested the Government consider introducing a Green Travel Taxi Credit, not dissimilar to the stay and spend scheme, to encourage passengers to switch to ‘greener’ taxis by enabling them to claim money back for every journey taken in an eco vehicle. Launching the new booking option, Niall Carson General Manager for FREE NOW in Ireland, said: “The abrupt nature of the COVID pandemic and its widespread damage to public health and the economy has been stark, but its unintended consequence of reducing carbon emissions and pollution presents an opportunity for society. We want to help the public capitalise on these recent carbon-reduction improvements by helping passengers and drivers to make the switch to more environmentally-friendly vehicles, and the new eco booking option is a significant step in this respect. Having a specific eco booking option is also something that has really interested our business clients in Ireland as they look for greener ways to travel.

“People from today will see eco taxis ‘wrapped’ in grass across the city, and this is just one initiative as we look to raise awareness of this new booking option. There are undoubtedly challenges involved for drivers to switch to greener taxis like electric vehicles, and we also want to work with them to understand the ‘pain points’ of switching. This will provide valuable insights, both for us in terms of how we can help, but also for policymakers regarding how to incentivise the taxi sector more generally to make the switch to greener cars over the coming years. For instance, we believe some form of Green Travel Taxi Credit that offers an actual financial incentive has the potential to really drive consumer behavioural change and new ‘green’ vehicle adoption in the taxi fleet.” “While Ireland still has a way to go, we have the potential to lead the way when it comes to innovative and greener transport options. We are keen to work with the Government to see how we can encourage passengers to choose greener transport modes, how we can help drivers make the ‘green’ switch, and ultimately how to improve air quality and make our cities better places to live in.” Alan Murphy, Smart Dublin Regional Manager welcomed the launch and said: “It is encouraging to see that FREE NOW has launched a specific booking option for greener vehicles. I hope that it will encourage more people to think about the environment and air quality in this city when choosing their mode of transport. Sustainable mobility must be a priority for Dublin as we emerge from lockdown.” FREE NOW has the eco booking option in several European markets already - in London over 40% of taxi trips are done in eco vehicles.

Trust is the new corporate currency says findings from global research Global research by integrated services provider Sodexo and Harris Interactive has shown that trust is the new corporate currency. Despite some concerns over personal and family health, the research showed that over 8 out of 10 respondents are confident their organisations will create a safe environment once they return to work. 65% said communications from their employer were good or very good during the pandemic and 64% felt well-informed about how to work effectively in terms of conducting meetings and safety precautions in the workplace. The survey, which focused on worklife after lockdown, conducted 4,824 online interviews with working adults, in both the private and public sectors, during the Covid-19 pandemic, across France, UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, USA, Australia, China, during June 2020. 79% of employees working remotely during lockdown wanted the option to continue doing so to some degree. Despite this, there are significant drawbacks to virtual work that can have a negative impact on business at large. The research cited lack of social interaction as the top drawback with difficulty collaborating as a team in second place. Going back to a more "normal" life, mentioned by 53% of respondents, and interacting with their co-workers (45%) are the main reasons that have or will make employees happy when returning to the workplace. Along with the prevailing safety protocols, such as antibacterial gel and physical distances, 87% said regular, published audit reports of the various safety and cleaning processes in their company would make them feel even safer. 17

When asked to what extent the pandemic had changed their expectations of their employer in terms of sustainability, almost half (49%) declared having higher expectations about air quality in workplace, followed by environmental protection (46%), responsible waste management (44%) and using local suppliers (42%). David Fox, managing director, Corporate Services, Sodexo Ireland, said: “Clearly the way in which we work is changing because of Covid-19. It’s vital that organisations understand and respond to the new demands on their workplaces and teams, to rethink employee experience and address their concerns. “We are helping our clients adapt to these new demands and this research enables employers to understand how employees feel about workplaces and their attitudes towards a hybrid model of working both in the office and remotely. Our experts can provide advice on adapting offices spaces to ensure appropriate distancing, on enhanced cleaning and disinfection procedures, and on providing healthy, nutritious meal options in the workplace.”

Over the last few months Sodexo has been working closely with its clients to support them as they develop new workplace strategies. Its ‘rise with Sodexo’ programme offers a comprehensive step by step strategy to ensure sites can operate safely and in line with social distancing measures, and that employees are supported whether they are returning to the office or continuing to work from home. The ‘rise with Sodexo’ programme includes standards and protocols that have been clinically informed by Sodexo’s Medical Advisory Council and have been independently verified by Bureau Veritas to provide certified assurances to our clients and those we serve that we have taken proper measures to ensure the environment is safe.

Sodexo Ireland is part of the global Sodexo Group, a world leader in delivering services that improve the quality of life to clients in business and industry, education, financial, pharma and healthcare. These include food services, infrastructure build, facilities and estate management, optimising the workplace experience, wellness experiences, personal and homecare services. Sodexo employs approximately 3,700 people in over 230 locations in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

This research is helping Sodexo to support its clients, helping them effectively lead teams into the next normal. Taking extracts from the research, Sodexo has published a ‘Thriving in the Worklife Evolution: Insights for Adaptive Leaders’ to help leaders find answers and shape solutions to navigate new challenges in an agile and adaptable way. David Fox added: “At Sodexo, our mission is to support organisations to help their employees thrive. As we live through the ongoing impacts of Covid-19, we’re supporting our clients to manage disruption and plan for positive change. We will continue to work closely with our clients to help them instil confidence and manage potential anxiety among the workforce and help set a positive course for the new normal.”

An Irish Bordeaux The Chateau Puynard story is one of following a passion to continue to create great wine along with a love for the Bordeaux region of Blaye. With experience in the retail wine trade in London, we embarked on this cross-water adventure in partnership with Naomi’s father, Eugene. In 2016, after exchanging keys on the 18th-century Chateau in the village of Berson, our family began the journey to make quality Bordeaux wine. Led here after several hypothetical discussions of ‘what ifs’, we have overcome steep learning curves and gained an enormous respect for the land and it’s vines, after leaving our urban life in London. Following plenty of hard graft and significant effort, it has now become a healthy serving of mental and physical stimulation, reward and satisfaction. Through organic viticulture and improved farming techniques, Chateau Puynard is dedicated to crafting wine from the right bank of Bordeaux that reflect the vineyards in which they are grown. We focus on Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, two grapes that reveal the geography and geology of the Right Bank clay and limestone. The Chateau has had a seven-generation history of winemaking before us, and we carry this legacy into the future with our commitment to the environment. Since November 2017, all our vineyards are in the process of achieving organic certification by Ecocert. The goal is to grow the healthiest grapes the land will give us, in order to create the best wines that we can, that speak of the Blaye region.

CHÂTEAU PUYNARD 'TRADITION' Overview Our older vines in this blend, of 35-years, benefit from having deep roots - resulting in dark berries, ripe tannins and fresh acidity. In the winery, the grapes are macerated on their skins from 28 days, and carefully transferred to temperature controlled vats for fermentation. The free-run wine is then aged in stainless steel vats without oak to promote the excellent fruit quality. The blend is 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, with plenty of red and blue fruit, balanced by good acidity. 19

CHĂ&#x201A;TEAU PUYNARD 'THE STEPS' Overview The Steps grapes are sourced from our 2-hectare, clay-limestone soils. Carefully hand-picking our grapes in small crates from 35 year old vines, we then sort the grapes once they are in the winery. The grapes are then cold soaked for 3 days and further macerated for 28 days to extract the excellent colour of the berries. For 15 months, 70% of the wine is fermented in new French oak, the remainder in vat, to give structure to a wine with excellent volume, chewy tannins and a long finish - finally giving us an elegant and well balanced wine.

CHĂ&#x201A;TEAU PUYNARD PRESTIGE Overview From 40 year old vines, this is our best expression of the quality Cabernet Sauvignon from our clay-limestone vineyards in Berson, on the right bank of Bordeaux. A blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot, the ripe and rich fruit is well-matched to the time it spends in 100% new French oak. This in turn allows us a wine that is rich but with good acidity and tannic structure. The intensity of the fruit and quality of the tannins allows this wine to be drunk now or age for 5 to 8 years for further development. Only 1200 bottles produced.

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