Rising Stars

Manager Leo Bruton-Simmonds has clearly enjoyed watching James Percy’s career flourish over the past year. “Seeing someone develop their practical and tasting knowledge and all that sort of stuff is cool,” he says.

“What’s interesting about James was that although this was his first job in the trade, he’d already done his wine exams at home, at a young age. He obviously had a real interest, but it was all kind of technical – he hadn’t put it into practice.”

Leo is delighted that James is hosting tastings in the shop and taking on some buying responsibility as well as building up the beer range. “It’s definitely a testament to the fact that I trust him to do things in a methodical, organised way. You can’t do that unless you’re interested in the thing you’re buying, and you’re excited about what you can bring into the shop. I’ve been doing all the buying for years now, so it’s always great when you give someone else these tasks.

“We generally try and spread tastings out among the team. James has been to quite a few recently, and he’s someone whose opinion I trust on what’s good and what he thinks might work in the shop. There have been a few wines that have been his choices which have appeared on the shelves, which is really nice,” Leo adds.

James says that until 2020 he was “going down the drama and acting route” before he embarked on his WSETs during lockdown. “I was sort of sat twiddling my thumbs, and I thought I’d love to learn a bit more about wine and get some qualifications and use this time productively. That got the ball rolling for me, and then I fell further and deeper in love with wine.”

After completing WSET Level 3, James worked a vintage in Ventoux. “That was an epiphany moment, really,” he says.

Now he is wholeheartedly throwing himself into his retail career. He says: “I’m slowly gaining new responsibilities and it’s really lovely to have that trust from Leo.

“I really get a buzz from seeing the positive reactions the customers have to wines or beers that I have helped choose for the shop. We have customers of all ages coming in and, to use a cliché, it does keep you on your

James Percy

The Salusbury Winestore Queens Park, London

toes a bit, because you never know who’s going to walk through the door.

“You can go from selling a really robust red to a really light white within the space of five minutes. You’ve got to switch your brain up quickly to then make these recommendations for people. And I love it.”

There’s no doubt that James feels at home in his new career, perhaps because he grew up around wine: his father worked in sales for a wine wholesaler. “He’s never pushed me to go down a certain route in my life, but he is proud now that I’m in the wine industry because he knows how wonderful the trade is,” he says. “I’m just glad I got into it at a fairly young age, so I can maximise my time in it.”

Would James return to acting if, say, Barbara Broccoli came calling? Would he swap wine for a shaken-notstirred martini?

“A tough decision! But I do feel like I’ve kind of found the trade that I really love, and I do see myself being in it for a long time. It’s something that I do feel incredibly comfortable in.”

James wins a bottle of Herdade do Esporão

Private Selection Red 2016

If you’d like to nominate a Rising Star, email claire@winemerchantmag.com

Esporão is one of the largest and most respected winemakers in Portugal, making wines in three of the most iconic regions; Alentejo, the Douro and Vinho Verde.

The family-owned company is also a leading advocate for environmental sustainability. Its efforts have been recognised by the Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e Porto (IVDP), which presented its Quinta dos Murças with the 2020 Environment & Sustainability Award.

Esporão was established in 1973 by José Roquette and Joaquim Bandeira.

UK market manager Pedro Vieira says: “This project was strictly aimed at producing quality wines. At the time, Alentejo wasn’t known for that, so it was a huge challenge. Now, with the second generation [José’s son, João Roquette, is at the helm], our goal is still to produce the best possible wine but in a sustainable way. When João started in 2006, we converted to organics.”

Both the Alentejo and Douro properties are certified organic and the team are still working towards achieving certification at the Lima estate in Vinho Verde.

“Producing organic fruit is one of the many measures of being sustainable,” says Vieira. “Organic farming makes a lot of sense because organic fruit is healthier fruit and it will produce better wine.