The Tim Atkin Cork Talk Podcast

Cork Talk with Philip Cox

Since he arrived in the country in 1991, Philip Cox has transformed the image of Romanian wine. Having first tried his hand at selling beer, he bought a run-down winery and 600 hectares of vineyards and hasn’t looked back. Today, his company – Cramele Recas – sells more than 30 million litres, using international as well as local grapes. He’s an outspoken innovator and entrepreneur, who has always believed in listening to consumers first.

To read more about Philip have a look at the Cramele Recas website. You can also follow the winery on Instagram @cramelerecaseu.

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures. 

Cork Talk with Barbara Banke

Barbara Banke of Jackson Family Estates has been described as the most significant woman in the world of wine. Originally a Supreme Court lawyer, she switched her attention full-time to the wine business in 2011, when her husband, Jess Jackson, passed away. Our fascinating discussion covered land prices, climate change, horse breeding, what she terms “creative anarchy”, and the genesis of Kendall Jackson’s Vintner’s Reserve Chardonnay.

To read more about Barbara have a look at the Jackson Family Wines website. You can also follow the winery on Instagram @jacksonfamilywines.

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures. 

Cork Talk with László Mészáros

After the fall of the Berlin Wall, László Mészáros took an Interrail holiday around western Europe and fell in love with wine. After further studies in France, he returned to the Tokaj region in his native Hungary in 1995 and has been at Disznókö ever since. Our chat covered the fascinating history of this famous area, as well as its soil types, grape varieties, vineyard classification and the secrets of its amazing botrytis-affected wines, known locally as aszú.

To read more about László have a look at the Disznókö website. You can also follow the winery on Instagram @disznokotokaj.

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures. 

Cork Talk with Bruwer Raats

Bruwer Raats decided on a policy of “excellence through specialisation” when he set up his own project, Raats Family Wines, in 2000, focusing on what were two unfashionable grapes at the time: Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc. Our discussion covers the unique, granite-based terroir of the Polkadraai Hills, what he learnt from long lunches in Tuscany, how he created the iconic MR de Compostella and his honorary status as a “semi-petrol head”.

To read more about Bruwer have a look at the Raats Family Wines' website. You can also follow him and on Instagram @bruwer_raats.

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures. 

Cork Talk with Zelma Long

One dubbed "Miss Oblivious" because of her single-minded focus, Zelma Long has had a remarkable 50-year career as a winemaker on three continents. Our chat covered her early years as a dietician, the pioneering work that she did alongside the legendary Robert Mondavi in the 1970s, her successful decision to invest in South Africa with her husband viticulturist Phil Freese, her interest in Native American art and why wine is an opportunity to do other things. 

To read more about Zelma have a look at the Vilafonté website. 

Cork Talk with Natalie Christensen

Natalie Christensen of Yealands originally wanted to compose film scores or be a music therapist, but after what she calls a “quarter life crisis” in HR, she got a harvest job in a winery and it changed her life. Listen to us chat about her time in Galicia making Albariño, her love of Sauvignon Blanc, the lay of the land in Marlborough, the appeal of colourful clothing and why machine harvesting gets an unfairly bad press.

To read more about Natalie have a look at the Yealands website. You can also follow her and her colourful wardrobe on Instagram @natchristensenwine. 

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures. 

Cork Talk with Wojciech Bońkowski MW

Wojciech Bońkowski is Poland’s first Master of Wine and something of a polymath who speaks five languages and has a PhD in musicology, specialising in Chopin. I caught up with him to chat about his country’s dynamic wine industry, his weakness for strange and unknown regions, his predilection for white wines over reds, why smart practice is the way to improve as a taster and the similarities between tea and wine.

To read more about Wojciech have a look at his website. You can also follow him on Instagram @bonkowskimw. 

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures. 

Cork Talk with Jon Bonné

Jon Bonné started out as news journalist, writing about politics and the airline industry before falling in love with wine, where he made his name covering the California wine industry for the San Francisco Chronicle. I caught up with Jon to talk about his remarkable new book, The New French Wine, discussing terroir, appellations and what he calls the “simmering revolution” that’s changing the world’s greatest wine culture.

To read more about Jon have a look at his website. You can also follow him on Instagram @jbonne.

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures. 

Cork Talk with Steve Webber

Steve Webber may have earned his winemaking stripes at Leo Buring and Lindemans, but he’s best known for what he’s achieved with De Bortoli in the Yarra Valley over the last 34 years. A passionate Francophile as well as a proud Australian, he’s long championed elegance and finesse in wine – something especially evident in his Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs. Wine, he says, should be a source of joy as well as a job.

To read more about Steve have a look at the De Bortoli website. You can also follow the estate on Instagram @debortoliyarravalley.

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures. 

Cork Talk with Maxence Dulou

Born and brought up in Bordeaux’s Entre Deux Mers regions, Maxence Dulou got the travel bug after university, working in Chile and South Africa. But neither compared with the challenges of his current job at Ao Yun in the remote, high altitude Chinese province of Yunan. Listen to us chat about how luxury goods’ firm ended up in such a special place, who planted the first vines and why and the country’s potential to produce fine wines.

To read more about Maxence have a look at the Ao Yun website. You can also follow the estate on Instagram @aoyun_official.

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures.