WHO?

Only in Italy would these images be possible. Carabinieri enjoying 2007 Barolo and a young sommelier writing her tasting notes and opinion on the 2007 Chianti Classico's in Castellin in Chianti.

Wine Boy loves F1, wine, Italy, food, film and travel. I tasted my first wine in Ibiza in 1974. I grew up in a family that rarely consumed alcohol; I remember seeing my father, after cutting the lawn, drink a beer, that was the first and only time. He died 4 years later. I drink a lot more than he would ever dream of drinking, most of it good, some of it bad and some of it really good. Back to Ibiza. I slept on a boat in the harbour until I met the '2 German girls'. They had an apartment and I had the money. We dined at the same restaurant every night, zarzuela, paella, a million different tapas. Coca-cola was 65 cents a glass, wine was $1.50 a bottle. The first thing I did when I arrived back home? Make paella for my family. I cleaned and gutted the squid, bought the best rice available at that time, Uncle Bens Converted, added sausage, chicken and mussels. They hated it.

To this day I have to admit I love Spain almost as much as I love Italy and German girls.

I came back with a voracious appetite for wine.

I wanted to know everything and it gave me an excuse to travel. I'd work at some menial job until I had enough money to return to Europe. I would visit as many winegrowers in a specific region as possible and taste at every opportunity. I wanted to be as passionate as Gerard Depardieu bathing his hands and face in the freshly pressed juice of a Chenin Blanc from his Château de Tigné in Anjou.

I remember speaking with Paul Pontallier of Chateau Margaux after his return from a trip to North America, he said ' Why does everything in North America have to be so big, big homes, big cars, big wines and big breasts.' I couldn't agree more.

Wine is lfe, it loosens the palate, encourages conversation, makes food taste better and it's a hell of a lot cheaper to buy a bottle of Chianti Classico than travel there. It just may not taste as good!

But Wine Boy is not about one person, it's a collaboration, like a Fellini film or a fantastic recipe, each of us at Wine Boy and the farms we work with add a spice or an element to create a wonderful and unique portfolio of wines with heart and soul.

Why Wine Boy? Well, the various wine stores I worked at would receive calls throughout the day from customers asking if Wine Boy was working that day.