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Tom Jarvis
I have nearly two decades of wine trade experience, selling wine in the specialist multiple, supermarket and independent sectors, running wine events and tutoring at several colleges and for my own wine events company. In 2009 I set up the award-winning independent merchant Bottle Apostle with owners Andrew Eakin and Naomi Murtagh, and worked there until January 2013, when I took a mid-career break and travelled to New Zealand to study for a Graduate Diploma in Viticulture and Oenology at Lincoln University. After spending a few gloriously tiring months amongst the vines at Misha's Vineyard in Central Otago, during 2014 I worked in Sales and Marketing for Stanley Estates in the Awatere Valley and Bellbird Spring of Waipara. In January 2015 I headed to Auckland to commence my current post with wine-searcher.com I am a keen hiker and (less frequent) mountain biker, and since 2016 have been taking photography more seriously. Since I write about wine 9-5, Monday to Friday for my employer Wine-Searcher, I have decided to replace my old wine-focussed blog www.atomic-wine.com with this photography-based site where the blog will contain posts on a range of interests. In due course I intend to make photographs available for sale. Tom Jarvis BA (Hons), MA in History, Lancaster University, UK PGCE in Further and Adult Education, The Bolton Institute, UK WSET Diploma in Wines and Spirits (2001) Grad Dip in Viticulture and Oenology, Lincoln University (2013)
14.1.18 [Picture credit: altrarunning.com] Over the New Year I hiked the 81-kilometer Heaphy Track on New Zealand's South Island (see upcoming post). I knew I wanted a shoe with plenty of underfoot cushioning for stony trails where the bottom of my feet would take the big hits, and no waterproof lining so my feet could keep cool and the shoe would dry quickly after river crossings and (if I got caught out by the tide) wading in the sea. My normal go-to brand for non-alpine footwear is Keen, but I could find nothing in New Zealand without a waterproof lining. So I took the plunge To View More >>
13.11.17 Château Clerc Milon 2005 should be a fairly classic example of red Bordeaux wine. This Pauillac property, ranked as a Fifth Growth in the 1855 Classification, languished in obscurity until becoming part of the Baron Philippe de Rothschild stable in 1970. It now has a strong reputation for often portrayed as a lighter sibling of Mouton. This 12 year-old from a great vintage is, on paper, a solid buying proposition, ready to drink but with another 8 or more years of life in it. the 2005 Clerc Milon is generally rated as the best example for many vintages, and is a blend To View More >>
16.7.17 A couple of Wednesdays ago myself and five colleagues attended a very special customer tasting at Glengarry Wines' Victoria Park branch in Auckland. We were tasting 8 white Bordeaux wines, six of which were in what I would call the affordable-on-special-ocasions category - with five of these being from the Pessac-Léognan appellation. The two others were Y d'Yquem, a more established luxury classic, and a new Vin de France from Château Palmer - both at prices which will forever be beyond me. Ch. Olivier Blanc 2014 Pessac-Léognan (NZ$49.99) Very pale colour To View More >>
9.7.17 Hello! Welcome to my new blog. Previously I posted sporadically on wine at atomic-wine.com, and had a gallery website dedicated to my photography. I have now decided to combine the two on this new site, which should soon feature a section where I can sell some of my images. Working 9-5 as a writer for wine-searcher.com, I now find it hard to knuckle down to also post regularly about wine in my free time, therefore this blog will also feature photography, hiking, travel and any other topics which take my fancy. To View More >>