James Suckling Returns To Miami With A Retrospective Tasting

Since leaving Wine Spectator more than a decade ago, wine critic James Suckling has shown both trade and consumers that events continue to make a bigger impression than reviews alone. It’s something that he said he learned from the Beastie Boys when I interviewed him some years ago in San Francisco. These events clearly make money and give consumers and the trade access to some pretty stunning wines.

The two days of tastings on February 29th and March 1st featured 350 producers from 50 wine regions. This was the second time that Suckling has hosted this event in Miami and is a pretty good sign of this growing metropolis’ influence on the wine world.

I had a chance to speak to both Suckling, and some of the producers, who poured at the recent event. While he has hosted many jam-packed tastings in evolved wine towns such as NYC and SF he discussed a bit why he has chosen to focus on Miami recently. All his responses, as well as those of producers, have been edited and condensed for clarity.

South Florida was a little under the radar, he noted. It is also the de facto capital of South America and one of the top five wine markets in the U.S. The very Latin consumer base of the City clearly had lots of local wines made in Spanish-speaking countries to enjoy at this tasting.

Suckling has extensively covered the wines of South America for years, and Chile and Argentina had impressive showings at this tasting. Spain also retains a big space at these tastings. Italian wines are generally heavily represented by Tuscany and Piedmonte and both the Right and Left Banks of Bordeaux were very much in the house those two days. I wish there had been more wines from lesser-known areas of France and Italy.

What the Producers Say

Suckling’s events generally have a hip vibe with live music and DJs and this one was no exception. They also tend to attract many industry professionals so they don’t turn into drunk fests. Also the ticket prices tend to be fairly reasonable, at $100+ a ticket, given the quality of the wines.

Rodrigo Soto, the estate director for California label Quintessa, said he likes the energy of the tastings and the quality of the other producers who are pouring beside him. He adds that the tastings generally welcome a mix of both wine-savvy consumers and trade. Jean-Guillaume Prats, of Leoville Las Cases says that he enjoys the capacity to engage with consumers and professionals in a room that has plenty of oxygen.

Suckling both creates and shares passion, notes Giorgia Armanelli, the export marketing specialist for Berlucchi, an Italian Franciacorta brand. The event is really well organized, with a great selection of producers, adds Loredan Gasparini of the Azienda Agricola Conte Loredan Gasparini. Next up is a tasting in NYC on June 5th and 6th at The Glasshouse.