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| Mark Pardoe, wine director of Berry Bros. & Rudd, poses with a glass of wine and bottles of Barolo, Nero d'Abola and Montelpulciano d'Abruzzo from The Wine Merchant's range at the Marriott Hotel in Seoul, Tuesday. / Courtesy of Homeplus |
An official wine supplier to the British Royal Family, BB&R is an established family-run wine and spirits merchant which has 321 years of history and tradition.
Since the company first launched its wine selection in partnership with Homeplus in 2017, it has rolled out 20 types of wines from Spain, France, Italy and the U.K. under the brand name of The Wine Merchant's.
Unlike other Asian countries, such as Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore, where the wine merchant opened separate offices, BB&R chose to partner with Homeplus to offer wines to Korean consumers at affordable price range.
"Our ambition when entering into Korean market was to find ways of making the new market become more aware of our name," said Mark Pardoe, wine director of BB&R.
"In order to do that, we had to find right partner that understands BB&R, which represents traditional, authentic wine."
He shared his general impression about the Korean wine market and consumers, citing that Koreans have higher demand for sweet wines compared with Europeans. .
"Korea is an interesting market for us because the culture of drinking wine is just beginning. Yet Korean consumers are so eager to learn about wine. They're very open-minded," Pardoe said.
The three types of wines to be launched in September are Barolo, Nero d'Abola and Montelpulciano d'Abruzzo.
"The new selection was requested by Homeplus as a result of market research. They were confident about the success because the three types are already familiar to Korean customers," he said.
"Our job was to find examples of wines and add more traditional, authentic tastes to differentiate them from other varieties."
According to Pardoe, BB&R's wines have a greater richness, complexity and intensity of flavor.
When asked about further changes in wine offerings in Korea, the wine master said they plan to exclude Chateauneuf-du-Pape, a high-end wine, from their selection because the cost of the premium wine has gone up.
"Personally, I'd like to give credit to Homeplus for keeping an open mindedness to think about how they can offer premium wines to their customers and better position themselves in the market," he said.
Founded in London in 1698, BB&R has grown into an international business from a small shop. It sells the finest wines, such as "en primeur" from places such as Bordeaux, Burgundy, the Rhone and from Italy, as well as wines and spirits under its own-label.
The company also offers services, including wine investment, storage and tastings, and events and educational courses. It has hired six masters of wine, more than any other company in the world.
