Special Wines mainly sells wine from female winemakers

Special Wines mainly sells wine from female winemakers

Following the launch of the international website www.specialwines.com in 2020, a pop-up shop on Stadionplein opposite Joris Bijdendijk's restaurant Wils and lots of enthusiastic customers at Corona time, wine entrepreneur Frederik Boer (37) will open his first own wine shop with wine garden on Wednesday 2 June at Marathonweg 15 in Amsterdam-Zuid. In this 80 m2 property, Boer combines his love of female wine with the art of Geoffrey Wine and disco music. Bring it on!

Disco

"Most wine merchants are classic, but I would describe us as disco," says Frederik Boer. For the past 10 years, he and his girlfriend Dana have been making wine tours of southern Europe, then just for fun.

Farmer: "The entrepreneur in me thought, I want to sell a product that is super sexy. And that has always been in front of me! Only I only saw it later and made my passion my job. We sell wines from young, swinging winemakers who produce too little to be picked up by the big boys."

Art

According to the likeable wine merchant, buying wine should be as much fun as drinking it. "I still see a lot of stuffy shops where there's an older specialist who immediately starts asking what your budget is. That is not what we want to represent. At our place, you will find a relaxed atmosphere, culinary art on the wall by Geoffrey Wine and get an honest story from some 30 winemakers.

Silvia Gonzales

"What typifies our houses are female winemakers. I like elegance in taste and refined wines. You taste that back. Wines made by men are often very explosive, very powerful. Women make wines behind the decimal point. With soft tannins, nicely drinkable, without going in all directions."

Some 15 brands Special Wines imports itself, including the El Canto de la Alondra (2019) from Ribera del Duero by Silvia Gonzales. She is a personally committed wine producer who mothers the Temperanillo grapes like her own children and works the land herself. Farmer: "The result is sultry, sensual and challenging. Ribera del Duero is in the heart of Spain, where it is 50 °C during the day and freezing at night. Those grapes get a huge beating. It is very difficult to make elegant wine from them and yet it has succeeded. You taste a fresh, lively, supple wine that you should drink young and that pairs excellently with vegetarian dishes from Mediterranean cuisine. Happiness in a glass really does exist."

Cecilia Monte

In Italy, business is booming for showstopper Cecilia Monte because of her Giulia Negri's soft, butteryChardonnay La Tartufaia has been sold out for weeks. The petite, petite winemaker runs the 150-year-old family vineyard like a quirky star rising globally.

"We work with importers who really supply top houses. As a result, we also supply restaurants, such as Toscanini in the Jordaan district and a large resort group in Austria, where I myself still worked as manager."

Champagne

"To finish it off, champagne, our best running product, should not be missing. We have the best champagne in the world, the Arlaux. That was rated best in 2020 by none other than the American supreme god of wine critics Robert Parker, with his own scoring system, which arguably causes wine sales to fall or rise. That man sometimes tastes 100 wines in a day. Nowhere else for sale, we are the only wine shop that has it. It is my best-selling product so far. Such a bottle costs 39.95 euros.

We also sell the house aperitif of two-star restaurant 't Nonnetje in Harderwijk. That is the Blanc de Blanc, a bubble wine from Portugal at 14.50 euros a bottle, made by Louis Pato: Portugal's most eccentric winemaker. You really can't get your hands on that one at the moment. It is the very best you can buy at the moment because of its natural fermentation. You don't always have to sell expensive stuff, it's also nice to have something fantastic at the lower end of the market too."

Wine garden

n Special Wines' courtyard garden at Marathonweg 15 in Amsterdam will also host tastings and courses from its opening on Wednesday 2 June. For more information, check the website. Of course, like Nespresso, you can just walk in to taste a glass of wine. "Wine is fun and easy, that's what we want to convey," Boer concludes. "Feel free to drop by."

 

Don't want to miss a single edition? Subscribe then subscribe to Winelife Magazine now!

Want to stay up to date with the best articles? Follow Winelife magazine on Instagram, Facebook and sign up for our fortnightly newsletter.

en_GBEnglish (UK)