What people say

This is a brief compilation of recent comments about us, our wine school, our events and work in general. Further testimonials can also be found on individual wine school pages (eg Back to Basics, Bespoke).

In the media

‘What a household’ Jancis Robinson OBE MW, www.jancisrobinson.com

‘the power couple of the UK wine scene’ Oddbins

‘Award-winning wine duo’ The Mirror

‘the dynamic husband-and-wife MW partnership’ Drinks Business interview with peter & susie

Susy Atkins gave us a nice mention in her wine pages in Delicious magazine (April 2011)

Joanna Simon in House & Garden (March 2011): ‘Winchester Wine School was opened last year by Susie Barrie and Peter Richards, the wine world’s youngest married Masters of Wine. They are now taking bookings for their spring courses and events, such as Back to Basics, a 90-minute fast-track session of tasting and tuition, including six wines, aroma phials and – more serious than it sounds – jelly beans to illustrate the difference between taste and flavour.’

Chilean wine magazine La Cav printed an interview with ‘Mister’ Peter in the January 2011 edition of their magazine, calling him a ‘great white hope of the British wine press’. Click here to read a pdf of this interview

Another interview in Chile’s respected broadsheet El Mercurio hails Peter as a ‘the highly regarded British critic who knows the most about Chilean wines’.

On the grapevine

‘The Winchester Wine School, run by two of the nicest MWs you could ever meet!’ (Master Sommelier Ronan Sayburn on Twitter)

‘If you love wine then follow @wineschools [Susie & Peter]. Legends and the best in the business.’ (tweet by Laila Rouass, actress and keen amateur cook)

‘We do commend to you the new Winchester Wine School. This has been set up by the energetic, highly knowledgeable pair of Susie Barrie, Master of Wine, journalist and broadcaster, and her husband Peter Richards, author of an excellent recent book, The Wines of Chile.’ (Stone Vine & Sun wine merchants)

‘Your website is great. It has to be one of the best I’ve seen for either wine education or a wine ‘personality’. Well done!’ (Christine Parkinson, Group Wine Buyer, Hakkasan)

‘the superman of vino’ (tweet by actor Jimi Mistry about Peter at the BBC Good Food Show 2011)

‘inspired’ (chef Vivek Singh applauds our work on Saturday Kitchen via twitter)

On our events

‘Thank you for doing a brilliant job’ (Susie & Peter at the BBC Good Food Show 2011, Supertheatre & Saturday Kitchen theatre)

‘An absolute delight – thank you!’ (Harvest at Eden, 2012)

‘Huge thanks for what was a most impressive event – everyone who was there has raved about it since! We’ve had so much positive feedback.’ (Wines of Chile, 2012)

‘Excellent job [...] wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Peter or use him again.’ (Santa Rita Estates inaugural South American Wine Workshop, January 2012)

‘Your sessions were fantastic, the visitors really enjoyed them and I received great feedback about you and your sessions from the organisers and the visitors. It was a great pleasure to have you there.’ (Spirit of Christmas wine theatre)

On our bespoke wine tastings

‘Can’t thank you enough – the event was such a success. You did fantastically engaging and entertaining our guests, the client was really happy. We couldn’t have expected better.’ (M&C Saatchi event for DSG, 2011)

‘Superb… Your presentation was brilliant and managed to combine effortless erudition with great personal charm. You can add another 36 members to your fan club. At the end of the evening every member said to me that they had had a wonderful evening and thought you were great [...] it certainly ranks as one of our best tastings in the 28-year club history.’ (Chiltern Wine Club, 2012)

‘Thank you Susie and Peter! An excellent evening delivered with panache. It ticked all the boxes.’ ‘Great evening – such fun.  Very entertaining and exactly what we were after.  The wines were delicious… Thanks again, Peter and Susie, for a really memorable evening.’ (Bond Pearce LLP, private event 2011)

‘Truly professional and, if I may say so, a joy to work with!’ Lee Walton, Chairman, Associated Services (ITCA Nice 2011)

‘It’s always a joy having you in Holland – we’ve only received positive reaction from your event.’ (Jean Arnaud, Holland, 2012)

‘A fantastic success.  You captivated the audience with your stories and extensive knowledge of wine and its ability to be paired with everyday meals and fine dining to create a memorable occasion.  You hosted the dinners with energetic charm and wit, helping to make the evenings both educational and enjoyable.” (Jason Duggan, Diablo Supper Club)

‘Absolutely brilliant: your informal, invigorating style was just perfect’ (tasting participant, ITCA Nice 2011)

“Fantastic work…there was a huge buzz about the room. You managed to impart your passion for wines, your humour and your depth of knowledge and fully engaged the audience. We have already received very positive feedback on the event and our clients will benefit from the proceeds of the evening and from the raised profile of the organisation.” (West London Action for Children, charity tasting)

‘Thank you so much for delivering a great evening for us again. It really is a joy having you on board at our events which you always make so successful. By the way some of the journalists there had been invited to another event but they choose ours instead – which is testament to you guys.’ (Sandstrom event 2012)

‘It was a most enjoyable evening and those who attended have expressed nothing but praise about your contribution (…) the passion that you have for wine was evident to all that were present.’ (Terry Pennington, Gilbeys of Ireland)

‘Had a great time’; ‘Light-hearted but still informative and interesting’; ‘Set at a perfect level’; ‘Relaxed and instructive’ (Capita, bespoke event)

‘What wine tasting? I don’t remember a thing…’ (Adrian, satisfied customer, private event)

On our Wine School tastings

‘Well worth flying in from other continents’ (Brendan, 2011)

‘I love your events, which get more enjoyable each time. You and Susie are really smashing hosts, with a way of presenting your specialist subject which makes it mouth-wateringly exciting.’ (Rose, 2012)

‘A truly enjoyable, enlightening and memorable evening.’ (Peter and Jill, 2012)

‘Thanks for such a lovely evening – I have been to wine tasting events before and they were so boring in comparison! I really enjoyed it, and look forward to reading the newsletter and spreading the word of your events around!’ (Louise, 2011)

‘Thank you both very much for a brilliant evening (…) As usual with you two, a super mix of the serious educational bit and good fun.’ (Paul, 2012)

‘Excellent evening: very much enjoyed it. I can safely say that I learnt more from you both on that evening, than on all my previous wine tasting events put together.’ (Sean, 2010)

‘We couldn’t have enjoyed ourselves more! I came away having had my senses awakened…the evening was informative, fresh and pure enjoyment – the time went by so quickly’ (Robina, 2010)

‘Thanks for a lovely evening – me and the guys had a great night and we actually learned something! We will definitely be attending the next event and will join [the wine club] asap so we are kept up to date with what’s happening in the wine world.’ (Gary, 2011)

‘Thank you for a memorable evening, being introduced to some magnificent wines in a very pleasant and straightforward way. My children chose right for my birthday present!’ (Rafael, 2012)

‘I really enjoyed having my taste buds and brain challenged: it was great fun. You were both excellent hosts and your infectious enthusiasm made it a lovely day.’ (Moya, 2010)

‘Raved about it – so enjoyable and informative’ (Nicola, 2011)

‘Just finished my back 2 basics course with @wineschools. A fantastic evening! Great atmosphere, learnt loads, highly recommend, really good!’ (Tweet by @VictoriaKennard, 2010)

‘Fabulous…I really think you have something special going – such a great idea for a wine school, great place, great teaching. I’ll recommend it thoroughly to everyone.’ (Victoria, 2010)