Wine Shop Talk (IV): Lluís Bassat

Lluís Bassat is one of the leading advertising executives in Spain. Best known for his creativity, winning campaigns and passion for the Barça football club, he is also an acknowledged wine lover and foodie.

He can't conceive of gastronomy without wine, “because it plays an absolutely essential role. What you eat is as important as what you drink, and wine truly adds to the taste experience of food.” This has been his position ever since he joined the first executive council of the Catalan Academy of Gastronomy, founded in 1989.

Bassat enjoys traditional wines as much as their new and innovative counterparts. “Sometimes I'll drink classic wines and sometimes I'll try noteworthy newcomers. I admit that I'm brand-focused, because this provides me with a certain degree of assurance. However, the first thing I consider when choosing wine is food pairing—knowing what I will be eating with it. I almost always pick a red although I do prefer whites with certain fish or seafood. I only go for the food-and-wine pairing option on a tasting menu if I know and trust the restaurant.”

“I usually give wines a second chance, but not a third. Image is very important in this regard, and the way wine is currently advertised can clearly be improved upon. The image of wine has evolved a great deal, but the same can't be said for its advertising.”

Alright then—if you made wine, how would you sell it? “If I had my own wine, I would like to see it described as honest and improving with every year. The highest compliment, however, would be if people drank it and gave it as a gift.”

He regularly buys wine at Bouquet d'Aromes, a shop on Carrer Loreto in Barcelona, where the staff “always” provides excellent advice. “When I'm at my house in Sant Andreu de Llavaneres, I go to the Montserrat wine shop in Mataró.”

When it comes to Bodegas Torres, he has nothing but praise. “I still believe that there are lots of brands, but few wineries. In the case of Torres, I also happen to know the family for whom I feel great respect and affection.”

By Gastronomistas.