Tastoria in the Press

James Booth is, like his concept, a mix of old and new, displaying a strong preference for fine wines from established European regions with a forward-looking technology-driven business sense.  His taste for all things fine, vinous and French stems from a student exchange with the Remy family, of Domaine Louis Remy in Morey St Denis.  Later, during a degree in Drench and Management, Booth spent time working with Jean0-Marc Brocard in Chablis.

At his parents’ insistence he out his vinous interests to one side, albeit briefly, to focus on a career as a merchant banker.  That began in 1993, although he still found time to co-found a private wine club called the SS Wine Society.

He then launched grape-juice in 2002, a fine wine buying service for friends and City colleagues.  He left the City in 2003, then in August 2005 grape-juice merged with Domaine Gayda and a little later, having met a BBC producer with a web-based seminar business, he came up with the idea of a live web tasting.  Virtual Wine was launched in September 2005.

The Drinks Business magazine, by Patrick Schmitt, Issue 44, March 2006, page 57