BY ANTONIO GALLONI | MAY 25, 2018

“There is no budget,” was the reply from 67 Pall Mall when the London private club’s management asked me to choose wines for a recent master class. Over the years I have led many tastings, but this seminar was especially memorable. Most events are organized around themes of a vintage or producer, but for this masterclass we opted for a totally new concept suggested by Vinous co-founder James Forsyth: ten wines that had a personal significance in shaping my life in wine.

Located in London’s tony St. James’s district, 67 Pall Mall is an oasis for wine lovers who flock to this relatively new but already well-established private club for its extraordinary selection of wines (dozens of which are available by the glass) and events. Our own Cappellano vertical, held the night before, was an enormous success. It was a real privilege to share these extraordinary bottles with the club’s members over several leisurely and very pleasant early evening hours.

The table is set….

When I was a child, my father told me “There are two great wines in the world – Barolo and Champagne.” Little could I have imagined just how powerful those words would turn out to be. In reality, though, I was fortunate to grow up with wine from a very young age. My Sicilian grandfather drank a glass of bulk white wine with half a peach in it at every meal. From him I learned that, at its essence, wine is a part of everyday life and an essential part of the table, as opposed to a collectible. Even now I remember that, for his generation, wine was first and foremost a food - consumed mostly for its caloric content - than the beverage of pleasure it is today. 

My American grandfather had the benefit of an education and enjoyed a successful corporate career that enabled him to taste more ‘important’ wines. He spoke reverentially of La Tâche as an unobtainable beauty reserved only for the privileged few who could afford it. With him I tasted my first Côte-Rôties and Burgundies (Trapet Chambertin). Needless to say, this was well before these wines were considered rare or particularly prestigious in any way.

My parents, Giuseppe and Nanette Galloni 

Later, when I was a teenager, my parents opened a specialty food and wine shop in Sarasota, FL. Today, extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar and imported cheeses (among many products) are easily found throughout the United States. That was hardly the case thirty years ago. The wine section consisted of mostly Italian wines, although my parents also sold a considerable amount of Bordeaux futures. I naturally gravitated to the wine aisle. I was drawn to the labels and wanted to understand what each and every word meant. The wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy were the subjects of my research projects in high school French class. Sensing a growing interest, my parents gave me many books to read. When we went out to dinner, I was handed the wine list and tasked with ordering a bottle for my parents to enjoy (OK, I might have had a taste, but it was for research only… promise). I can’t think of a better education. My parents wanted me to run the family business, but I was a rebellious teenager more interested in girls and guitars, so ultimately I moved to Boston and attended the Berklee College of Music. Of course, it is quite ironic that my career path ultimately led me right back to wine!