6am-7.30am
I usually just wake up whenever the alarm goes off (or the kids jump on us – B is 11 and J is 9). Then we make packed lunches and put the coffee on. The day will not start without it and I’m currently researching new blends with coffee roaster Mr Eion.
8.30am
The kids are off to school and I get into WineKraft around 9am. More coffee, from our neighbours Di Giorgio at Canonmills, and I settle in behind the computer screen to catch up on admin.
10am
At the moment, I will normally be doing a stock run over to the Neighbourgood Market in Stockbridge. We fly through Chin Chin Vinho Verde and need to keep the punters happy. Tuesdays tend to be all about filming for our YouTube Channel with the amazingly talented Ladislav from Piljar Photography. How he makes me look presentable I will never know. We rattle through two to three videos.
12pm
I drop into Good Brothers to chat with the chef, try some new dishes for lunch and catch up with our manager, Sanni. Then I meet the team at IJ Mellis about our cheese supplies before returning to WineKraft. If we are not bickering, I will call my business partner and youngest brother, Rory, to see how his baby, wine shop and bar, Little Rascal, is doing. I know it is Corstorphine folks, but it is a real hidden gem.
2pm
The afternoon is usually filled with range tastings of new products from our suppliers, as well as planning. Our ethos with all of our products is to work with real people and small-scale farmers who have sustainability at heart. We have a few exciting projects on the go, one being our Good Brothers Wine Agencies business and another a spirits brand agency which we are starting up. More to follow at a later date.
5pm
It’s variable at the moment but outside of Covid times I would normally frequent one of the following for a drink or dinner (if the wife is up for it). I'm a fan of Bon Vivant or El Cartel, both on Thistle Street, drinks at The Register Club, pints at Hamilton’s in Stockbridge, date night at Number One at The Balmoral, Spry or The Little Chartroom, or even a night away (from the kids) at the amazing bolthole, Monachyle Mhor (probably one of the best hotels in the country and its owner, Tom, is a legend). If not wining and dining, my wife, Monica, and I normally work until around 10pm. Then it is a very large glass of wine and some IJ Mellis cheese (research again).
Midnight
It’s about time for bed, unless the Netflix/Amazon/other service provider series is really that good, then we might stay up until 1am. We generally regret that in the morning though.
Good Brothers wine bar have recently expanded with the launch of WineKraft in Canonmills, Edinburgh, www.winekraft.co.uk
