Octavian Hosts The Spectator wine Club

Octavian, the West Country company that, for the past 30 years, has set the standard for fine wine storage, recently held a unique cellar tour, tasting and ‘bring your own bottle’ lunch for eight intrepid Spectator readers, hosted by the magazine’s drinks editor, Jonathan Ray, Master of Wine, Sarah Abbot and Octavian’s Managing Director, Vincent O’Brien.

“It was an amazing ‘away match’ for us,” said Ray. “This was the latest edition of our BYOB lunch. It started in 2020 during Covid and it’s gone from strength to strength.”

The event was ‘unique’ because the lunch was held over 30 meters underground in Octavian’s famous tunnelled vaults, formerly a limestone mine and later a MOD munitions depot, during which time the ducting, perfect for wine storage, was created.

The area is still classified as a mine, so the guests were given a safety briefing, donned hi-vis vests and a carried a ventilator, creating a whole new take on the art of accessorising.

Before lunch, they were given a guided tour of the vaults where some of the most sought after wines on the planet are stored and where the latest storage protocols demonstrated, just why Octavian has rewritten the rule book on how to store wine.

It was an opportunity for Octavian to show wine lovers the importance of humidity, temperature, ventilation, light and vibration, security, and last but not least insurance. “We want to narrow the perception gap between logistics and the enjoyment of drinking and collecting fine wine and rare spirits,” explained O’Brien. “This Spectator BYOB lunch has done that and I hope the collaboration will live long in the memory.”

All agreed the menu was a triumph. It included smoked mackerel, duck rillettes, pea and ricotta bruschetta, smoked salmon, short rib and sticky toffee pudding. But, as always with the BYOB events, it was the wines that were stars of a show made even more special by the spectacular setting.

“Our members bring bottles that mean something,” explained Ray. “Often it is wine with emotional or familial connections, spanning generations. It’s not about bragging rights; it’s about stories and what made this tasting so memorable were the talking points created by the wines that were present.”

They included a Domaine Dujac left to a member by his father; a rare white Chateau Musar from 1999 that was a perfect counterbalance to a 2016 Royal Tokaji Essencia. There was a magnum of non-vintage Ruinart, courtesy of Octavian, and a Gusborne Brut Reserve which ignited debate on the virtues of English wine. Octavian also donated a 2004 Barolo Cannubi Boschis, Lucianon Sandrone and a 2006 Domaine de Vieux Télégraphe, Châteauneuf du Pape La Crau, all of which delighted the palate and inspired discussion.

“We ended with the Tokaji,” said Ray. “We supped from our teaspoons, it was so thick and gloopy. It took seven years to ferment and was truly delicious. Apparently it’s an aphrodisiac and a reviver of the dead, which, come to think of it, is the same thing!”

The full line up on October 10, 2025
NV Ruinart Blanc de Blancs, Champagne
2013 Gusbourne Brut Reserve, Late Disgorged, Kent
1999 Chateau Musar Blanc, Bekaa Valley
2014 Domaine Dujac Morey-Saint-Denis, Premier Cru, Mont Luisants
2023 Caballo Oscuro, Aragon
2020 Marsannay Les Favières, Burgundy
2019 Savigny-Lès-Beaune, Burgundy
2014 Domaine Dujac Premier Cru
2015 Les Fiefes de Lagrange, Saint-Julien
2009 Carruades de Lafite, Pauillac
2004 Barolo Cannubi Boschis, Lucianon Sandrone
2006 Domaine de Vieux Télégraphe, Châteauneuf du Pape La Crau
2016 Château Suduiraut, Premier Cru Classé, Sauternes
2016 Royal Tokaji Essencia, Tokaj

Michael Karam is a journalist, editor and wine writer. He is the author of Wines of Lebanon and a contributor to Jancis Robinson’s Oxford Companion to Wine and The World Atlas of Wine