In the line of what my last In Vino Päritas column was all about, I met up with internet wine dealer Caviste and the man behind it, Martin Berggren, at the wine cellar Grappe for a great tasting and interesting conversation.
Caviste is an independent wine merchant based in both Sweden and France and with a simple yet genius idea – bringing wine straight from the local hand-picked winemakers in France to the customer’s door in Sweden. It was bound to be an instant success, and since its inception in 2011, Martin Berggren and Caviste has featured heavily in the media, a frenzy many others envy.
With a background in economics, Martin spent a few years on the professional poker scene before entering the world of wine. His interest in the juice and the growing of the grapes was sparked by a trip to France with his wine nerd-friends some years ago.
After starting Caviste, there was plenty to sort out, business-wise, produce-wise and logistics-wise. Many hours were spent with his nose buried in the import and excise duty tables and other legal tomes, not to mention seeking out all these producers and smaller local talents. So far, the work has paid off and the selection has been nothing less than a success. And now after about 25 CAV boxes (a box containing six selected bottles) later, the business is thriving.
You just recently entered the wine world, what bottle was the turning point for you and why?
Martin Berggren: It was a 2004 Pouilly-Fumé made by the late Didier Dageneau. My friend and later partner in Caviste, Karl Arbin, brought the bottle to a dinner in 2007 and I still remember exclaiming “So this is what wine is about!.”
What would you say is the main purpose for the philosophy of Caviste?
MB: We have set out to bring artisanal wine producers and the wine consumer closer together. Independently working as the only intermediary directly with both the producers and our customers, we are able to offer a fair pricing policy and perfect knowledge about the wines.
So how does the process work?
MB: When we have made the selection of wines for a CAV-box in collaboration with the winemaker, we set a date for launching the sales on our website. The moment we open the sales a mail is sent to all customers who have registered to notify them that there is a new CAV offer out. Sometimes the offers sell out in a matter of hours and sometimes it is open for a few days. Around three weeks later the CAV-boxes are shipped to Sweden and we make sure that the customers receive their deliveries to their home address shortly after that.
The boxes have been immensely popular and they differ a bit from the idea of other net-based wine dealers here in Sweden. The company is also based in France, how much time do you spend traveling and working from home?
MB: I split my time between France and my home in the south of Stockholm. Our office is located in a beautiful town in Provence where our partner, Yannick Molinari, keep things in order. A lot of my time is spent traveling in the wine regions of France to visit winemakers and to discover new exciting wines. In Stockholm the work is focused around delivering the CAV boxes to our customers.
Is there any specific visit to a winemaker that has moved or excited you more than others?
MB: Experiencing the steep, hard-worked parcels of land that Jérôme Coursodon tills in Saint-Joseph is exciting. I remember asking Jérôme how it’s even possible to work these hills without risking your life, to which he calmly responded: “You need good shoes.”.
How many of these visits you do end up in nothing?
MB: We make sure that the odds are in our favour before committing too much time and effort to a producer. In the early stages there are a lot of hits and misses. When visiting a producer that we already have established a relationship with the success rate is 100 percent.
You have had a major breakthrough in the media with Caviste. Is it only the work you do or is it also your personality that attracts attention?
MB: Caviste represents our personalities and our values about wine. I believe that this, in combination with the honest hard work we put in attracts attention.
After tasting a great selection of the earlier Caviste releases along with a few releases to come, our conversation continues toward our personal relationship to our favourite subject. Martin has had the opportunity to taste a lot of exciting wines in a very short time.
Do you have a personal cellar and are there wines that are not from the CAVseries in your collection?
MB: My private cellar is full of wines that are meant to be kept for a long time. I often choose a Caviste wine when I want to open an honest bottle of wine that does not necessarily require cellaring.
What is the single best wine you have ever had?
MB: 2008 Domaine Coche-Dury Corton-Charlemagne was pretty spectacular.
Words and images by Pär Strömberg
The great selection of wines from Caviste we tasted:
-Vindemio Regain Ventoux 2011
-Coursodon Saint Joseph 2011 L’Olivaie
-Puy Arnaud Thierry Valette Cuvée Pervenche 2012
-Georges Descombes Morgon 2011
-Domaine Labet Les Varrons Cotes du Jura 2010
-Champagne Pehu Simonet Brut Selection
-Les Pions Ludovic Chanson Montlouis sur Loire
For interest in Caviste, please visit, register and order at: www.caviste.se
