On Thursday, I had a leisure day in Hamburg. I met with Christos Kokkalis at lunch time and we strolled around the city, had coffee, and as always talked a lot about Greek wines. Late afternoon I received a call from Mario Scheuermann, who asked if I could provide him with some more Greek wines, as he had enjoyed the tasting so much.

In the evening we met again with the lovely Sommelier couple Dagmar Willich and Rene Baumgart. We were in for a treat, as they had organised a table with a great view in the Carls Brasserie, the newest member of the Jacob dynasty. What a great setting this place has – our table was perfectly located to enjoy the views of the harbour and the Elbphilharmony. The food was delicious, and the conversation was flowing easily. Both Dagmar and Rene are such friendly, knowledgeable, and interesting people, I am really glad to have met them.

Friday morning I drove to Mario Scheuermann and provided him with another 6 Greek wines. After this, I had an appointment with a wine importer. I had a very fruitful discussion, and I left 30 labels there, from which a selection will be presented by me in August. It was time to make my way back to Siegen. There was heavy traffic and the drive took nearly 7 hours. On Saturday morning I took the plane from Duesseldorf to Athens, ready to tackle the workload that expected me there. It still amazes me how quickly work can pile up!