THE EGGMAN PRESENTS 

RBW is the brand of wines made in Italy by Robin Baum, a specialist winemaker from England. All his wines are matured in ceramic egg shaped vessels, hence the nickname THE EGGMAN.

“The wine world is talking about eggs, egg shaped vessels in which wine is matured. By coincidence I am seen as a pioneer of this method of production.

I started using them 6 years ago in Chianti when I imported 2 Magnum 675 ceramic egg shaped vessels made in the Barossa Valley in Australia into Italy. At the same time I bought 2 cement egg shaped vessels made by Nomblot in Burgundy.

Further research identified producers within Italy and I thought it would be interesting to start a collection and compare Clayver, Sirio and Porcellanea and more recently TAVA. This collection is now housed in the 5 wineries in Italy where I make my portfolio of Italian wines, in Veneto, Chianti (2), Montalcino and on Mount Etna in Sicily. The pyramid of wines identifies these wines.

So why egg shaped? Simply the shape enables better circulation of the juice allowing the various molecules present to interact and better contact with the lees following fermentation in the eggs.

The benefit of the egg shape was only one of the reasons why I chose to make my wines using ceramic egg shaped vessels. I wanted to go back to enhancing the natural flavours of the grape and producing elegant, juicy, fruity wines with long lengths of taste in the mouth. All the vessels I use are porous so you get 2 benefits from this:

1. Natural slow oxidation of the wine, and

2. Natural temperature control, the cool air filters into the wine from the outside of the egg and this cools the inner wine.

Also these vessels are inert and add no flavours to the wine. All the vessels are certified for use by the relevant Food Standards Authority, and all the vineyards with whom I work have adopted organic standards in both their vineyards and winery, and most are certified. Indeed some are certified biodynamic.”

SO WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF REAL NATURAL WINE