Sergio Verrillo moved to the United Kingdom from the United States for love. Once he was here, he got a job as a junior sommelier in a Gordon Ramsay restaurant and developed an equally passionate and enduring relationship with wine. Working out of the urban Blackbook winery in London, he’s now making some of the best still reds and whites in England. We talked about his Italian relatives, Essex terroir, why he hates Bacchus and the story behind his “I’d Rather Be A Rebel” label.

To read more about Sergio’s wines, look at the Blackbook Winery website. You can also follow him on Instagram @blackbookwinery.

Don’t forget, Cork Talk is now available on Spotify as well as on my website. You can listen to this week’s episode, plus my back catalogue of interviews with some of the world’s most extraordinary wine figures.