I attended a tasting earlier this week that featured the portfolio of wines distributed by Inverarity Vaults, a merchant that specialises in supplying the upper end of the Scottish and UK restaurant trade with fine wines. Amongst an array of interesting wines on show, was a name that was new to me, and turned out to have a fascinating story behind it.

Adamas

Meaning 'diamond' in ancient Greek, Adamas is a brand new Burgundy label. That in itself is noteworthy, as new names in this ultra-traditional region are pretty rare, but even more intriguing, the man behind Adamas is not only British, but lives in a small country town in a remote corner of Scotland - as far removed from the slopes of the Côte d'Or as it is possible to imagine.

Englishman Dan Connolly (pictured top right) is co-owner and founder of a négociant business called 'The New Alliance,' operating from the small town of Cupar in Fife. The New Alliance's first project is the creation of the Adamas brand. Connolly's partner in the business is Burgundian Manoël Bouchet (pictured bottom right), who operates out of Beaune, the city at the centre of the Burgundy wine trade. It was in Beaune that the seed of the New Alliance concept was sowed, but the story of Connolly and Bouchet's friendship begins in neutral territory, on the pitches of Hong Kong's rugby league, where the two played for rival teams when their respective careers took them to the Orient. Three years later, their love of rugby brought them together again, but this time on a field in the city of Beaune. Their shared passion for wine and rugby led to the creation of Burgundy's first Anglo-French négociant.

Connolly goes on, "For example, our two entry level wines emphasise that they are 'Chardonnay' and 'Pinot Noir' on their labels rather than 'Bourgogne Blanc' and 'Noir', and though they are totally authentic vintage Burgundy wines, we have moved the vintage date to the back label. At this level, I do not believe most consumers know, or really care much about vintage, but they do know and care about quality and consistency, and that's what we believe we can give them." I tasted six of Adamas' initial release of eight wines, each in that striking minimalist packaging (though AOC rules dictate no grapes can be mentioned on the front labels of the Village-level wine and above). Connolly would not reveal the domaines that were the sources for these wines, but the quality was generally high, though for me the 'basic' Chardonnay in the whites, and the Nuits St Georges in the reds, where the stars of the line-up in terms of quality to price ratio. Adamas is a welcome new name, shining that light on the sometimes obscure world of Burgundy. I wish them every success.

Initially, sales of Adamas are mainly through restaurants, but there are retail listings with independent merchants, and more being added all the time. Peter Green in Edinburgh and The Tasting Rooms in Dundee have just been added as this article was published. Prices range from around £9.00 to over £20.00. Stockists are listed on www.adamaswines.com.