Founder – Red Johnson
Red is a UK entrepreneur who has been involved in the food and drink industry for over twenty years. In the 1990’s Red was a producer of food and drink TV programmes working with names such as Gordon Ramsay and Marco Pierre White. In 1999, Red founded foodoo.com, the UK’s first food and drink website alongside the top food names of the day. Latterly, Red ran the BBC’s digital food and drink output. Red founded The British Bottle Company in 2013 believing that there was an opportunity to develop the British drinks market abroad.
Red’s first job was at the (now sadly closed) Ridley’s brewery in Essex where he developed a passion for traditionally made beer. He has worked at wineries in Europe, California and Australia. Red comes from a family steeped in the drinks industry, his father Hugh Johnson is the world’s leading wine writer and his grandfather Antony Grinling was the Managing Director of Gilbey’s Gin. His uncle Jasper Grinling was a passionate advocate of English wine in the early days of the EEC. Red has a strong international network and a burning passion to promote and develop the UK drinks industry to the world.
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER – GABRIEL STONE
A former President of the Oxford University Wine Circle and editor of international trade publication The Drinks Business, Gabby was awarded ‘Emerging Wine Writer of the Year’ in the Louis Roederer International Wine Writers Awards 2011 and has since been a member of its judging panel.
Gabby joined the British Bottle Company in 2015 with responsibility for developing relationships with import partners, as well as working with suppliers to enhance their brand propositions for export. She also works alongside the company’s Advisory Board of leading experts to publish regular trend bulletins for clients worldwide.
LOGISTICS MANAGER – NATALIE BREWER
Natalie has been with The British Bottle Company since May 2017 and is responsible for processing and co-ordinating the logistics of orders, as well as liaising with suppliers, importers and their freight forwarders.
Natalie has a project management and executive administrator background, having previously worked for elite organisations and in the corporate global banking sector. Natalie’s attention to detail, confidence and knowledge of the export processes contributes to the efficient and successful delivery of orders globally.
ADVISORY BOARD
Hugh Johnson
The world’s best selling wine writer, Hugh Johnson has been charting the rise and fall of the world’s wine regions since the 1960s. An early enthusiast of the new wine world of Australia and the USA Hugh is now a firm supporter of the UK’s wine industry
and is working with the British Bottle Company to develop relationships at home and abroad.
Ian Wisniewski
Ian Wisniewski is a freelance writer and consultant specialising in spirits. He is the author of ten books, including Classic Vodka, Classic Malt Whisky and Classic Tequila, and has contributed to various publications, including The Times, The Daily
Telegraph, The Wall Street Journal (Europe), Whisky Magazine and Conde Nast Traveler. He is the chairman of the vodka judges for the International Spirits Challenge, and has judged in various other competitions. A frequent visitor to various distilleries,
he is particularly interested in the production process, as well as social history and current trends.
Pete Brown
Pete Brown is the author of five-and-a-half books as well as the annual Cask Report, and numerous articles in the drinks trade press and consumer press. He appears regularly on TV and radio, and is a judge on the BBC Food and Farming Awards and the
Great Taste Awards. He is a member of the British Guild of Beer Writers, and was named Beer Writer of the Year in 2009 and 2012.
Phil Griffiths
Phil has over twenty years experience as an excise professional, working extensively in both the regulatory and commercial sectors. During nine years at the HMCE Excise Policy Group, Phil was responsible for formulating policy and was involved in the
drafting of excise legislation. He subsequently worked as as an excise consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers, and latterly Senior Manager, Global Excise for Diageo, the world’s largest producer of spirits. Phil advises The British Bottle Company on all
aspects of duty and excise, as well as setting up the systems the company uses to manage its export business.
