SOMA VINES: Crossing Borders

We re-crossed paths with Daisy Merrick, a UK-born somm turned Berlin wine importer turned cross-border winemaker, both under the SOMA VINES label, recently at the Natural Wine Mystics fair in Sweden, after a few years from our first encounter. I was really charmed by the energy of their wines as well as the the vibe between her and her partner in life and wine, Antoine Lucchesi – they really come across as a great duo!

Together, Daisy and Antoine have settled in Hackenheim in the Rheinhessen wine region where they work on 4 hectares of rented vines growing mostly on limestone and red sandstone. Intrigued by their obvious passion and its tasty result, I asked Daisy to tell me more about their life story.

Words by Milan Nestarec & Lucie Kohoutová / Photos courtesy of SOMA VINES

I know that you got into wine through hospitality – was it a gradual journey or more like one particular pivotal moment?

One evening, while serving a table, I was asked which wine would best complement the guests' meal. Unable to provide a confident answer, I realised I wanted to deepen my knowledge of wine to enhance the dining experience for my customers. This led me to the WSET school in London, where I dedicated the next few years to studying wine, ultimately achieving Level 3 Advanced certification. I worked for Majestic Wine Retailers in Norwich and London – the company encouraged its employees to pursue their WSET certifications and provided numerous educational tastings, trainings, and incredible incentives to visit winemakers. It was an amazing place to work, where I learned a great deal.

Later, I had the opportunity to move to New York and work at Chambers Street Wines which introduced me to natural wines and old vintage cellar bottles – I was really fortunate to have great mentors and to taste many extraordinary wines.

You then returned back to Europe and founded SOMA VINES in Berlin, how did that happen?

I moved to Berlin to be closer to my family. I wanted to continue developing my knowledge of natural wine, but at the time, there were very few options in the city. I frequently visited JAJA for their amazing selection of bottles to go, which eventually led to a stint working there and at Rocket Wine.

With an entrepreneurial spirit, I took a big leap in 2018 and started my own import business. My focus was on finding wines that weren't yet represented in Germany and were produced with low intervention and little to no sulfites, mostly from France, Italy, and Hungary.

And how did you meet Antoine and start your own label?

Antoine and I met in 2019 when he was working for Philippe Brand in Alsace, just as I had started importing Philippe's wines to Germany. Since Philippe didn't speak English at the time, Antoine translated all the information about the wines for me. In 2020, we became a couple and created our first wine together, "Crossing Borders Pet Nat," at Philippe's winery.

With Antoine's background in viticulture and oenology – he studied in Alsace and worked for different wineries across Germany and France – and my experience as a sommelier, it was a natural fit for us to launch a winemaking project together.

You are originally from the UK and Antoine's from the South of France, why did you land in Germany?

I wanted to stay in Germany to continue running my import business, and we were fortunate to be offered the opportunity to share Andi Mann's cellar in Eckelsheim, in Rheinland-Pfalz, where we produced our 2021 and 2022 vintages. Since 2023, we have been making wine at our place in Hackenheim.

I have to ask about this huge new wave of natural wine in Germany. I have tasted so many great wines from winemakers from Germany lately and it truly makes me happy. I remember that Germany used to be more conservative when it comes to natural winemaking, would you say it is a generational change? Or something else?

The younger generation is stepping up and driving change. While the industry as a whole is still largely conventional, it's encouraging to see that more members of the older generation are beginning to embrace organic farming practices, marking a positive shift.

You're part of a tree-planting project in Madagascar, which you finance from the bottles sold at Soma Vines, which I find amazing – how did that happen?

Importing and producing wine involves significant carbon emissions due to all the transport. This was a concern for me and I wanted to find a way to offset our environmental impact. A friend in the UK introduced me to Ecologi, a project that now plants a tree for every sale made through the SOMA VINES website. Inspired by this idea, we set up an account in 2021 and have since planted over 4,000 trees in Madagascar.

I also really like your labels and their artwork. Who is their author and what is the story behind them?

My sister, Lilly Winter, designed the labels for us. We aimed to create artwork that captured and conveyed the lively spirit of our wines and the essence of our community. We wanted the design to be distinctive and evocative, ensuring that even if our wines were displayed individually on store shelves, they would still be instantly recognisable.

How many new projects do you have in mind now? What are you working on and where are your goals for the next few years?

It's important to dream big, so we're constantly discussing new ideas. Our next major goal is to acquire a property with a cellar and land, where we can establish strong roots and create a lasting legacy for future generations.

You work in the vineyards and in the cellar with low intervention – what is the crucial moment in the journey of wine for you?

We approach winemaking with the goal of producing 0/0 wines. Over time, it has become increasingly clear how much patience is required to present the wines at their perfect moment. Starting the winery from scratch, we sometimes face challenges in holding onto stock until it is ready for sale, as we need to generate revenue to fund the upcoming harvest. Throughout the year, we make many critical decisions, but the most significant one is often, "Are we financially positioned to harvest this year?”

Which wines do you like to drink? Do you remember one particular wine that changed your perception of the world of wine? I think we all have one.

We both have a deep appreciation for sparkling wine, but it was the Pinot Gris maceration from Philippe Brand that truly transformed my perspective. I first tasted it at Chambers Street Wines in New York, and it was a key factor in my decision to begin importing Philippe’s wines two years later. For Antoine, it was the Clos Cristal 2014 that changed his perception.

What is the future of wine according to you? Not just for natural wine, but in general.

This question comes at a particularly challenging time, with the market in decline due to economic recession, global trade issues, and ongoing conflicts. If current trends persist, we may unfortunately see many businesses closing. While wine production has increased, demand has not kept pace, prompting many winemakers to lower their prices to remain competitive. Despite these challenges, we remain hopeful that conditions will improve in the future.

And my classic final question – do you think that wine is art and should be perceived as such? Or is it just a drink that moistens our throats?

Wine can indeed be considered a form of art. Like art, winemaking involves creativity, skill, and personal expression and it's great that we can also moisten our throats with it [laughs].