Daniel Li (CavesMaître France), Robert Parker and Pancho Campo MW
Hong Kong November 2011
Mr Li and his CavesMaître appear to have been ditched
Pancho Campo@WineFuture HK and his major sponsor: CavesMaître (the Chinese Castel)
Today Harpers
'Wine & Spirit Trade Review' has published a 'news report' entitled Pancho Campo
looks outside wine after ‘disgusting attacks'. The 'article' covers Campo's move away from wine and on the events company called Chrand
Management (Corporate Incentives and Events Management, SL).
Pancho Campo MW alleges in the article that 'disgusting attacks' on him and his close family have driven him away, at least in part, from wine. Campo has previously claimed that his children suffered attacks and harassment. If this is correct, then I would could condemn such behaviour as strongly as Campo does himself.
If, however, Campo is widening 'disgusting attacks' to cover 'Campogate' and the way that he and The Wine Academy of Spain organised Jay Miller's Spanish visits for The Wine Advocate then I would reject this as spin. If Campo thought my various posts on Jim's Loire were 'disgusting' rather than fair comment, he could have carried out his threat to sue. Campo claimed on decanter.com 8th December 2011) 'that he would continue his legal action against Jim Budd'.
If he is indeed continuing 'his legal action' Campo and his lawyers are being extraordinarily discreet as I have not to date received any communication from either Campo or his lawyers.
Following Jay Miller's retirement from the Wine Advocate, Campo has decided he needs to broaden his portfolio away from just wine and return to promoting the sorts of events that he used to promote in Dubai and before that in Spain.
According to Harpers 'Specialist
lifestyle events company Chrand
Management has bought the Wine Academy of Spain to help run a
series of consumer events featuring gastronomy, sport, wine and culture.'
Unfortunately Chrand Management's website makes no mention of when the company
was founded nor who its directors are or nor whether it has had any existence
independent of Pancho Campo MW and The Wine Academy of Spain. As far as I can
see all its history and the events portrayed on the website
relate to Campo. A Google search on Chrand Management brings up no past history. Chrand Management would appear to be a recently formed vehicle to rebrand
Campo – Charade Management SL, perhaps? Certainly this would be a more memorable name.
Campo is certainly a director of Chrand and appears to still be Presidente of The Wine Academy:
Chrand Management shares the same address as The Wine Academy of Spain:El Rosario 2, Edificio VidaRed Planta Baja, Local 1 - 29620 Marbella – Málaga.
It is notable
that under Chrand's 'the clients'
section' – 'Our events have been sponsored by some of the most
prestigious international brands' – there is no mention of Daniel Li and
CavesMaître (The Chinese Castel), although Mr Li's CavesMaître was a major
sponsor of WineFuture HK only last November.
'The scope of activities will surprise you' tweet (20th March 2012)
+ Chrand Management joined Facebook on 16th March (2012)
Their scope may have surprised Roger Waters:
Doubtless Waters may have noticed that Campo is no longer claiming to have promoted a Pink Floyd concert in Dubai, a venue they never played. He might be surprised at the possibility that Chrand Management might have been responsible for the whole of Waters' 'In the Flesh Tour' – 'one of the events we managed and promoted'. The 'In the Flesh Tour' involved at total of 105 concerts over 1999, 2000 and 2002. I suspect Campo meant that he promoted one of these concerts: on April 15th 2002 at the Golf & Yacht Club in Dubai. Although it is an achievement to have put on one of the these concerts even if it represents less than 1% of the events.
One of Chrand management's claimed successes is Vinoble: 'Vinoble 2010
The Wine Academy managed the 2011* edition
of Vinoble, the world´s most important fair for sweet, dessert and fortified
wines. It was held in Jerez, Spain in May 2010.'
The bi-annual Vinoble was founded in 1998 and there were six editions before Campo and The Wine Academy took over the running of the 2010 edition. The 2012 edition has now been cancelled.
I'm reminded of an old Who classic:
