who is Tom Cannavan?

my perfect day would begin with…

A stroll to my favourite Italian café, to drink good coffee whilst Italian radio burbles in the background, and I perch on a stool at the window watching the world go by.

the most beautiful wine region I've visited is…

Very tough. Contenders have to include the South African Cape, the Douro in Portugal, around Central Otago in New Zealand and the villages of Alsace. But then there's the Okanagen in Canada, the rolling hills of Napa, and the stark beauty of the Andes at Mendoza in Argentina. I have to pick one? Stellenbosch in South Africa. Maybe.

if I wasn't a wine writer I'd be a…

A university teacher probably, as that's the career I gave up to write about wine. In a more romantic life, maybe a professional musician or recording engineer. I do a weekly TV show in Scotland that is really good fun, but I don't know if I'd like it as a full-time career.

the last bottle of wine I drank (not just tasted) was…

Combe Aux Jacques 2009 Beaujolais Villages - terrific stuff that is wonderfully fresh, aromatic and structured, but deliciously soft and easy to drink too.

my favourite restaurant(s) is/are…

So tough. In Scotland, Braidwoods in Dalry, Martin Wishart in Edinburgh and The Peat Inn, Fife. In London, Le Gavroche, The Square, Texture, Marcus Waering, Tate Modern cafe, Pizza Express on Coptic Street. Worldwide? French Laundry in Napa, Per Se in New York, El Celler de Can Rocca in Girona, Tetsuya's in Sydney, Reubens in Franschhoek, Moulin du Roc in Périgord, Simply Foch in Majorca. I'm hungry.

my cellar is mostly composed of…

Lots of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhône and Champagne. All pretty classic in terms of my long-term cellar, though there are all sorts of bits and pieces: some serious Argentine Malbecs, lots of sweet wines from around the world, some top-end Australian, German, Italian and Spanish stuff.

if you were coming for dinner I'd cook…

In winter, something slow-cooked and easy so we can enjoy each other's company. Maybe a venison casserole or daube of beef. In summer, probably fish. Maybe some halibut or seabass.

and to drink with it I would serve…

Something I'd match pretty carefully. I like to treat wine loving friends to the best stuff from my cellar; why buy it otherwise?

and other dinner party guests would be…

In a surreal (and somewhat scary) fantasy world, Björk, Antony Hegarty, Stephen Fry and James Gandolfini. In the real world, a regular list of friends and family.

my biggest blind-tasting faux pas was…

Ooooh, let me think. I called a Californian Chardonnay as "a good wine, spoiled by too much oak" at a tasting recently, then spun the bottle round to see it was unoaked (but had far too much malo and lees stirring!)

the blind-tasting moment I would prefer to concentrate on was…

It's always a great feeling when you home in on a specific wine and vintage, which happens very rarely. Recently I correctly called Sean Thackrey's 1994 Orion in a blind tasting, a wine I've tasted many times over the years and which, in truth, is very distinctive.

one thing that might surprise you about me is…

I was once in a band, a long, long (long) time ago, that reached number four in the NME Indie charts.

if I was a winemaker I'd make my wines in…

I'd love to rave on about terroir, which of course is at the heart of truly great wine, but in reality my priority would be somewhere with great weather, where English is spoken, where it's safe and beautiful and capable of making very fine wine. That leaves lots of choice, so I'd maybe try my hand at making a great Pinot Noir in Oregon, the Yarra Valley or Martinborough.

other than wine, I have a secret passion for…

Well there's more than one, from cars and wristwatches, to cooking and quality craft beers. I'll plump for Charbonnel and Walker's Marc de Champagne truffles if anyone's buying however.

my favourite holiday destination is…

I love the west coast of the USA for the contrasts and dramatic scenery, and driving and eating my way though France is still one of the great pleasures in life. We visited Majorca for the first time recently and despite rubbish weather, the scenery and food and wine scene was brilliant.

I think restaurant mark-ups on wine are…

Best when applied as a fixed cash margin. Just a few places understand that if they stick a £12 mark-up on a bottle of house plonk, but also stick £12 on a bottle of Grand Cru Burgundy, they'll sell more good wine, make as much money on every bottle, and an awful lot of people will drink better and have a better overall experience.

the best movie or TV show of all time is…

TV has had flashes of brilliance in recent years, almost entirely due to American drama series. I'll split my nomination between The Sopranos and The West Wing.

in Summer in the garden I'd drink…

Really well-chilled Riesling from Germany, Australia or Austria depending on my mood. Maybe the occasional Framboise Belgian beer.

my favourite piece of music would have to be…

Another impossible question. God Save the Queen by the Pistols? Jumping Someone Else's Train by The Cure? Rebel Rebel by David Bowie? You are my Sister by Antony and the Johnsons? Manhattan by Ella Fitzgerald? Song from Under the Floorboards by Magazine? If forced to pick one right now: Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten by Arvo Pärt. Almost unbearably beautiful.

my best bottle of wine ever was probably…

The 1989 Haut-Brion, drunk on the terrace of a restaurant outside Marseilles on a beautiful mid-summer evening. But it could all change with my next bottle...

Tim Atkin • Ant Rose • Jo Simon • Olly Smith