Meet the FromVineyardsDirect Team
David was introduced to wine publishing in the late '70s and early '80s as International Sales Director at Mitchell Beazley, where Hugh Johnson's Wine Atlas and Pocket Wine Book, and Michael Broadbent's Great Vintage Wine were best-sellers. As international publisher of Hachette in Paris (1982-90), he invented the Guide Hachette des Vins, France's No. 1-selling wine book.
In 1991, he revived the Everyman’s Library, of which he remains publisher. Since then, it has released more than 600 titles, selling more than 25 million books. In 2007 David was awarded France’s highest honour, the Légion d’Honneur.
Having co-founded Majestic Wine over forty years ago, Esme helped revolutionise wine buying in the UK. By introducing a warehouse format with young, energetic staff selling a cosmopolitan range of wines, his shared formula’s success was as immediate as its spread was rapid. In 1989, Johnstone sold his interest in the company and relocated to Château de Sours in Bordeaux where he was instrumental in producing critically acclaimed wines that also featured ‘probably the best rosé in the world’.
Email: esme@fromvineyardsdirect.com
