An Evening of Wine and Crime with Wine Expert Olly Smith

We’re all set to uncork the most irresistible crime novel of 2026!

Britain’s favourite Wine Expert invites you to join him as he tells us all about his wine-themed debut novel featuring protagonist Barclay Flint and his friends from The Bottle Bank wine shop. It’s an exuberant and irresistible mystery from vibrant personality and BBC One’s Saturday Kitchen Presenter – Olly Smith.

And where better to host this event than Farsley’s fabulous wine bar – Cargo Wines.

About the Book

In an idyllic Sussex town, renowned for its annual Bonfire Night celebrations, murder is fermenting.

Barclay Flint is the charmingly eccentric proprietor of The Bottle Bank and can taste a kaleidoscopic universe in a single glass of wine. He delights in matching customers to the grapes of their dreams. But when his close friend, struggling vineyard owner Victor Crawshaw, is found dead, Barclay finds himself a prime suspect. To crack the case and clear his name, Barclay must deploy his wine detection skills and follow his nose through the rolling Sussex hills where a tangle of old resentments and rivalries awaits to ensnare him.

With a killer on the loose and Bonfire Night fast approaching, the town crackles with anticipation. This year the fireworks might not be the only things to explode…

About Olly Smith

Olly started his career as a screenwriter. He wrote on several series of Pingu, won a Golden Award of Montreux for Charlie and Lola, contributed to Wallace & Gromit and penned episodes of Meg & Mog and Horrid Henry!

In 2005 he won Wine Idol which launched him into the world of TV presenting. In 2006 he became a presenter on BBC1’s Saturday Kitchen, where we see him every other weekend interviewing celebrities, reviewing cookbooks and, of course, telling us about the most exciting wines in his uniquely joyous and memorable style.

Death by Noir is his debut novel and he’s currently at work on the second book in the Bottle Bank series.