Tom Fahey: ‘Looking Back, Forging Ahead’

By Harpers Editorial team

Published: 02 September, 2026

Another on-trade innovator features in our annual summer Q&A series. Tom Fahey, sommelier and chef patron at The Terrace Rooms & Wine, details the success of his new wholesale arm, the challenges of negotiating the Isle of Wight’s quiet off-season and why he is listing dark rosés as chilled reds.

How has business been for you in the first half of 2026 and how do things compare to where you were last year?

Retail and drink-in turnover down by about 25% but wholesale up over 200%. Room revenue is 33% higher.

What are you most proud of achieving this year in terms of driving the business forward?

We’ve basically built a wholesale wine business from scratch on the Isle of Wight, a region where wine lists have changed very little in the last twenty years. We have eight customers and at least eight more in pipeline. In terms of our hotel rooms our biggest achievement has been winning Best UK Rose List for the second year in a row and now being the only Star Wine List Gold Star in the UK outside London. This has generated a lot of custom.

What have been the biggest challenges so far this year and how have you sought to circumvent those?

We are a wine hotel based on the coast in a very seasonal area. Our biggest challenge is always going to be managing the quiet off season against booming high season – especially with the current temperatures driving summer business up. Our PR focus has been on making our town, Ventnor, into a year-round gastronomic destination where we fill the Rooms & Wine slots. We have six really good restaurants within walking distance, we currently operate the wine list at four of them. This approach is led to a lot of national coverage in top titles about both us, the town and the individual restaurants. It’s also led to a much closer collaboration with the tourist board, Visit Isle of Wight.

Looking ahead to the second half of the year, what do you have in the pipeline?

Winning more wholesale accounts. We have a new double-size storage unit and capital to invest following a busy summer. I have some really unique wine lists in the pipeline where I’m try to show that tiny neighbourhood restaurants can do so much more with their offering than the usual identikit on-trade selection. I am also listing more rosé, including some very interesting single-producer verticals which will be unique to a UK wine list if not the world.

What significant or emerging trends are you seeing in the drinks’ world that are likely to have an impact on the future nature of trade?

Well, I’m sure everyone is going to say chilled reds but we’re taking the far more sensible approach of listing dark rosés as chilled reds. Clairette, Tavel, Moschofilero and Navarra Garnacha (all fermented off-skin but with long soaks) will all be on Isle of Wight wine lists as reds in 2026. A very large number of Brits don’t like tannin. Dark rosé has all the flavour and body of a red but none of the tannin. Consumers are just scared of it because they think its sweet. So, my trend is serious dark rosé reinventing itself as light red.

From government, consumers, or the trade itself, what change(s) would you most like to see to help your business and others to thrive?

Lower VAT – give us parity with Europe. The new duty system is a joke that’s lead to a situation where most consumers are unwittingly drinking dealcoholised swill as standard but I think the VAT message is clearer and has wider support.

What fills you with joy and optimism about the drinks world?

The people who work in it. I’ve only been doing this for six years and I am consistently shocked at the level of support and interest I’ve found among my peers.

Any other predictions for the second half of the year?

Burnham will make various populist policy announcements that do absolutely nothing in reality to help the drinks trade.

Quick fire questions…

Burgundy or Bordeaux?

Both

Germany or Greece?

Both

Pet nat or prosecco?

Both

A bottle or by the glass?

Bottle

Whisky, rum, gin or tequila/mezcal (for sipping)?