The Hermit Ram - wild beast of Canterbury
Theo Coles makes naked, stripped down wines in Canterbury, New Zealand which use skin fermentation to achieve magical ends.
We're a funny lot, us humans. A never-ending quest for perfection, for bigger, better, louder, smoother, longer, finer occupies an industry of technologists and scientists on a fulltime basis. Fashion-shoots can be airbrushed to high-gloss that will never exist, films are bionically enhanced with CGI, haute cuisine utilises phials of dry ice to transform raw ingredients into unrecognisable filigree, musicians and singers are autotuned for otherworldly pitch accuracy.
Yet simultaneously we crave experiences that are more raw or visceral, without the photoshopping or the frippery. We love the gritty veritas of movies made with handheld cameras. We talk about musicians going back to their roots, being "unplugged", or so good they don't need studio trickery. Airbrushing in fashion photography isn't just divisive, it's becoming a political act. Now we want "authentic" street-food, "dirty" eats rather than tweezered flower petals or multi-coloured splots in a half-moon. Michelin is old-fashi…
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