The majority of wines spend most of their lives in a bottle, but what happens to it there is a cross between a chemistry project and a Harry potter film – part science, part magic. Some weeks ago our annual shipment of samples from that most exalted of wine...
With gruesome headlines of antisocial behaviour and the 2008 budget looming with its inherent guesswork and predictions, I thought this week I would turn to one of the Treasury’s favourite social infringements – the nation’s consumption of alcohol. As cabinet...
My last article illustrated the raft of global events conspiring to push wine prices upwards. My thesis was that wines of quality could not be judged solely by price. I was much encouraged by how many readers contacted me to seek answers to the some of the following...
‘Tis the season to …. pass the Port. This somewhat arcane practice has many popular explanations, the oldest being by way of self defence in that if you passed the Port decanter in your left hand and in a clockwise direction, you would keep your sword arm...
I had to pop across to the Loire recently to sample a set of new vintages on offer. The flight was inordinately early on a Tuesday and flying back late on the Wednesday, which meant spending more time on motorways, lounges and planes than in vineyards and French...
