Did you know that Ruinart were the first champagne house to ship rosé champagne back in 1764? That fact was only recently discovered by the house when the was doing a bit of research into their archives. Although Veuve Clicquot was the first to do an assemblage rosé back in 1880, Ruinart was the first to ship a rosé champagne in...
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Comedy enthusiasts and wine lovers alike might remember the film ‘Sideways’, the tale of two wine lovers on a stag weekend. No doubt the part that sticks in their memory is one of the lead characters voicing an angry refusal to drink Merlot. Naturally, the film won’t have done any favours for this dry, red wine. Who knows, a lot of...
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A few weeks ago I was in Champagne and paid a visit to the House of Laurent-Perrier. I always enjoy cellar visits but the ones in Champagne I especially like because they are usually carved out of chalk and full of all that lovely champagne! The cellars of Laurent Perrier snake beneath the House for 10 kms and encompass not only...
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Every time I go to Champagne, I discover yet another interesting producer. This time while visiting my friend Caro (who lives in Hautvillers), she suggested we visit small biodynamic producer, Champagne Charlot-Tanneux. The winemaker of Charlot, Vincent, is marked as one of the up and coming winemakers of Champagne so I was...
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Walking up to the House of Champagne Ayala, I was struck by the ornate and grandiose facade of the winery. Built after the 1911 Champagne riots, the winery is where everything happens at Ayala. Ayala can claim that they are one of the few houses where all the production occurs under one roof, from pressing to packaging, it’s...
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A few years ago, ultra brut champagne was all the rage and then it quietly fell off the radar and I hadn’t heard much since then. However, last night I was re-introduced to the pleasures of Laurent-Perrier’s zero dosage champagne (as well as Laurent-Perrier’s prestige cuvees) at The Westbury in Mayfair....
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A few years ago I visited the Barber Farmhouse on a press trip as part of a bigger trip to the West Country. I remember being impressed by the combination of modern technology within the traditions of cheesemaking that had been handed down through the generations. You can read about my visit here. I really enjoyed the 1833 Vintage...
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One of the main perks of blogging, aside from all the fantastic wines I get to taste on an almost daily basis, is the fact that I get to visit so many amazing places. So you can imagine how delighted I was when American Express and Starwood Hotels and Resorts asked me if I would like to take part in their Starwood Preferred Guest...
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Seems like this time of year everyone is detoxing so in the spirit, ahem, of January, I’m posting an alternative for all of you doing the detox this month, courtesy of Zeo. I’ll see you detoxers in February! Is the current trend for soft drinks here to stay? Alcoholic beverages are a key component of modern life....
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I don’t exactly remember the first time I tried tokaji but I’m pretty sure it was a Disznoko tokaji as that’s the name that most sticks in my mind whenever I think of tokaji. Tokaji comes from Hungary and is made from grapes that have been left on the vine for as long as possible. This results in botrytis which...
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