Recent Posts
Last Autumn, I visited the region of Navarra in Spain. Navarra is a bit off the beaten path except for the annual St. Fermin festival, better known as The Running of the Bulls, which takes place through the streets of the capital of the region, Pamplona. Pamplona has a lovely Palacio in the main square as well as great medieval...
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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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I’ve tried a few Israeli wines in the past and have always found them interesting and even a bit provocative, so my curiosity was piqued when Lueria wines offered to send me a few samples to try. The Lueria vineyards have been supplying grapes to some of the best producers in Israel for years but it was only in 2006 that they...
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I know I posted not long ago that I was only going to do one obligatory Valentine’s Day post but there seems to be soooo much love in the air, that I’ve decided to do another one. There’s so much hype and pressure around Valentine’s Day that honestly, you’ll need a glass of wine just to get through the day, never mind through...
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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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In a previous post, I told you all about the American Express Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card and all the wonderful things that you can use your Starpoints for – such as hotel stays, flights, experiences, merchandise,etc. Well, AmEx and Starwood decided to really show me what you can do with Starpoints and that’s...
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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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