It looks like summer is finally going to make an appearance and really not a minute too soon as I was beginning to give up hope. I’ve been drinking rosé wines anyway because I think that rosés can be drunk anytime of year. I say that with the proviso that I like my rosés to be dry with the fruit not too apparent on the...
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I received a few wines from the Spanish winery Pittacum the other day to taste. The Pittacum project started in 1999 in the Bierzo region of Spain, with an emphasis on the mencia variety. The vineyards are comprised of old vines ranging in age from 50- 80 years old and are farmed as organically as possible. 65% of the winery was...
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I do love to get out into the English countryside. Living and working in London, my friends and I are often on the first flight off this island when we have holiday time, dreaming of luxury chalets or beach huts, but there are plenty of wonderful places to visit here. I know I may be sounding like a Visit Britain advert but it is...
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A friend recommended this site to me the other day and I thought it was worth posting about seeing as I’m always saying I should really learn French (and Italian and Portuguese) for my numerous trips abroad. You’d think my French would be pretty good by now! But anyway, the website called babbel.com offers online...
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In this edition of my podcast I had the pleasure of speaking with the legendary Australian winemaker, Brian Croser. Brian, as most of you probably know, started Petaluma Winery in the Adelaide Hills of South Australia in 1976 and sold it in 2001. However, selling Petaluma was a new start for Brian and his wine Anne and after the...
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The next day we had an early start, catching the train to Saumur, a short 45 minute train ride away. The weather was not as nice in the morning but as the day went on it cleared up to be a sunny afternoon. Seriously, when you’re on a bicycle, you don’t want it to be TOO sunny now do you? We headed through the vineyards...
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I tend to go on a fair amount of press trips as a wineblogger and they are all fantastic. I mean who wouldn’t enjoy the chance to visit the winemakers in their own milieu, tasting wines that quite possibly have been resting in the cellars for years or wines that never even leave the estate but are saved for special visitors....
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Not long ago I was invited to Moti Mahal for a Taittinger dinner and was pleasantly surprised by how well champagne went with Indian cuisine. Not long afterwards, I wondered how well Indian food went with other types of wine and so found myself invited back at Moti Mahal to see if it wasn’t just champagne that could stand up...
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Portugal has so many diverse and unknown wine regions that it would be easy to spend a day just talking about all that we don’t know about the country and it’s wines. Sure, everyone knows about the Douro Valley and their justly famous port wines and some may be familiar with Vinho Verde – the light, quaffable,...
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Walking into Massimo’s Restaurant is quite an impressive experience. I was not expecting the high ceilings, supported by striped white and black columns or the polished mahogany wood and leather banquettes, or the cool marble floors gleaming under the art deco inspired sleek chandeliers. In a way, it seemed like the...
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