Day three began with a brilliant visit with the engaging, smart Rodolphe Péters (above) of Champagne Pierre Peters. He explained that there are three critical elements for him in making…
What are my 12 most popular recent Instagram posts?
I love Instagram. I post pretty much every day, and interact with quite a few folk there (here’s my Instagram account). What’s interesting is looking at which posts get the…
Video: judging the International Wine Challenge 2016
So, here’s a short film from the International Wine Challenge judging earlier this month. This was Tranche 2 (the other being in November) of the 2016 judging, and 200 judges…
Lunch at Terroirs, with the fab Belluard Gringet from Savoie
Had lunch at Terroirs wine bar today with a friend. I haven’t been here for a while, but we were in the neighbourhood, it was just past noon, and the…
In Champagne, day 2: Bruno Paillard, Selosse and Gosset
Day two in Champagne began at Bruno Paillard, someone who I have featured on this site before (here and here). Bruno began with an interesting statement: ‘The true richness of…
In Champagne, Day 1: visiting Vergnon and dinner at Bocal
This Champagne trip started gently, with a weekend in Reims that contained just one vineyard visit: JL Vergnon, in Le Mesnil. We were hosted by Christophe Constant (below), who has…
Le Lude, a new Méthode Cap Classique fizz from South Africa
This is not a Champagne and sparkling wine blog, although if you’ve been scrolling through recent posts you could be forgiven for thinking that it is. It’s just I’ve been…
Grower Champagne focus: the remarkable Gimonnet Oenophile 2005
I’m quite a Gimonnet fan, so I was delighted to find this in a wine shop in Reims at a sensible price. It’s just beautiful. 2005 isn’t the best ever…
In Reims, buying Champagne
I’ve been here in Reims since Friday, drawn here by my growing love of Champagne. It has been nice to explore the town a bit, and my self-imposed rule is…