A couple of weeks ago I was chatting with my twin sister, Anne. I don’t remember exactly what we were talking about, but the conversation came on to the subject…
Folium: interesting dry-grown wines from New Zealand’s Marlborough region
Takaki Okada came to New Zealand’s Marlborough region in 2003, and began working with Clos Henri. In 2010, he bought an 8.5 hectare vineyard that had been established by Fromm…
Sylvain Pataille, master of Marsannay
Over the last 15 years Sylvain Pataille has built up his domaine from scratch. He first made wine in 1999, while he was still employed in an enology laboratory in…
A Chenin Blanc seminar at Texsom
Patrick Cappiello and Pascaline Lepeltier presented this Chenin tasting at Texsom. ‘I deeply believe that Chenin is the best white grape in the world,’ says Pascaline, a very highly regarded…
Grower Champagne Focus: Selosse Initial
I really liked this Champagne. Selosse’s Initial. Thrilling. Champagne Jacques Selosse Initial Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs NV France This is the March 2013 disgorgement. It’s a thrillingly rich and…
The history of coffee: a seminar with Ian Picco
Coffee is interesting and I don’t know all that much about it. So it was really interesting to attend a seminar on the history of coffee at Texsom, presented by…
In Texas, for Texsom
I’m in Texas. First time for me. I’m here for Texsom, which is a really important conference in the north American wine scene. I’m here to conduct a 3 hour…
Rootstock (Sydney), a natural wine fair, focuses more on the vineyard in 2016
Late last year I had a lovely time attending Rootsock Sydney. It’s a lovely not-for-profit wine fair focusing on natural wines. One of the very best. I really enjoyed it,…
Dinner with Dan at Noble Rot: Raveneau, Lynch Bages and Dervieux Thaize
Had a lovely dinner with Dan Keeling at Noble Rot last night. The food was as good as ever, and the wines were just thrilling. I’ve rarely drunk as well,…