Interesting comparative tasting of cork-sealed and screwcapped wines fron Australia's The Age newspaper. It seems that even where the author didn't have a preference, the same wine sealed with a tin-lined screwcap is noticeably different from that sealed with a cork. And many of the screwcap-sealed bottles showed what appear to be sulfide/mercaptan problems, judging by the tasting notes. When will the Australians and New Zealanders realize that tin-lined screwcaps are not the only alternative to corks?

French wine reform is in the news today, or at least it will be. I've been asked to appear as an 'expert' on BBC News 24 and also BBC radio, but because both involve going into a studio, wiping out a good portion of the day, I can't. Not at the moment. Would have been fun, though. [Aside: I bet they either don't pay, or pay very little. And who's watching BBC news 24 in the middle of the morning?]