I had a meeting this morning at Clarence House, the home of the Prince of Wales, so afterwards I wandered down to take a peek at the ‘Start’ Garden Party…
The start of term!
It feels like the start of term. As you probably all know, I don’t have a proper job. I get paid to do my hobby, and as a freelancer, I…
Does language for wine shape perception?
Some thoughts. Can we think without language? In the absence of words, can we experience things consciously? I’d argue, yes. We think and process our experience consciously independently of language,…
El Cayado Bierzo: is it the same wine?
A while back I recommended the El Cayado Bierzo from Oddbins (£8.99), and today I plugged it in my Sunday Express column, describing it as one of the best sub-£10…
Three Austrian wines from Tegernseerhof
The world is awash with interesting wine, even if you have to dig around a bit to find it. The problem this creates for me is I’m perpetually feeling a…
On the beach
Spent the day down at West Wittering, near Chichester. It’s one of the UK’s best beaches. And we enjoyed a day of full sunshine, without a single cloud – it…
Man O’War and my duplicate notes
Just written up my notes from July’s visit to Man O’War on Waiheke Island, New Zealand. It was a memorable visit on a gorgeously sunny winter’s day, and Waiheke is…
Is the taste of wine a property of the wine?
A philosophical point, but an important one. Is the ‘taste’ of a wine a property of a wine? Here are my thoughts. A wine has physical properties, which can be…
Planeta Cerasuolo di Vittoria: an elegant Sicilian red
Back in February 2009 I visited Sicilian producer Planeta (report here). It was a great visit, and I particularly enjoyed the Cerusuolo from Vittoria, a blend of Nero d’Avola with…