I’ve just bottled the 2009 vintage of my wine. It’s a 30:60:10 blend of Pinot Noir/Phoenix/Bacchus, from the vines in my back garden. Strict selection for healthy berries, hand destemmed…
An argument for screwcaps
There’s an article in The Times today reporting on how the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) have called for minimum pricing on alcohol, as one of a raft of…
Conan the Barbera
This project wine, produced by a member of the Meridian wines team in conjunction with Araldica, is quite remarkable. The note below was written on the day I opened the…
Video: Australia’s most celebrated wine, the 1962 Penfolds Bin60A
I’ve finally written up my report on last year’s historic tasting of Australian wines at the Landmark Tutorial. You can read it here. We were fortunate to taste many rare…
Making Sherry sexy: Equipo Navazos
Equipo Navazos make mindblowing Sherries. I’m drinking one at the moment, and it’s a life-enhancing experience. It’s Manzanilla No 16 – powerful, intense with nuts, herbs, minerals, citrus notes and…
A good, affordable Tasmanian Pinot Noir
I’ve struggled a bit with some Tasmanian wines in the past, which show a bit of unripeness. But this affordable example (£10 is cheap for Pinot Noir, remember) is really…
Video: Mount Difficulty, Central Otago, NZ
I have just written up the report of my visit to Central Otago producer Mount Difficulty, which you can find here. Below is a short film from the visit. Among other…
A day in Vila Nova de Gaia
I spent today in Vila Nova de Gaia with Sogevenius, a Port and wine company who own the brands Calem, Barros, Burmester and Kopke. The two winemakers, Francisco Goncalves (table…
A Portuguese dinner, with tripo and knuckles
Had a great dinner last night with the crew from Vinideas, the other speakers from the conference, and Joao Brito e Cunha (winemaker with Churchill, his family property Sao Jose…