I have just been in the Netherlands, presenting a talk and tasting to wine professionals here over two days, with the same 10 wines both days. I met some really…
The effect of herbicides on soil structure
I’m just preparing a presentation I’m giving in the Netherlands tomorrow, and I came across two pictures I took in the vineyards at Waterkloof in Stellenbosch, South Africa. The first…
Wine writers ripping off wineries, a disturbing trend
A rant. I don’t rant often, but I’m driven to do it today. As a wine writer, I’m alarmed by the recent trend for other wine writers to behave parasitically…
Andrew Nielsen and Le Grappin, a talented Burgundy micronegoce
Website: http://www.legrappin.com/ Lots of people, it seems, have vinous epiphanies. They drink a special bottle of wine, and suddenly they are converted. Wine is no longer just an alcoholic drink…
Barraco Vignammare 2013, an incredible Sicilian white
Dear readers, I hope you don’t tire of my hyperbolic descriptors. ‘Remarkable’, ‘Sensational’, ‘Incredible’. I’m beginning to sound like a Daily Mail wine critic. After all, one route to success…
Narrative and perspective, and how we understand wine
John Lambie, who was the manager of Scottish football club Partick Thistle, is credited with one of the most well known sporting quotes. On being informed by his medical team…
The stunning 2013 releases from Kutch
These were very smart indeed. Jamie Kutch has a good story, and I reckon his 2013s are his best wines yet. My feeling is that they’re a bit more elegant…
A couple from Bordeaux, La Tour Martillac and Petit Village
Bordeaux is the world’s most famous wine region. But it’s one that is losing the hearts of many of the new generation of wine nuts. They’re alienated by the prices,…
McC Coupage, a lovely wine from Serbia
McCulloch Wines is the venture of Englishman Don McCulloch and his Serbian-born wife Seka Nikolic. McCulloch was previously a special protection police officer for the Royal Family (he retired after…