I’ve been in New Zealand for the last week. The official reason for the trip was to present a couple of talks at the biodynamic and organic wine conference in…
Gamay Focus 30, Hervé Souhaut La Souteronne
I had this wine twice in two nights at Scotch Bar, Blenheim. It’s from Hervé Souhaut’s Domaine Romaneaux-Destezet, which is based in Arlebosc in the Ardèche, just west of Tain l’Hermitage….
Seresin Chardonnay Reserve 2013
Had this beauty from biodynamic Marlborough winery Seresin the other evening. It’s a really compelling Chardonnay. New Zealand’s top Chardonnays are underrated, and they can be superb. Seresin Chardonnay Reserve…
Three Vermentinos
I’m quite a fan of the Vermentino grape variety, also known as Rolle in Provence. It makes white wines with character and freshness from warm climates. These wines are all…
Grower Champagne: Egly-Ouriet Brut Tradition Grand Cru NV
Back in the day, when I was just getting into wine, the first ‘grower’ Champagne I encountered was Egly-Ouriet. This was in the mid-1990s, when grower Champagne wasn’t much of…
Domaine Ganevat Les Grands Teppes Vieilles Vignes 2013
More Jura joy. There’s so much good stuff coming from this region, and it’s usually from producers taking a more natural approach. This was drunk last night looking out over…
Loire adventure: visiting the remarkable François Saint-Lô
The rain was easing as we arrived for an appointment with François Saint-Lô, but it was still a cold, damp day. Not ideal for tasting wine. There’s nothing fancy about…
Rui Falcao on Madeira, at MUST 2017
Rui Falcao’s presentation at MUST was on Madeira. He began by showing a picture of a bottle of Madeira from 1795, and revealed that most of his great old wine…
Eating and drinking well in Halifax, Nova Scotia
Just on my way out of Halifax, so I thought I’d report back on some of the eating and drinking options, most of which I visited more than once. It…