Do we make too much of terroir? Once in a while, it’s good for us to question ourselves. Far too often we assume that our perspective is the only one,…
Champagne Deutz Cuvee William Deutz 2002
This is remarkable stuff. The prestige cuvee from Deutz, from the brilliant 2002 vintage. Deutz is based in Aÿ, which is Pinot country, and the blend reflects this. It is 60%…
Cascina Degli Ulivi A Demua – a lovely natural white from Piedmont
This natural Piedmont white is really interesting. It’s a blend of several local varieties, fermented on skins for a month using native yeasts in barrel. Then the wine is pressed…
Cervejaria Ramiro, Lisbon – a must visit
Earlier in the year, when I was in Lisbon with the fabulous Young Winemakers of Portugal (who, incidentally, have just been written up on the BBC news site), I was…
How sherry is transferred from cask to cask
A short film showing the way that sherries are transferred from cask to cask in the solera/criadera system. This is biologically aged sherry (fino), so a special device is used…
A truly remarkable 6 Puttonyos Tokaji from Dobogó
I made a great discovery tonight. I always love finding new wines that are amazing, like this 6 Puttonyos Tokaji. Dobogó is a small producer in Tokaji, Hungary, with 5…
Writing up my sherry adventure, and a special plug for Bar Arturo
I have just written up the first two parts of a five part series on my sherry adventure in October, when I got to visit Jerez and helped blend the…
Sandeman Vau Vintage Port 2003
I remember the excitement of discovering that Oddbins were selling the 1997 version of this wine for just £5 for a half bottle back in 2001. This was in the…
Springfield Life From Stone Sauvignon Blanc 2014
Now this is a wine I have struggled with in the past. I have found it to be excessively dominated by those green methoxypyrazine characters, to the point of unbalance,…