I am currently in Sofia, Bulgaria, where I am judging the Balkans International Wine Competition, along with a merry band of excellent judges from different Balkan countries, plus three of us…
Three amazing natural wines from Mas Coutelou
These are lovely, lovely wines. I followed them over the course of a few days, so I’m fairly confident in my recommendations, too. They are made by Jeff Coutelou, in…
Distracted by a book revision
Apologies for the slight slowing down on my blog. I haven’t been posting every day, as I normally do, because I have been fiendishly busy, revising my Wine Science book….
Competition, price and why cheap wine will never be profitable
Have you ever tried to buy a mobile phone on contract? Or choose an energy supplier? The pricing structure is deliberately complicated, making direct comparisons incredibly difficult. And the…
On soils and wines, part 6 – water relations and wine quality, plus a bit about clays
So, the next instalment in my exploration of the importance of soils for wine. This is really thinking aloud, so I’d love to hear comments and corrections. One of the…
Some nice wines from Lay & Wheeler
Wine merchant Lay & Wheeler have been part of Majestic Wine for a while, and for the first time at this week’s Majestic press tasting some of the Lay & Wheeler…
Video: visiting Sancerre by helicopter
Here’s a short film shot from my recent visit to the famous Loire village of Sancerre, by chopper. It proved quite an eventful journey: on the way, the door I…
Four decades of Beronia Gran Reserva Rioja
I recently got the chance to taste (and drink) Beronia Gran Reserva Rioja from three different decades, spanning four decades in all, which was pretty cool. I’m not the greatest…
Some blog posts worth revisiting
I feel guilty. In an age of information overload, I blog pretty much every day. I contribute to the vast mass of media output that clogs up peoples’ thinking space….