I don’t get all that many cork-tainted wines these days. Part of this is that I’m opening quite a few bottles sealed with alternative closures, but also the proportion of…
What did we do before twitter?
There’s a nice article by Charles Arthur on the Guardian Technology website about Twitter. I can’t remember when I started using Twitter, but now I couldn’t imagine life without it….
Secret Wine: I’ve just voted, but have I got it right?
I’ve just cast my vote in the Secret Wine competition. It’s an innovative idea from French PR agency Clair de Lune. They sent three mystery wines to the first 85…
Harvest
My modest harvest took place today under ideal conditions. Three varieties were picked. First, Pinot Noir. Nicely ripe, about 10% of berries affected by rot. Bacchus: unfortunately not very much,…
Picking grapes at Yquem: this is crazy
Just seen this following video of the harvest at Yquem, the most famous of all the Sauternes producers. This is the first pass through the vineyard (1er trie) and the…
I now have a ‘smart’ phone
I have finally bitten the bullet, and got a smartphone. After years of just using my phone for making calls and texting, I’m now going to use it for emails,…
Exposing falsely discounted wines on the BBC
I was on TV last night. OK, it was BBC3, but it was still TV. You can see it here. Let me explain what it was about. A while back…
North Carolina, day 4 – picnic at Chimney Rock
So we’ve had a brilliant couple of sessions here in Asheville discussing wine science. This morning was looking at the sensory effects of different oxygen transmission levels in wine. Then…
Decanter’s news piece on ‘cork taint’ via barrels
Decanter have published a news piece on the possibility of cork taint being transmitted by oak barrels (you can read it here). It’s a bad piece for a number of…