It seems to be a bit of a season for Riesling. Here are notes from four bottles tried a while back which I have found in a notebook, and feel…
Culmina Unicus, a Gruner Veltliner from British Columbia, Canada
On my visit to the Okanagan Valley, it was nice to meet Donald Triggs (above) and taste a few of his wines. One stood out immediately as being particularly interesting: it was…
Two from the Swartland: Mullineux and Testalonga
Two lovely South African wines recently enjoyed. The first, quite conventional: the 2012 vintage of the fabulous Mullineux Syrah. While I love their Granite and Schist bottlings (I haven’t yet…
Site-specific Chenin Blanc from Mullineux – Quartz and Schist
As you all know, Chenin Blanc is officially one of the two coolest white grape varieties, along with Riesling. Chenin’s attributes are its good acidity, its structure, its ageability, its…
How to succeed as a wine writer by writing boring wine articles
Most wine writing in wine magazines is boring and formulaic. What does that tell us? A logical conclusion to draw is that if you want to be a successful published…
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…
2014 in pictures (1)
2014 has been a remarkable year. Here’s my year in review, in pictorial form. The January tasting season began with the Burgundy 2012 tastings in London. This was a new…
Christmas Day highlights (1): Le Moine Saint-Romain 11, Mulderbosch 13, Floridene 12
Some excellent wines yesterday for Christmas Day with family. I’m going to write up the highlights in two posts. The wines deserve it. First, three whites, all of which exceeded expectations….
Comparing the same wine sealed with cork and screwcap
The closure debate has moved on quite a bit since the days when it was practically pitched warfare between the screwcap advocates (mainly Australia and New Zealand) and those who…