Feeling a little tired after a wonderful evening at the chief’s last night. The chief is Harpers editor Richard Siddle, who convened a gathering of chums to eat and drink…
Keith’s remarkable fine wine lunch
A great lunch. One of the best. It was hosted by Keith Prothero at the wonderful La Trompette in Chiswick. Keith (astonishingly generously) provided the wines, which we tasted blind,…
Domaine Parigot Savigny Les Vergelesses, a lovely red Burgundy
Really impressed by this, a stylish red Burgundy that marries sweet fruit beautifully with a refined savoury dimension. This is something Burgundy does really well: non-fruit complexity. Domaine Parigot Savigny-Les-Beaune…
Three lovely wines: Burgundy, Martinborough and Tasmania
It was a beautiful pre-spring day today in London. I was doing some staff wine training for Hakkasan, the brilliant Chinese-inspired restaurant chain with two London outposts. The first session…
Lunch wines: Dog Point, Boillot, Talbot
Popped into my sister’s for a quick lunch today, picking up our boys who had been staying over while we were at a wedding. Ended up being served three very…
Burgundy 2011 – some impressions
This week is Burgundy en primeurs, in London. Unlike the Bordelais, the Burgundians wait a bit longer before showing cask samples (15 months after vintage, versus 6), and travel to…
An attractive Gamay from a new appellation: Bourgogne Gamay
This is an appealing, fruity, vibrant Gamay that comes from a new appellation, Bourgogne Gamay, created in 2011. It’s Gamay from Fleurie, Chénas and Régnié, plus 15% Burgundy Pinot Noir….
Lunch at the Glasshouse, Kew, with Brian and Marion Smith of Elgin Ridge
Kew’s Glasshouse has to be one of the best places to lunch in London. It’s the sister restaurant to the equally impressive La Trompette in Chiswick, and together this pair…
A remarkable evening of wine, with Burgundy, the Wachau, the northern Rhone, Champagne and Sherry
Had a fabulous dinner last night at Francis and Bronwen Percival’s pad in Borough Market with a group of wine nuts, including a Burgundy-resident Californian winemaker. Some lovely bottles came…