Taittinger make some very nice wines. I’ve particularly enjoyed their NV of late, which always shows well in blind tastings. They have a sizeable vineyard holding of 288 hectares, which helps…
Tissot Arbois Trousseau Singulier 2013
This is a beautiful wine, from Stephane Tissot – one of the finest of all Jura winegrowers. It’s a wine that flirts with greenness and gets away with it –…
Champagne Vilmart & Cie Grand Cellier
This is really good. Vilmart have 11 hectares of vines in the Monntagne de Reims, in the small village of Rilly la Montagne. No chemical fertilizers, insecticides or herbicides are…
For thanksgiving: 20 top Canadian wines
So, it’s thanksgiving day in Canada on Monday. I’ve been to Canada a few times over the last couple of years, and tasted some lovely wines – and I’ve been…
In the Douro (4) Vallado
Our final day in the Douro Valley began at Quinta do Vallado. As well as being a very good wine estate, Vallado also have one of the best hotels in…
Video: in the Douro Valley, Portugal
Filmed during the 2012 harvest, here’s the film that David Fuller made with me on the Douro Valley – visiting the Douro Boys. I thought it would be fun to…
Exploring a limited creative space: black and white and wine
I have recently been playing around with black and white photography. Although I would never claim to be a serious photographer, I enjoy taking pictures, and I love images that…
In the Douro (3) Niepoort
Dirk Niepoort needs no introduction. For me, this is the Douro’s most exciting winery (it’s one of the world’s most exciting wineries, for that matter). Dirk says that in 2013…
In the Douro (2) Quinta Vale Dona Maria
Two very interesting visits yesterday: Vale Dona Maria and Niepoort. There’s something nice about unhurried appointments. It takes the pressure off: you don’t need to gather the maximum information in…