A quick note on Wednesday’s lunch at La Trompette in Chiswick, with Robin Davis and Tom Carson. It’s under the same ownership as the excellent Glasshouse in Kew, a joint…
In Portugal, day 2
Another day of relaxation under the blue Alentejo sky. We began the day with a cycle ride round the vineyard before breakfast, and since then we’ve spent the best part…
Lunch at Hibiscus with some New World classics
It has taken a few days, but I wanted to report on last week’s great lunch at Hibiscus. Hosted by Doug Wregg of Les Caves de Pyrene, the lunch accompanied…
Lunch at the Glasshouse in Kew
Yesterday’s lunch at Kew’s Glasshouse restaurant was everything a fine dining experience should be. One of the problems I have in assessing restaurants is that most of the time I’m…
Lunch with Frank Cornelissen and his fabulous Etna wines
Yesterday’s lunch was special. It was a chance to catch up with Frank Cornelissen (above), a winegrower from Sicily’s Mount Etna, over lunch at Hibiscus. Frank works as naturally as…
Natural wines with Doug at Brawn
Had a tremendous evening last night with Doug Wregg at Brawn, out in the wilds of E2 (near Bethnal Green and Hoxton). It was my first visit to Brawn, which,…
A couple more Portuguese wine discoveries
The great thing about visiting Portugal is that there are always more wines to discover. Here are a couple from this week. First, up, a couple of Dao wines from…
The art of the restaurant wine list
Just finished the final day’s judging of Imbibe Magazine’s Sommelier Wine Awards. It has been an interesting experience, tasting with sommeliers and thinking about wines not only in terms of…
Champagne Salon 1999 is launched… with fish and chips!
Had a very enjoyable lunch today. It was the launch of Salon 1999 – the latest vintage from this remarkable Blanc de Blancs Champagne which comes from a single cru…