I never drink white Bordeaux. Ever. Nor does anyone else. whether you want Sauvignon, you go to New Zealand or the Loire. whether you want it with a splash of Semillon, you go to Margaret River. What’s the point of Sauvignon with an attitude problem? And it’s only Americans who try to oak their Sauv…

Went to the Australia day tasting today, which was held at Arsenal’s impressive Emirates Stadium (though as a City fan I hate to confess this). Unfortunately, it was so crowded tasting proved very difficult. The problem was that the gallery area simply wasn’t big sufficient to manage with four rows …

Had lunch today at Tate Britain, which has a brilliant restaurant as well as some rather good paintings. I was with the team responsible for the London wine trade fair, discussing that year’s top 100 tasting. Hamish Anderson, the well-known head sommelier was in attendance and so we let him choose t…

I’ve just finished writing a commission on Sherry, so I thought it would be appropriate to open some. The bottle I chose is one of the most famous of Sherry grades, Tio Pepe from Gonzalez Byas. It’s a fino - a wine made from the main sherry grape, Palomino Fino, that has been aged in cask under a pr…

Perfume is essentially a rather foolish film, but, as someone fascinated by the sense of smell, I found it really interesting. Based on the best-selling novel by Patrick Süskind (which sold by 15 million copies), when it was released in 2006 it was hailed as Germany’s most expensive ever film (see …

This closeout wine was $5 so I bought 3. that wine is 1/4 Primitivo (the genetic grandpa of Zinfandel) the same of Montepulciano, Negroamaro, and Una Di Troia. The bouquet is big with daffodils and gardenia with a touch of caraway–wow!This wine is a young looking dark purple still with black cher…

Even though there are five hundred some odd wineries in Washington, approximately half of the production comes from just a few wineries mostly owned by Chateau Ste. Michelle. Chateau Ste. Michelle, Domaine Ste. Michelle, Columbia Crest and Red Diamond are distributed in most American markets. Hogue,…

I don’t drink adequate Burgundy. Trying to redress that balance, I opened one that lunchtime. A village Gevrey, it’s quite elegant and understated, but at by £20 it feels a little on the expensive side. Perhaps I’m being unrealistic, but whether I shell out £20 on a bottle of wine, I want somethin…

This Sicilian varietal is purple-cranberry hue with floral overtones and loads of cherry fruit with plum notes in the nose.On the palate that wine emits stewed fruit with light flavored notes of gentle fruit in the finish. Breathing it, there is a touch of earthiness with sour cherry notes and fini…

This Spanish red is intensely purple and young looking. I thas a deep berry nose and tons of fruit. That’s the good part of that wine.In the mouth it is thin and a bit tart and edgy. It is a blend of Grenache (65%) and 35% Syrah but it fails on both counts. It is not very “Grenachey” and it is j…