Wine Events, Wine Education, Journalist
Chardonnay. The most popular grape variety in the world. To borrow a theme from another beverage, if chardonnay made women, they would be as classy and steely-cool as Lauren Bacall; or as honeyed, rounded and voluptuously-complex as Marilyn Monroe; or maybe satin-lip frothy, but pin-bright and sparkling with a Grace Kelly-like elegance; or perhaps as […]
A celebration of the Chardonnay grape’s many personalities Read More »
I WAS baffled, to say the least, when I found myself standing in front of an innocuous little souvenir shop in the middle of Barcelona late in the evening. I thought I was going for a meal. Why was I here? We rang the bell of the locked shopfront door – then a few moments
Cava sparkles with a family tradition at the Freixenet winery Read More »
PRETTY in pink … a glass of rose. Can it be beaten? Well it can if it’s sparkling and is sitting alongside tapas of marinated salmon and Iberian ham. A veritable feast with pink hues; but by no means girlie. I was in Barcelona drinking Cordon Rosado, the pink sister of stablemate Freixenet’s famous Cordon
Freixenet cava is so much more than iconic Cordon Negro Read More »
I WAS very proud of myself the other day. So proud I rewarded myself with a tinkling glass of something sweet, fruity and bubbly. The reason? A winemaker in the heart of Spain’s cava country complimented me on my grape-blending skills. With three wines, three test-tubes and three blending attempts, I was trying to mirror
Cava: Mixing memories and tradition for a signature wine at Segura Viudas Read More »
In the space of two hours I tripped lightly across the globe; from Italy to South Africa, then France, southwards to Argentina and then moments later a short hop to south Australia. Not in reality of course. I doubt even Richard Branson’s galactic gadgets could succeed in such a speedy earth-spinning trip. Nope. I was nestled
Wine classics tasting in whirlwind of fizz and flint Read More »
YOU can put away the bunting now. National Paella Day is over for another year. If you didn’t celebrate on Tuesday don’t fret; I’m sure the food police won’t be a nuisance should you decide to enjoy the Spanish national dish on another day. Here are a few Spanish wine ideas to pair with your
Spanish wine flavour flamenco heralds paella celebration Read More »
IN CHABLIS is a little cellar, known as The Wine Aroma cellar. In that little room the whole gamut of wine aromas from Burgundy wines are captured in flasks; each just beautiful to look at, never mind smell. A glass case of fresh red fruits – blackcurrant, cherry, grape, to name but a few – has
Wine aromas of Burgundy captured in Chablis cellar Read More »
Chablis, a wine for pleasure; warm summer evenings; for dinner parties, comfortable nights-in. Special occasions. A name recognised on shelves as having a pedigree. When I visited Chablis for the Saint-Vincent Tournante du Chablisien Festival in February, I was lucky enough to meet some of the people behind the wine – the characters and the traditions
Chablis: The people behind the wine and the wine is their life Read More »
Gallery: I visited Chablis in February 2011 and enjoyed the Saint-Vincent Tournante du Chablisien festival as well as visiting several wineries to enjoy Chablis wine. Read the stories from my Chablis visit. Here is a selection of pictures. [slickr-flickr tag=”chablis” descriptions=”on” type=”galleria” options=”autoplay:3000; imageCrop:true; carousel:false; transitionSpeed:1000; transition:pulse””]