Author Archives: admin

It was a funny old year. In 2012 a Korean pop singer became a global phenomenon. Venus came very close to Jupiter. And the world did not end on 21 December, as some had blamed the Mayans for predicting. In … Continue reading

Fine wine is a multi-million dollar industry and is fraught with peril. From fake bottles to fraudulent contents, from mislabelled wine to misled consumers, wine has been faked, forged, and used for fraud for as long as it has been … Continue reading

A mountainous corner of Italy produces sparkling wines of distinction. Prosperous and picturesque, Trento is the capital of Trentino province, a northern Italian region that wasn’t annexed until 1919, after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The city—which has retained … Continue reading

Jancis Robinson and Linda Murphy 278 pp. Mitchell Beazley. Hardback. £40.00 / US$50.00. 978 1 845 335281 Published 4th March 2013 Double acts are not uncommon for wine books. Indeed, Jancis Robinson is co-author with Hugh Johnson of recent editions … Continue reading

959 pp. Mitchell Beazley. Paperback. €30. 978 18 9014 222 3 Published 15th January 2013 In its January 2013 issue Gambero Rosso magazine published an article by Michel Bettane that was highly critical of “natural” wine. The issue also included … Continue reading

January is a time for new beginnings and fresh starts so it is appropriate that every year the leading UK importers and retailers of Burgundy dedicate two weeks to showing the region’s latest release to the press, the trade and … Continue reading

A while ago Adrian Bridge, Managing Director of Taylor’s, presented a vertical tasting of Quinta de Vargellas and Vargellas Vinha Velha at The Royal Opera House in London. Located in an extremely remote location in the eastern-most Port-producing zone of … Continue reading

A few years ago Champagne Louis Roederer’s Managing Director Frédéric Rouzaud, Chef de Cave Jean–Baptiste Lecaillon, and Mark Bingley MW of Roederer’s UK importers Maisons Marques et Domaines hosted a tasting of six vintages of Cristal at The Caledonian Club … Continue reading

The Big Fortified Tasting, or b.f.t, is an annual tasting held in London that celebrates the diversity of fortified wines. It showcases Sherry, Madeira, Port and local variations on these classics. The only snag is that it is impossible to … Continue reading

No wine has a greater reputation than Château Margaux 1900, which has always received praise from those lucky enough to taste it. The British wine writer Edmund Penning-Rowsell noted, “Château Margaux was another celebrated 1900, and said to be the … Continue reading