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Cuneiform: 2004 Contino Reserva Rioja
This is the first of a very occasional series on bottles that have caught my eye for whatever reason. Compañia Vinícola del Norte de España – or CVNE, as it is commonly known – is among the most senior Rioja producers, run by direct descendants of its founders. It has three arms that embrace the…
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Su and Sardinia: Su Sazzagoni in Hackney
Thanks to the good offices of Martin Kyran at Foal Brand Grooming, I was able to visit recently Su Sazzagoni restaurant in Lauriston Road, Hackney, with my friend Jane Egginton. Opened in January 2009, Su Sazzagoni is a Sardinian trattoria in trendy Victoria Park Village. As well as the restaurant there is also a delicatessen…
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Wine by One
On my way back to London from Bordeaux yesterday I spent the afternoon in Paris, visiting a tasting of US wines at the Ambassador’s Residence on Rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré (more on this later) and then meeting a friend for a drink and chat. David Cobbold is an Englishman who has lived in Paris for over…
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Project Front Foot update
A message from Vic Mills: It’s close to a year since I first wrote to you about Project Front Foot. Much has happened in the intervening months. I am, in fact, just back from a second successful trip to Mumbai where I was able to deliver a further 140 kilos of kit to our various…
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Monferrato Mon Brave?
Mercifully we had to taste only 24 wines this morning rather than the 60+ of the previous two days. There were still far too many wines that had been botoxed by oak and lacked freshness but on the basis of this selection Barbera del Monferrato is richer and more powerful than Barbera d’Asti. Two wines…
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Paradise Lost? Barbera Meeting 2010
As I sit this morning in the splendid Piazzo Zoia in Asti, the snow falls like tears from a cloud. There has been six or seven inches overnight here; in Alba there is over a foot, I am told. Last night my fellow bloggers and I tasted 30 or so examples of Barbera d’Asti from…