In an interview for 60 Minutes in 2004, the journalist Ed Bradley asked Bob Dylan if there was anything in his early work that surprised him. Hi Bobness looked pensive...
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The Tyranny Of The Label
One of my abiding memories from my days editing Decanter magazine comes from the panel tastings we used to hold in the 10th-floor executive suite overlooking the Tate Modern. Twice...
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Simplicity
I worry that we have forgotten to feel wine. We live a colorful wine life – in white, red, orange, and pink. Wine has possibly never been so restless, so...
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Is Wine’s Future Doomed?
Last week on the eve of my 19 year-old daughter’s departure for university, the last of our three children to leave, we shared wine over Korean barbecue. To hear some...
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Mediterranean Sundance
Ah, the joys of localism. The provincial dialects. The regional quirks. The local produce. Like most of its Mediterranean neighbours, Greece is no stranger to those – a 200-year old...
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Tailoring Terroir
In London, if you want your friends to hate you, give their dog a squeaky toy. In Ireland, or at least in the house on the West Coast where I’m...
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The Ladder Of Quality
The bucolic opening sequence to The Hunger Games makes the dystopic Panem State seem homely; a place where you can stitch a quilt, or share a venison kill with your...
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Understanding Mouthfeel
Mouthfeel is tribology! What makes a Barolo so different from a Spätburgunder? What about distinguishing between a Tannat and a Beaujolais? First and foremost, it’s the mouthfeel — the sensations...
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Is There Any Justification For Wine?
The anti-wine forces are massing and strengthening in a way I haven’t experienced in my lifetime. Until very recently, seeing a seminar advertised on “The Future of Wine” I would...
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Au Revoir, Fiona
Writing a weekly column about wine for a national newspaper isn’t easy. I’ve been there done that – for 21 years. Keeping each article fresh is challenging. Some journalists don’t...
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Falling In Love With Baga
If you enjoy Barolo or Burgundy, I would recommend trying Bairrada, the Portuguese region most known for the red grape, Baga. These are lofty comparators, but justified: Baga retains high...
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Translation, Treachery And Terroir
I think of winemaking as a form of translation. Product A (grapes) is transformed into Product B (wine). Very simple, really. As you will know, traditionally, translation involves the conversion...
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