Someone once told me that nothing in wine media gets page views like writing about wine writing. No one seems to be sure quite why this is the case. It...
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A Bag Of Tricks
You can always rely on Olivier Bernard for a good quote. Olivier is the chatelain of Domaine de Chevalier, on which you can always rely for a good wine, and...
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The Rain In Spain
In English, it’s just drizzle. In Spanish, it’s more graphic. The literal translation of “calabobos” is something that soaks fools. Rather than a downpour – the sort of weather that...
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Offensively Inoffensive
It was an easy target. A recent Twitter flurry over the by-the-glass wine list at Gordon Ramsay’s Michelin-starred London restaurant Pétrus focused on the punchy prices. And it’s true: charging...
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An Easy Ride?
You’re standing in the wine shop, a crisp £50 in your pocket. No agenda, just prospecting for something serious. To the right, the shelf which ought to be labelled ‘good...
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What Is Real Wine?
It is, perhaps, a blessing that nobody has claimed Real Wine as a product category, just yet at least. The intention, however, is certainly there. Natural wine might be the...
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The Myth Of Aristocracy
I have not yet been to the cinema to see the latest despatch from that castellated stately home where half the inhabitants speak in a strange strangulated drawl and wear...
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Transcending Our Binary Bonds
Shawshank Redemption is a pretty shitty action flick. I mean, like, horrendous. On the 100-point “Action Film” scale, it comes very close to being “faulty”. HOWEVER, on the “Epic Drama”...
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Back And Forth
Which is easier, to persuade people to drink a wine young if they think they should age it, or to age a wine they thought they could drink young? You...
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Wine Trade Blues
The most fascinating job title I’ve ever run across is grain merchant. A friend had just moved to London and decided to spend the first few months living big, which...
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The Meaning Of Resilience
It’s a decision most of us will never have to make, thank goodness. You have a few seconds to pack a single bag: what do you take? Throw in a...
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Before, During, After
Is it the thought of a wine yet to be tasted that gets you going? A world of cellars exists in tribute to the unopened bottle’s allure. Billions of dollars...
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