Fine wines are timeless – that elusive combination of elegance, complexity and gravitas, plus ageing potential in spades. Their prices unfortunately are not. Top rank Bordeaux, Burgundy or mature Barolos...
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Do you want wine with that?
I still remember the first time I was offered a glass of wine at the hairdresser’s. I thought this was a great idea until, on picking it up for a...
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The Stellenbosch Renaissance
When the 400 tickets for this year’s Swartland Revolution went on sale earlier this summer, they sold out within two minutes. Since it was first held in 2010, the annual...
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In praise of PR people
Sometimes people’s names determine their whole life. A. J. Splatt and D. Weedon are both doctors of urology. There’s an Israeli tennis player called Anna Smashanova and a Dutch architect...
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Riedel me this
In this piece, US-based wine writer Ron Washam pokes fun at Riedel, the wine glass company, a brand that I respect and use personally. This is a piece of satire....
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Georgia: a visit to dreamland
Visitors to the Georgian capital of Tbilisi were warned to stay off the streets last month. The city has seen its share of disorder over the centuries, but this had...
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Romania: getting back on its horse
Standing at the baggage carousel in Timişoara Airport in western Romania, I was approached by a friendly fellow traveller. “You here for the IW Conference too?” he said. “Erm… International...
Read MoreA letter from the Publisher of Le Pan Magazine
Hello Le Pan is the only wine magazine that answers the questions to which real wine connoisseurs need answers. Is my private jet a good place to store my First...
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Chapoutier 2014 Sélections Parcellaires: a difficult birth
The vintage I moved to London in August 2003 on one of the hottest days in living memory. Not the ideal conditions for shifting furniture up flights of stairs. Not...
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Are en primeur Bordeaux scores out of control?
In his timely article on Wine-Pages about score inflation in Bordeaux, Stephen Brook sets out to prove that points reached a “preposterous level” in 2014. He also accuses me of...
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Priorat: too little of a good thing?
It doesn’t feature on many wine tours, but the village of Bellmunt del Priorat has its very own mining museum, a tribute to a time when lead was more important...
Read MoreJefford on Mundane: Palate and Column Fatigue
How do you maintain your nose? Your tongue is your most important tool, but whose box do you keep it in? How often do you need a liver transplant? And...
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