Marlborough: The Fear of France?
by Matt Walls
If you like Sauvignon Blanc, you’ll love Marlborough in New Zealand. Of its 22,903 hectares of vineyards, 19,639 of them are planted with it. Undoubtedly this feels like an awful...
Matt Walls
Matt Walls began working in drinks selling super strength lager and fags in an off-licence. Since then, he has worked for big chains, small independents and everything in between. He now spends most of his time writing about wine, contributing to consumer and trade publications and timatkin.com. His first book, Drink Me: How to choose, taste and enjoy wine, won the Newcomer of the Year at the 2013 Fortnum & Mason Awards. He also advises restaurants, hosts tastings, runs training courses and is a judge for the International Wine Challenge and Decanter. Matt covers the Rhône for timatkin.com.
Articles by Matt Walls
Braver New World
by Matt Walls
“Sorry I’m late sir. Ignore the bandage, I had an unexpected visit to the hospital to get my ear seen to. Anyway – I understand you’d like me to paint...
South Africa – Vote Yes
by Matt Walls
Sometimes it takes events like the Scottish Referendum to make you realise that however ancient and permanent the old order appears, the status quo could suddenly change. It’s no different...
When life gives you Melons
by Matt Walls
Like a weathered George Michael cynically observing a shiny young Justin Bieber, Muscadet must be thinking to itself ‘been there, done that’. After its 1980s heyday of wild success, Muscadet...
Split infinity
by Matt Walls
What do you feel like drinking tonight? Red or white? Still or sparkling? Dry or sweet? With an endless number of wines in countless styles to choose from, it’s necessary...
Don’t forget your corkscrew
by Matt Walls
There’s a point at which you can tell that a passing interest in wine has turned into something more involved. You don’t notice it at the time; it’s not a...
Early drinking
by Matt Walls
I never thought I’d say this, but I’m beginning to miss the huge off-licence chains we had in the UK 10 years ago. Not that their ranges were that interesting,...
Newcomers on the scene
by Matt Walls
They wouldn’t have got past the elevator pitch in Dragons’ Den. “So you want to sell premium Austrian wines from a transport container in the East End of London?” summarises...
Chapoutier’s class of 2013
by Matt Walls
If the majority of the press surrounding the 2013 vintage in Bordeaux is to be believed, most en primeur samples should have been gathered up, put in a sack and...
Madeira quake
by Matt Walls
I always find it strange how fortified wines – Sherry, Port and Madeira – are so often portrayed as drinks for vicars and old ladies. The reality is these are...
Spend less, drink better
by Matt Walls
The UK is a nation of bargain hunters. There are more pound shops on Britain’s high streets than bookstores. When it comes to wine we’re no different; most of what...
Searching for the perfect Pinot Grigio
by Matt Walls
It’s OK, you can admit it. We’re all friends here. You don’t like Pinot Grigio, do you? To say so out loud feels a bit snobby, almost… grapist. But it...