Sangiovese

by Tim Atkin
‘Welcome to the home of the fiasco,’ said the sharply suited Italian. Strange things have happened to me in wineries over the years – my favourite was a board outside...

Winespeak

by Tim Atkin
Wine writers knowingly run the risk of an appearance in Private Eye‘s Pseuds’ Corner every time they describe a wine. The vocabulary of taste, surely the most intimate of our...

Maipo Valley

by Tim Atkin
If you’ve ever seen the film “Alive” – and I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re about to tuck into steak tartare – then you’ll know that the Andes are a...

Stellenbosch

by Tim Atkin
With its Cape Dutch architecture, mountain-fringed setting, famous university and a line-up of wineries that reads like a who’s who of the South African industry, Stellenbosch is one of the...

Chardonnay

by Tim Atkin
‘Hello, sir, and welcome to the Chardonnay country club.’ I’ve heard some silly things in my time, but naming a Napa Valley golf and tennis complex after a grape variety...

Chenin Blanc

by Tim Atkin
If patience is a virtue, as the old saw would have it, then it’s a virtue that’s deeply unfashionable. We live in a world dominated by immediacy, instant gratification, attention...

Pinot Noir

by Tim Atkin
The legendary jazzman and humorist Ronnie Scott once introduced a concert at his London club with the following words: ‘Ladies and gentlemen, the last time this person played in London,...

Barossa Valley

by Tim Atkin
The first time I visited the Barossa Valley in South Australia, someone gave me a cassette. (It was so long ago, that iTunes didn’t exist.) The music was a collection...

Bordeaux

by Tim Atkin
Bordeaux is the world’s most famous fine wine region. Other areas may be more beautiful, more historic or blessed with better food, but Bordeaux is home to the greatest percentage...

Napa Valley

by Tim Atkin
The Napa Valley is the most famous wine region in the Americas and arguably in the entire New World – think Bordeaux crossed with the Hollywood Hills and more than...

Burgundy II

by Tim Atkin
Burgundy is a paradoxical place. The apparent contradiction is that it is both one of the simplest and most complex wine regions on earth. The easy part is that almost...