The power of wine’s collective spirit
by Tim Atkin
It was a surprise win, given its mixed reviews and the problems that occurred during filming, but anyone who’s seen, enjoyed and sung along to Bohemian Rhapsody will be glad...
Topic: Column
The Kingdom of the Blind
by Matt Walls
Most wine professionals have a story of when they aced a blind tasting, a well-worn tale of olfactory deduction that would have Sherlock Holmes slack-jawed in amazement. It inevitably concludes...
Please give this Christmas, so I won’t have to
by Ron Washam
What I dread about Christmas are the gifts. For example, I don’t want a Coravin. Coravins are stupid. Somebody is going to give me a goddam Coravin, I just know...
Trump, Macron and Making Wine Great Again
by Christy Canterbury MW
“It’s one of my only good traits. I never had a glass of alcohol. I never had alcohol, for whatever reason,” he added. “Can you imagine if I had? What...
Things are hotting up in Burgundy
by Tim Atkin
Another year, another sale in Burgundy. Twelve months ago, it was Clos de Tart, bought by François Pinault’s Artémis Group for €280m; now it’s Domaine Henri Rabourseau, in which the...
The Court of Master Sommeliers: who says cheaters never proctor?
by Ron Washam
“The Court of Master Sommeliers stripping the titles from 23 of the 24 candidates who took the tainted blind wine tasting exam in order to preserve the Court’s ‘integrity,’” Larry...
Cover letter for the post of Head of Strategy of the Institute of Masters of Wine
by Peter Pharos
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen of the Institute, It is with pleasure and trepidation that I am applying for the position of Head of Strategy at the Institute [1]. While this...
How to make a hangover work for you
by Celia Bryan-Brown
I saw Christmas decorations in the supermarket today. Admittedly, they were tucked behind ranks of lurid Halloween costumes – but still. Between these and the inexplicable (and surely eternally unused)...
Do winemakers improve with age?
by Tim Atkin
Peter Sisseck poured a sample of his 2016 Pingus with obvious pride, watching my eyes for a reaction. He’s a thoughtful, modest man, who abhors self-promotion and would never think...
Our vanishing Master Sommeliers
by Ron Washam
Researchers say there are no more than 273 of them left in the world. Many of the males are old, long past a desirable reproductive age. They’re nocturnal for the...
Natural Disaster Wines
by Ron Washam
Natural Wines are so last year. Oh, there’s the usual set of One Trick Phonies out there who will never stop evangelizing for Natural Wines. What else do they have?...
On Parker and Parkerisation
by Tim Atkin
Robert Parker is one of the most talked about and divisive individuals in the world of wine. Now into his seventies and the twilight of his career, he still has...