We’re all accustomed to our bottles of wine coming decorated, often eye-catchingly, with a capsule covering the top. Mark Pardoe MW, our Wine Director, looks at the purpose of the ubiquitous capsule – and why we’ve decided not to use one for our new Own Selection Châteauneuf-du-Pape. (Since this article was first published, we have also […]

Mark Pardoe MW shares the conversations we’re having with our producers as we work to lessen our impact. We aim to be net zero carbon and plastic free by 2030. There’s much we can control as we work towards this goal – but, when it comes to our suppliers, there are more complexities at play. […]

Picture the scene: you’re in a restaurant and the wine waiter hands over the list. It’s the size of War and Peace: do you a) dance an inward jig of delight, and settle back to peruse what’s available, or b) after a cursory glance, turn to the sommelier for advice? Sometimes, too much choice is […]

It is widely grown around the world, and its wines range from the simple and juicy to the sublime and ethereal. But Merlot reaches its zenith on Bordeaux’s Right Bank, says Mark Pardoe MW. It would probably be faster to list the wine-producing countries where Merlot is not grown. This is a ubiquitous grape variety, […]