On her first foray into life on a winery as well as being “Down Under”, Sophie Thorpe shares her initial impressions on becoming a cellar hand, deep in the heart of Australia’s Margaret River “It’s going to be dirty. It’s going to be physical. And it’s going to be hard,” Nic Peterkin – my boss […]

Parsons is the second establishment to open from the wine-minds behind Covent Garden’s The 10 Cases. We sent Sophie Thorpe along for an unexpected education in crab-cracking. There was – perhaps – a greedy swagger as I steamed into Parsons, an arrogance in anticipation of the brilliance that lay ahead. Oh how hungry and foolish […]

With Burgundy on the mind ahead of January’s en primeur, we sent Sophie Thorpe to sample the list at Cabotte Last week, I tasted a cheese like no other. A cheese that – bizarrely – I couldn’t devour a block of. A cheese so mesmerising that I have thought about it at least once every […]

The Cape’s “New Wave” movement has been gaining pace, attracting the praise of critics and consumers around the world. Sophie Thorpe traces the country’s evolution and talks to some of the producers at the forefront of South Africa’s wine scene. “If a vineyard’s got a good view, it’s probably going to make good wine,” winemaker […]