With the weather alternating between miserable and outright apocalyptic, cask strength single malt has been, rather unusually, at the top of my gustatory thoughts of late. I say unusually as normally in the middle of July I find myself turning much more often to cognacs or rums, at least as far as aged spirits are […]

It is now a full two years since your correspondent selflessly embarked on a fortnight’s voyage of discovery of the vineyards of Champagne. Accompanied by the equally selfless Alun Griffiths MW, I set off on the long and frankly sometimes rather uneventful drive through the badlands of the Pas de Calais, taking advantage of the […]

Of all vintages in my 30 years of experience with Burgundy, 2001 is the year I have found the most difficult to pin down. The growing season was a touch anonymous with good weather in late May, late August and thankfully during the harvest in late September, but otherwise too many cool, grey and somewhat […]

The summer calendar is full of high-class entertainment and sees something happening almost every week in the world of sport and the arts, and (weather permitting) al fresco eating and drinking is as integral to the fun as the entertainment itself. Our wine experts have set about the enjoyable task of choosing suitable wines to […]