Category: Old World

Water, water everywhere…

Week six of wine adventures in Piedmont From somewhere – who knows where? – Papa Silvio summoned up funds to help not just Abruzzo’s earthquake victims (word has it that Chinese and American themed villages are on the table), but also those among the Langhe hills, marginally less traumatized by recent rains. For the rain, coming on […]

La vita e una opera! (just look around you)

Week five of wine adventures in Piedmont It’s not everyday you find yourself in the back of a British-built, racing green Bentley, coursing through some of Italy’s most prestigious vineyards on a secret mission! But then again, how often are you called upon to assess one of Montalcino’s top addresses on behalf of a prospective buyer, […]

With great power comes great responsibility

I was utterly bewildered when I sat down to see Robert Parker’s scores the other night!  If you’ve been following our progress in Bordeaux then you will know that we were genuinely surprised by the ’08s – some of the wines we tasted were excellent and many surpassed our expectations.  But the blunt fact of […]

Nicolas Potel

The sad news this month is that Nicolas Potel has parted company from the negociant house which bears his name, owned by the Cottin brothers of Maison Labouré-Roi. Nicolas, son of the late Gérard Potel of Domaine de la Pousse d’Or in Volnay, is one of Burgundy’s most dynamic figures – not just in terms […]