Much of the pleasure of a skiing holiday is found in the all-important pit stops, with essential refuelling (particularly with the scantily clad slopes of the recent season). As a wintry chill runs up the spine of the country, Ben Thomson muses the bottles that best partner a day on the slopes. One of the […]

Following on from yesterday’s post, Mark Pardoe MW – our Wine Buying Director – steps into the ring, appealing to the head and heart as he claims wine’s worth at Christmas. It always seems to me that complex spirits – by which I mostly mean Cognac, Armagnac and Scotch whisky – are meditative drinks, savoured […]

As 25th December approaches, Barbara Drew, a member of our expert Wine School team, offers some wise words on how to keep Christmas chaos at bay – and the wine flowing. The table piled high with a hefty bird, plus trimmings; a constant battle to avoid flaming more than the Christmas pud as paper hats […]

Our Burgundy Director – and intrepid explorer – Jasper Morris MW reports on a recent excursion to China’s Shangri-la, scouting out the potential of vineyards planted at dizzying heights in the Yunnan province. Shangri-la, or Xiānggélǐlā, or Zhōngdiàn, or indeed Gyalthang in Tibetan, are all names for the same magical place in north-west Yunnan. It […]