Somms on California: Winning over the Sceptics
19 October, 2021
Forty-five years after that legendary ‘Judgement of Paris’, Californian wine is firmly established amongst the globe’s greatest, yet scepticism is by no means uncommon among wine enthusiasts. Committed to championing the likes of Napa and Sonoma, a trio of California-loving …
How the California Wine Industry is Proactively Responding to Climate Change
19 October, 2021
‘For anyone who is doubtful about climate change, just spend some time in a wine grape vineyard,’ states a winemaker in Mendocino County, California. ‘Because of the increasing temperatures, the grapes are ripening two to three weeks earlier than they …
The Winners of the Golden Vines Awards
12 October, 2021
I attended the press event for the Golden Vines Awards on 7th October 2021, which included the inaugural Diversity Scholarships, supported by the Gerard Basset Foundation. These are awards of £55,000 to two BAME/BIPOC students who are studying for the …
Wine Webinar Series: Sherry – the finest wine
30 September, 2021
Discover the secrets of one of the most under-appreciated yet finest wines in the world with Ben Howkins Join us for a series of wine lectures curated by Académie du Vin Library, looking at key regions, wines and winemaking practices, …
Wine Webinar Series: Road Trip – On the California Wine Road with Clare Tooley
28 September, 2021
Join us for the first in a series of wine lectures. California is one of the world’s most interesting and prestigious wine regions. Clare Tooley MW will guide you around the state from south to north, discussing the wines and …
Urban Wineries
17 September, 2021
Urban wineries are a growing trend. The earliest were started up in the United States, particularly in California, about 20 years ago, but are now to be found all over the country, and the concept has spread, to Europe, Hong …
Emulating Greatness
17 September, 2021
History repeats itself, we are told. If this were true for wine, however, we would immediately lose the magic that captures our imagination and keeps us coming back year after year to taste wines made in special places to debate …
Reaching the Eternal – an interview with Aubert de Villaine
16 September, 2021
What three words would you choose to describe the wine of Romanée-Conti? If you’ve never had the opportunity to taste this iconic wine, expressions of chagrin such as ‘far too expensive’ or ‘not my league’ might come to mind. When …
Let us be Franc
26 August, 2021
Global plantings of Cabernet Franc cover around 60,000 hectares, with just over half of these total vineyard holdings seen in France. Although the grape variety’s origins purport to Basque heritage, most will associate Cabernet Franc with one of the many …
California Wine: It’s All a Dream
24 August, 2021
A 50th Anniversary is a big deal not only for couples and businesses but also for California wineries. Throughout 2022, neither fires nor earthquakes will prevent two dozen wineries from celebrating their 50th harvest. In 2023 and over the following …
Napa Valley’s Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars: 50 years of Iron and Velvet
29 July, 2021
Warren Winiarski on a tractor at the first plantings There’s an old black-and-white photograph of Warren Winiarski planting Stag’s Leap Vineyard (forever known as SLV) exactly half a century ago. He’s on a tractor, a big Ford 4000, but he’s …
Canadian Wines – It’s Their Time to Shine!
28 July, 2021
Without a vested interest in Canada, one may not realize the extent to which the wine industry has exploded in the last 40 years. A common yet antiquated belief that Canada is most known for ice wine is quickly slipping …