Wine fraud is a big issue. It also makes for a fascinating story. So I was thrilled to be able to explore the topic in a recent BBC Radio 4 documentary called The Wine Detectives. (Click on the link to find the original 28-minute programme...
Carmenere is the James Bond of wine grapes. It's mysterious, with a past shrouded in conjecture. No one knows how best to handle or contain it. It's often been on the ropes - but has proved a dogged survivor. It also goes under many pseudonyms, from...
Domaine G. Quillot Côtes du Jura Chardonnay Vieilles Vignes 2012, 13.5%, France (£8.99, Lidl, from 28th September 2017) Wow. This quirky, appetizing white is quite something. One thing's for sure: it won't be like any other Chardonnay you've tasted. Maybe it's not for everyone. But if you like your...
Fierce Beer Imperial Café Racer Porter, Scotland, 8.5% (£3.49 per bottle, Fierce Beer) We thoroughly enjoyed this great little brew on Saturday Kitchen alongside some delicious chocolate brownies. It's actually a coffee and vanilla porter - so a dark beer but with lots of richness to it. This...
Finest Viré Clessé 2014, France, 12% (£11, Tesco) 'You've hit the nail on the head with this - I could sit and drink this...
Ara Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2016, New Zealand, 12.5% (£10.59 but down to £7.94 on multi buy, Waitrose) We are big fans of chef Freddy Forster in this household. He's not only a lovely man but also a brilliant cook - witness his utterly delicious, dangerously moreish Saturday...
After Susie helped plant the first vines on Champagne Taittinger's brand new English wine estate in May 2017, she reflects in the pages of Decanter on how far and fast the category has moved on. From being an emergent category just a decade or so ago,...
Domaine du Vieux Vauvert Vouvray 2016, France (£9.99, Waitrose or via Wine Searcher) First things first: this is not a dry wine! There. Glad we got that one out of the way. But it's important to say because there's nothing worse than expecting something to be dry when...
Finest Viña del Cura Rioja Reserva 2012, Spain (down to £6.80 from £8.50 on offer, Tesco) It's always nice to be original and find quirky wine matches but sometimes it's best just to stick to the absolute classics. The lovely José Pizarro was cooking rack of lamb with...
In the 1970s, a French customs official famously declared that English wine simply did 'not exist'. How times change. From a meagre total of around 1,500 bottles in the mid-1960s, English wine production now averages around five million bottles, with a national vineyard of some 2,000 hectares....