Susie on Chris Evans show

(by peter)

Chris Evans has a problem: he’s fallen out of love with dry white wine.

So Susie – noted white wine devotee and one by nature concerned about the drinking habits of others – went on his programme on BBC Radio 2 to convince him of the error of his ways.

We’ve got a lot of time for Chris, not just because of his lively mind and brilliant presenting style, but also because he’s an inveterate foodie with an open mind and a thirst for knowledge. He owns a pub in Chiddingfold and has made several star appearances on Saturday Kitchen, stealing the show in the process.

So it was great for Susie to go on the show again to chat about wine.

The issue was that Chris has apparently fallen out of love with white wine, saying he ‘doesn’t see the point’ any more, and that it ‘doesn’t do it’ for his palate. He does, however, love sweeter styles of white now, especially with rich food at the start of a meal.

Susie made the point that, because of the huge diversity and variety of whites, there are styles out there to suit everyone. The sweeter styles, she said, can make great matches for spicy Asian food.

As for recommendations for the spring and summer, Susie urged Chris to avoid bland Pinot Grigio and instead go for Pinot Gris, to overlook Muscadet and try Albariño.

‘Try something you’ve never had before,’ she enthused, ‘and it will excite you.’

Fighting talk indeed from Susie, which seemed to make an impression on Chris. I’m not sure, as one twitter commentator noted, that she had ‘turned the mighty Chris Evans!’ But she certainly gave him – and hopefully his many thousands of listeners – food for thought, and hopefully a few ideas for summer drinking.

The interview was picked up quite widely. One twitter comment which we liked read, ‘Fab to hear Susie talking wine with Chris Evans on radio this morning. Is it wrong to be salivating over Pinot Gris before breakfast?’