Drink
Last of the lunchtime wine
This is a tale of two lunches, sort of. The first was a classically English affair. We started with native…
The real French embassy is a restaurant
Semper eadem. There is some basement in a Mayfair street that is forever France. It is not far from the…
The real French embassy
Semper eadem. There is some basement in a Mayfair street that is forever France. It is not far from the…
Wine merchants might just be the happiest people in the world
A delightful girl came to see me this morning. She is helping with the research for a biography of David…
A vintner’s vocation
A delightful girl came to see me this morning. She is helping with the research for a biography of David…
The willow and the vine
A high proportion of wine-lovers also enjoy cricket, and vice versa. This might seem natural. Anyone with an aesthetic temperament…
Proof that the Japanese know how to make great Bordeaux
Château Lagrange, a St Julien third growth, has the largest acreage of any Bordeaux classed growth. For much of the…
In praise of Japanese Bordeaux
Château Lagrange, a St Julien third growth, has the largest acreage of any Bordeaux classed growth. For much of the…
In praise of the Loire - cradle of civilisation, and wonderful wines
Rivers are the cradles of civilisation and the Loire is an outstanding example. It is one of the head-waters of…
For the love of the Loire
Rivers are the cradles of civilisation and the Loire is an outstanding example. It is one of the head-waters of…
The Society of Odd Bottles and the Sisterhood of the Black Pudding
The Honourable Society of Odd Bottles has been mentioned in this column before. I can report that the membership is…
Three sisterhoods
The Honourable Society of Odd Bottles has been mentioned in this column before. I can report that the membership is…
Horse racing, Sancerre and escaped lobsters
A stint in dry dock — the ‘dry’ literally — has one advantage. There is time for lots of long…
From horses to glasses
A stint in dry dock — the ‘dry’ literally — has one advantage. There is time for lots of long…
Visiting Burgundy from my hospital bed
There have been some splendid rumours about my health. According to the most exotic, I was cas-evacked from a hill…
Escape to Burgundy
There have been some splendid rumours about my health. According to the most exotic, I was cas-evacked from a hill…
From Glyndebourne to St Thomas's Hospital
‘Don’t you think you’re drinking too much?’ said the nurse, contemplating the array of bottles. ‘But I feel so thirsty,’…
Bedside manners
‘Don’t you think you’re drinking too much?’ said the nurse, contemplating the array of bottles. ‘But I feel so thirsty,’…
A toast to all bottles
Where two or three British males are gathered together, the agenda often includes a glass or two. One thing can…
A toast to all bottles
Where two or three British males are gathered together, the agenda often includes a glass or two. One thing can…
Measuring out an elegy in Burgundy
It was a sort of wake. An old friend’s father had died, and some of us were helping him and…
An elegy in Burgundy
It was a sort of wake. An old friend’s father had died, and some of us were helping him and…
The joy of Glenmorangie
Glenmorangie is the most accessible of malt whiskies. It is a gentle, almost feminine creature, with hints of spring flowers,…
The joy of Glenmorangie
Glenmorangie is the most accessible of malt whiskies. It is a gentle, almost feminine creature, with hints of spring flowers,…