Writing Worth Reading
Writing Worth Reading
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From filthy plonk to first growth Bordeaux, there's something for every palate in our cultural and historical survey of wine
Vineyard tour by paraglider. Beautiful if you're cooped up in an office
Fooling around with "Downfall" is a well-trodden path now, but this is still fun
Use a tree!
A screw, a screwdriver and a hammer
Gary Vaynerchuk's advice. One: Try going two years without ordering the same type of wine twice
Classic Hugh Johnson. Great stuff. Part one
Storing wine
How to tell the age of a bottle of wine
How to decant a bottle of wine
How to use port tongs. Ingenious
How to serve wine at the right temperature
How to choose wine in a restaurant
Extortionist threatens to poison the vines of La Romanée-Conti, tiny vineyard producing France's most revered and expensive Burgundy, unless he's paid €1m. By French standards, this is worse than a crime. It is a desecration
A revelation over a glass of Beaujolais at Chez Panisse in Berkeley launches architectural theorist David Gissen into a journey of discovery -- both oenological and cartographic -- among the winemakers of France
"What I now seek from wine is the element of surprise. The novelist Henry James captured this perfectly: 'There are two kinds of taste, the taste for emotions of surprise and the taste for emotions of recognition'"
Constantly disappointed bar manager runs gauntlet of Afghan bootleggers, police in search of drinkable wine. Lovely piece mixing social commentary, humour and dash of wine snobbery
Lovely tour through history of sweet white wine. Starts with Cypriot Manna from Hesiod's "Works And Days". If you'd like to know your Tokaji from your Late-Harvest Riesling, this is your weekend reading
Matt Kramer examines the weaknesses of the wine world and gives excellent advice on what he would do differently: "If I owned a winery I would strive to summon the necessary strength to do what it takes to stand out"
Notes on matching wine and food. Easiest way not to mess up? Pick a wine from the same region as the food. If you can't do that, safe bet is to go for a wine with moderate acidity. And dessert wines must be as sweet as the pudding
Weighing up the merits of European wines. Can wines from the rest of the world ever measure up? Judged on variety, originality, finesse, technical prowess and vocabulary
"In wine country, pot-infused wines are the open secrets that present themselves in unmarked bottles at the end of winemaker dinners and very VIP tours." Who would have guessed? If law changes, will this be the apéritif of choice?
An interesting and genuinely useful take on wines that complement your food. Be honest: does that Riesling really go with the ratatouille? Time to go the extra mile, pop a cork and impress your guests
Good speech on future of wine criticism in digital age. "Consumers don’t need – or want – centralised gatekeepers telling them what they should or shouldn’t drink." Those Robert Parker wine scores? Relics of a bygone era
Glimpse inside royal cellars finds Buckingham Palace on a budget. "It may surprise those thrilled by a royal invitation that they may well be served a wine similar to the one they themselves slip into their supermarket trolleys"
A short and quirky comparison of cricket and Australian wine. "A groundsman, just like a vigneron, spends the winter and spring tending to his few acres". If you don't appreciate the game, it might whet your palate
Forget judging a bottle of wine by its price. Look at the label instead. Can be a far better guide to what you're going to get. Think about it: If they didn't put moose in sunglasses on the label how would you know to avoid it?
On the incredible viticulture of Santorini. Vines survived devastating volcanic eruption, live with almost total absence of rainfall. Look like straggly weeds to casual observer, produce the famous Vinsanto
Remember Goodfellas? Here's how one of those characters might approach the finer art of wine tasting. Our mafia-inspired sommelier reminisces about wine’s glory days. And the only things 'whacked' are the grapes
Billionaire collector's lawsuit against Christie's tells of potentially huge fraud in fake Pétrus and other fine wines, with prices boosted by 100-point reviews from Robert Parker
Choosing the first bottle of wine is simple: White, light, get it to the table fast. The second is the one that counts. It should be better than the first, interesting, unknown to your guests. Be guided by vintage
For wine lovers, and those who've seen Sideways. On pinot noir, source of the best red Burgundy. Known as the "heartbreak grape" because it's so tricky to get right. Growing success in Oregon, SA, Chile, NZ and Australia
Equate wine and food to human relationships: "The food and wine should be equal, and they should enhance each other". Aldo Sohm, celebrated sommelier, spills the beans on his food and wine secrets. If in doubt, drink champagne
Global wine market is filled with "underrated" wines. By this we mean good or great wine that doesn't command high prices because it's not classed growth Bordeaux, Burgundy or Napa Cabernet. Think Loire, Sonoma, Beaujolais. Cheers!
After three bottles of Chateau Lafite are sold in Hong Kong for more than $700,000, wine expert calls the top of the market. Even status symbols have their limits, and Bordeaux tastes awful with Asian food anyway
"A technological innovation that doesn't involve auras, electromagnetic fields or crappy wine, and which might actually make a difference in how wine gets made". And here’s the breakthrough: UV light makes your wine taste better
The more expensive the wine, it seems, the fancier the words used in the review. So, can you predict the price of a wine, solely from a reviewer's vocabulary? Apparently so. References to obscure fruit are one sure sign of dear wine
A burgeoning Greek wine industry, suffering at home from the economic crisis, is focusing on exports. Respected American importers are taking more interest in Greek wines. Let's drink to that
Profile of Charles Smith, "antichrist of the wine trade“. Holds two Winemaker of the Year awards. Labels include Velvet Devil Merlot, Boom Boom Syrah and Kung Fu Girl Riesling. "He's very democratic. He has a wine for everybody”
New vintages get their reputation, and pricing, when barrel samples are offered for tasting six months after pressing. But how closely do those samples track the mature wine? Much less than the vintners would like you to think
"I love sediment. I quiver with delight when I pull a cork out of a bottle to find the bottom of it encrusted with crystals, or dripping with a muddy purple muck." A new bottle battles wine sediment. A solution to a problem?
"At its best, Nebbiolo takes on a rich, perfumed smell reminiscent of roses or violets; in some cases there are fruit notes, predominantly cherry and strawberry." In praise of a lesser known grape variety, used for fine Italian wine
"Palate acuity peaks when we are eleven; after that, it is a long, slow slide downhill." Reminded of his children's discerning tastes, Andrew Jefford ponders which wines he will eventually introduce to them as young adults
The Californian winemaker gives us a fabulously eclectic reading list for understanding and enjoying the world of wine
