Chancellor Rachel Reeves recently delivered her Spring Statement but did not address pleas from the wine and spirits industry to cut tax duties. Industry leaders and opposition MPs were left disheartened as Reeves announced significant welfare spending cuts amounting to £4.8 billion, alongside a crackdown on tax avoidance expected to save £1 billion. This declaration… Read More »
Some wine regions enjoy favorable conditions, while others, like Cahors in the Lot Valley, have faced historical challenges over the past 800 years. The geography of Cahors, nestled along the River Lot, has played a significant role in its struggles. The river’s upper part presents steep, narrow gorges unsuitable for viticulture, while the lower part… Read More »
AI has become ubiquitous, influencing various writing tools. Applications like Microsoft Word now promote their AI features, and social platforms, such as LinkedIn, have adopted similar strategies, often resulting in uniform and repetitive content. One potential issue is the ease with which AI can rewrite text, obscuring potential plagiarism. A demonstration using AI capable of… Read More »
Wine in History: Vin et Lumières Stuart Walton discusses the role of wine in early cinema, specifically through the lens of the Lumière brothers’ film Partie de Cartes. In this foundational short film from 1895, we see three elderly men enjoying a leisurely afternoon at a café table. Two are engaged in a game of… Read More »
When tasting M Chapoutier’s 2024 Sélections Parcellaires, report Matt Walls noted that the growing season was particularly challenging. Chapoutier, renowned as a Rhône winemaker, described 2024 as one of his toughest years yet. Despite these adversities, the effort has resulted in a vintage that shows great potential. The Rhône region faced numerous viticultural diseases and… Read More »
A limited-edition bottle of Old Rip Van Winkle bourbon has set a new auction record, fetching an astonishing $125,000 (£96,450) at a Sotheby’s auction. This bottle, part of the Van Winkle Selection created by the Stitzel-Weller distillery for the 2007 Kentucky Bourbon Festival, had been estimated to sell for between $30,000 and $50,000 but exceeded… Read More »
Champagne Jérôme Blin presents its Les Ports Complantation Zero Dosage 2020, sourced from an organically farmed vineyard in Vincelles that dates back to 1986. This unique champagne is a blend of Pinot Meunier, Petit Meslier, and Pinot Blanc. It was bottled in May 2021 and disgorged in July 2022 without any dosage. The result is… Read More »
The latest volume of the Classic Wine Library series offers a timely and comprehensive guide to the evolving landscape of the Loire Valley, a region experiencing a significant resurgence in wine production. Authored by Beverley Blanning MW, Wines of the Loire Valley provides an enticing introduction to this notable wine region, which deserves recognition as… Read More »
The progress that Georgia has made in the last decade is remarkable, particularly in two key areas. Firstly, the country has begun to greatly utilize its diverse array of indigenous grape varieties. During my initial visit in 2013, many of these varieties appeared more as curiosities than mainstream options. However, today, a significant renaissance is… Read More »
One of the most enjoyable experiences I had last year was participating in the filming of a TV series called ‘The Science of Wine.’ This project originated from a Dutch production company, Farmhouse Films, known for their subscription channel, WinemastersTV. My first engagement with them was during a shoot about Portuguese wines. After a successful… Read More »