In Niagara (5) Judging ends and dinner at Fat Rabbit, St Catharines
So, the final day of judging of the National Wine Awards of Canada (NWACs). It’s a bittersweet moment, because although
Read more
Features
In Niagara (4) more judging, Ravine, Ruffino, Le Clos Jordanne, Flat Rock, Cloudsley, Domaine Queylus, 16 Mile Cellar
Days 4 and 5 Full-on judging on Sunday, followed by a recreational (not work) trip to Ravine Vineyard for a
Read more
In Niagara, Canada (3) tasting wines from Beamsville Bench wineries at Hidden Bench
The third day in Canada’s Niagara wine region. Judging was solid: I was with Jeremy Bonia (who runs restaurants in
Read more
Gigondas: Domaine Santa Duc, one of the appellation’s star producers
Website: https://www.santaduc.fr/en/ Benjamin Gras hosted me at Santa Duc, which is located on the higher plain of Gigondas at 150
Read more
In Niagara, Canada (2) at Two Sisters, tasting wines from Prince Edward County and Lake Erie North Shore
A solid day of judging wine followed by a tasting of Prince Edward County wines and dinner at the Two
Read more
In Niagara, Canada (1) an evening with Big Head, Creekside, Rosewood, MW Cellars and 13th Street
It’s good to be back in Canada again. I arrived in Toronto late afternoon and drove through a thunderstorm to
Read more
Catching up with Plaimont, the super-cooperative focusing on recovering lost grape varieties in France’s southwest
Website: https://www.plaimont.com/en/ Plaimont have a thing about looking for disappeared (or nearly disappeared) grapes, and this tasting was a great
Read more
Gigondas: Domaine des Bousquets
I tasted these wines over dinner with Julien Bréchet (pictured above) of Domaine des Bosquets. He took over the family
Read more
Gigondas: Domaine des Florets, a new ecologically focused domaine
Website: https://www.domainedesflorets.com/en/home Jérôme Rathle was an environmental consultant, and had worked for he world’s largest specialist sustainability consultancy, ERM, until
Read more
Gigondas: Pierre Amadieu
Website: https://www.pierre-amadieu.com/en/ Pierre Amadieu is an important producer in Gigondas, with around 10% of the appellation’s vineyard area. They have
Read more