Stefano Girelli | Sicily, expressed in enchanting flavour
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- Published: 04 June 2021 04 June 2021
In this interview and tasting, I speak with Stefano Girelli, owner of two estates Santa Tresa and Cortese, in the southern part of the Sicily, Vittoria. We discuss the island’s potential for organic produce and why it is so exciting as a 21st-century wine producer.
London Wine Fair | Industry Briefing from IWCA
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- Published: 26 May 2021 26 May 2021
I was pleased to moderate this International Wineries For Climate Action (IWCA) briefing during the London Wine Fair. The session involved three of the leading names in the wine world?: Familia Torres, Jackson Family Wines and Symington Family Estates.
Climate Change Creeps Into Champagne Reserve Wines
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- Published: 20 May 2021 20 May 2021
The Champagne collective group of growers, Le Mains du Terroirs du Champagne, held a tasting in April to connect with us aficionados who like to pilgrimage to Reims for the annual Printemps du Champagne tastings but who have been hampered by the pandemic.
BOOKS: A Gastronomic Adventure On The Italian (Seborgan?) Riviera
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- Published: 30 April 2021 30 April 2021
The James Vasey ‘Fiction For Foodies’ trilogy gives the ancient mountain village of Seborga a parallel life, shining a light on its Templar past, local cuisine and wines, as well as pathways to a sustainable future.
Donnafugata: expressing Mount Etna
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- Published: 19 April 2021 19 April 2021
Art & Expression
In Greek mythology, Zeus was said to have trapped a monster called Typhus beneath the mountain. That might explain the near-constant active displays that we witness on our news and social feeds from those standing in proximity to this tumultuous lady.
Three Barolo’s by Giovanni Rosso
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- Published: 30 March 2021 30 March 2021
Piemonte is only a few hours drive away from here but under the lockdown conditions, a visit is currently off-limits. It was a pleasure to receive these wines in 2020 and they have been delayed in posting due to the chaos of relocating here. It is a real pleasure to post these now with some thoughts for local food from here in Liguria.
Tasting these superb wines by Giovanni Rosso there is an incredibly alluring character to these wines with layers of complexity. They are fantastically charming.
40 yr old Tawny, tasting in and out of situ: Burmester And Quinta Do Noval
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- Written by Nicholas Breeze Nicholas Breeze
- Published: 24 March 2021 24 March 2021
As unexpected as the lockdown was, so it has been that probably the most memorable drinking experiences throughout the period have come from fortified wines. In 2019 I visited Portugal 3 times and the Douro Valley twice. In February 2020, on the eve of lockdown, I was in Porto for the Essencia tasting, and despite many memorable parts to the trip, I do cherish the Port Dreams tasting as among the most special. I will write this up later as I have a backlog of port tasting notes, memories and even film footage to disassemble.
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From Pandemic To Climate Change Podcast
An aperitif by the coliseum
As COVID-19 conspires with the grimmest of winds and rain to force a societal retreat behind our own front doors, the word ennui springs to mind. The muddle of displeasure is pierced when Natalia hands me a large bulbous glass of a liquid I do not recognise.
Artichoke pasta and very fine Pigato
Britain’s lamentable exit
On the eve of Britain’s official departure from the EU, my partner and I decided to explore a small town on the Italian Riviera where thewintry cold doesn’t feel so much like cold war bite.
I had warned my significant other that I would be having an inverse departure party, a release of the sanity valve if you like!
Soave: volcanic wines with elegance and longevity
Sitting inside the ancient castle walls inside the town of Soave, a short drive from Verona in northern Italy, the unique slightly almond aroma of the indigenous grape, Garganega, rises gently from my glass. The castle sprawls up the side of an extinct volcano that gives the region its variant soil structures that mark out the better quality of Soave wines.
An American In Paris; Tanisha Townsend (@GirlMeetsGlass) discusses podcasts, Paris wine bars, & what she's drinking at the moment
Tanisha Townsend decided to move to Paris 4 years ago after regularly passing through the city en route to the world’s most famous vineyards. In fact, it was about 2 years ago at the Printemps de Champagne Bouzy Rouge tasting in Reims that I saw (who we shall now refer to as) GirlMeetsGlass chirpily speaking to her web followers on Snapchat.
Wine tasting in Galicia: The pilgrims search for Albarino
The cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, the final resting place of Saint James, rises out of the landscape, infested with antiquity. The rambling steep streets give way to shafts of dramatic light, emblazoned chapels, and tightly packed tapas bars, dusty, as old novels pressed together in antiquarian bookshops.
Interview: (Re)Defining the Entre-Deux-Mers, climate change & tasting with Stephane Dupuch
Driving into the Entre-Deux-Mers region from the north, the vineyards roll out like a bright green deep-pile carpet across the undulating land. It’s hard not to be excited about tasting wines with so much heritage, as we head to Chateau-Sainte-Marie to meet with 5th generation owner, Stéphane Dupuch.
