Drink
The secret heart of London conservatism…
There is a dive near St James’s which could claim to be the epicentre of international reaction. It is also…
Claret and blues
There is a dive near St James’s which could claim to be the epicentre of international reaction. It is also…
What to drink when you're on a cloud of post-election euphoria
Most of my friends are still on a cloud of post-election euphoria. There is one exception: those involved with opinion-polling.…
Let’s drink to a Tory majority
Most of my friends are still on a cloud of post-election euphoria. There is one exception: those involved with opinion-polling.…
Could any cook help me overcome my terror of tapioca?
There are those who claim that this column is idiosyncratic. They have seen nothing yet. I am about to mention…
Spawn of the devil
There are those who claim that this column is idiosyncratic. They have seen nothing yet. I am about to mention…
The greatest wine I’ve ever drunk
The supermarket chains are not always blameworthy. Their missionary efforts have helped to ensure that wine drinking in Britain is…
A taste of heaven on earth
The supermarket chains are not always blameworthy. Their missionary efforts have helped to ensure that wine drinking in Britain is…
The triumph of Guatemalan rum (and a disaster for a Guatemalan ambassador)
For many years, the Central American republic of Guatemala had a grievance against the United Kingdom. It claimed sovereignty over…
A rum encounter
For many years, the Central American republic of Guatemala had a grievance against the United Kingdom. It claimed sovereignty over…
Wines to toast a warrior saint
Towards the chimes at midnight, a few of us left a — respectable — establishment near Leicester Square. Eight or…
A toast to Spain
Towards the chimes at midnight, a few of us left a — respectable — establishment near Leicester Square. Eight or…
A dog to remember (and the wine he inspired)
Meeting to taste wine, we started by talking about dogs. Roy Hattersley is good on the subject, which ought to…
From puppy to Pinot
Meeting to taste wine, we started by talking about dogs. Roy Hattersley is good on the subject, which ought to…
France, England and the tragedy of DSK
When we consider poets who perished before their day, thoughts turn to the Romantics or the war victims: Burns, Keats,…
A divided inheritance
When we consider poets who perished before their day, thoughts turn to the Romantics or the war victims: Burns, Keats,…
Why soldiers are the funniest people
We were discussing wit. I uttered a self-evident truth which proved gratifyingly controversial. Of all the people I encounter, the…
Wits on parade
We were discussing wit. I uttered a self-evident truth which proved gratifyingly controversial. Of all the people I encounter, the…
The spirit of Prohibition lives (if you’re a haggis)
It is an old adage, but still pertinent. ‘Every generalisation about India is true, and so is the opposite.’ The…
The spirit of Prohibition
It is an old adage, but still pertinent. ‘Every generalisation about India is true, and so is the opposite.’ The…
The battling brilliance of Burgundy
There is only one answer to the question ‘Burgundy or claret?’ ‘Yes, but never in the same glass.’ Yet I…
Burgundian battles
There is only one answer to the question ‘Burgundy or claret?’ ‘Yes, but never in the same glass.’ Yet I…
When a forgotten bottle turns out to be a treasure
I had not drunk the wine for 20 years, and nearly all the information which I thought that I had…
Sonoma survivor
I had not drunk the wine for 20 years, and nearly all the information which I thought that I had…
Cognac and the Viking connection in la France profonde
The chestnut trees were still resplendent in yellow leaf along the banks of a misty autumn river on its glide…
