Wine
The world is a mess. Why not find escapism through wine?
In most children’s stories, the good characters live happily ever after. Works suitable for older readers tend to greater realism.…
It’s time to take Italian wine seriously
Tuscany: earth has not anything to show more fair. The landscape is charming. The gentle hills seem to smile down…
Party spirit
I feel old, and feelings are not always wrong, This eheu fugaces mood came on me at the Conservative party…
A serious Burgundy
It was the English summer at its most perverse. We were drinking Pimm’s while hoping against hope for better news…
Tuscan favours
Some subjects invite an eternal recurrence. One such is Tuscany. The other day, I wrote about that glorious region: its…
Super Tuscans
In Fellini’s La Dolce Vita, the hopes embodied in the title dissolve into grimness and black irony. It was all…
Rosé and roses
What an idyllic setting. We were amidst the joys of high summer in England, with just enough of a breeze…
Discovering St Julien
Burgundy or Bordeaux? We were discussing that unending question during dinner over the weekend. I think that there is only…
Red bull
I am assured that this is not a legend. But a few years ago, an Irishman’s life was twice saved…
Life of the party
A few days ago, when everything looked black, a small group of us were consoling ourselves over a couple of…
The art of the cocktail
We were discussing bourbon and whether American whiskey could ever rival Scotch. I recalled the first time I ever tried…
Days of passing
There have been few more momentous weeks in British history, or indeed in world history. This commentator must plead guilty.…
A toast to the field marshals
August may not be the cruellest month but it is often the most dangerous one. Now that it is over,…
At least we still have wine
Even in recent heat, the English summer can be magical. As long as there is shade, a pool and a…
The perfect summer drink
Imagine a camel train, crossing the great desert. The remaining water is rancid; the beasts’ humps are shrunken. Death looms.…
Think pink
In the battle of ideas, it is sometimes necessary to make a tactical withdrawal. That is now the case over…
We’ll always have wine
‘Club’ is a four-letter word. Whenever a club is mentioned in the press, it will inevitably be portrayed as a…
Sea fare
One could get used to this. I come from seafaring stock, albeit distant. ‘Anderson’ suggests Viking antecedents, especially as my…
Wishful drinking
I fancy myself as a bit of an oenophile and during the lockdowns, when my local branch of Majestic was…
On the same page
In the West End of London there is an alley which insinuates its way between the Charing Cross Road and…
Super Tuscany
Amid the grandeur of old Edinburgh, in the lee of the castle, is one of the finest buildings in Scotland:…
Wild Geese of wine
The Irish rarely understate their achievements. Yet there is one exception. Over the centuries, the links between Catholic Ireland and…
A voyage of discovery
If only toasts and good wishes were weapons of war. At every serious repast I have attended since the invasion…
Women’s work
The inhabitants of Tuscany and Umbria can claim to be the most civilised beings on the planet, even exceeding the…
Vintage years
Across oceans and continents, less favoured nations produce more history than they can consume. In these islands, the English —…
