News

Cartema Blanco 2012

by  |  13-07-2017

Hell hath no fury like July in Catalonia and one with little chilled wine to drink. Given this heat and blustery humidity, I was scampering about to find something to chill and while reds are... more »

In The Glass: Tomàs Cusiné – Finca Comabarra 2012

by  |  08-07-2017

I was quite excited to taste this wine as previous experience with Tomàs Cusiné wines as seen in the “Mineral” made in a negociant fashion down in DO Montsant or then the “Cara Nord” white... more »

The 8th VideNit changes things up

by  |  05-07-2017

This past weekend saw the 8th edition of “VideNit” hosted at the rural hotel of Mas Figueres in Marçà. It marked a rather large change from the previous seven events as they’ve moved it to... more »
Les Sentius in the center, a historical paratge of Porrera/Falset

Explaining paratge/paraje certifications in Catalan wine

by  |  03-07-2017

With the publication of my lengthy article at Meininger’s explaining the new certifications of DOQ Priorat, it’s worth standing back from this for a moment and understanding a key term that everyone in the wine... more »

In The Glass: Bodegas Roda – Sela 2014

by  |  30-06-2017

I was quite excited to receive this recent sample as I’d tasted the Sela 2013 sometime back and found it to be not only a great wine, but also a great value. I’m not really... more »

Observations from the annual GuildSomm survey

by  |  26-06-2017

If you’ve not seen it, GuildSomm has posted its 2016 salary survey which anyone, even non-subscribers to the site can view. They create this by putting out a poll that people answer anonymously on the... more »
Pictured with the Georgia book

In The Glass: Alaverdi Monastery – Saperavi 2011

by  |  23-06-2017

There are few winery slogans that can match that of the Alaverdi Monastery in Kakheti, Georgia. To state, “Since 1011” on the label leaves little up for debate that these monks have been making wine... more »

Alta Alella’s Parvus

by  |  13-06-2017

I’ve been a fan of what Alta Alella has been doing for some time. In case you don’t believe me, have a look. To a large extent, they’ve been striving a great deal to drive... more »

The first “Tastets de Gratallops” village wine tasting

by  |  05-06-2017

When it comes to the wine-producing villages of DOQ Priorat, Gratallops is by far the most dominant. With about 22 cellars located within the village boundaries, they have have over 25% of the registered cellars... more »

Álvaro Palacios en primeur 2016

by  |  29-05-2017

Due to research for another another article with Meininger’s, I paid a visit to Álvaro Palacios last month for a chat and, being the consummate showman that he is (the classy booklet above was for... more »