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2 months ago | 
wickedleeks.riverford.co.uk | Joel Hart
Hugo Stewart has picked me up from Salisbury train station and we are making our way towards Domaine Hugo, one of the UK’s only biodynamically-certified wine estates. During the twenty minute journey through the chalk lands I notice very few vineyards, and I mention this to Stewart as we approach our destination. He confirms that this part of the countryside is dominated by farmland.
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Sep 25, 2024 | 
cluboenologique.com | Henry Jeffreys |David Kermode |Joel Hart |Jason Millar
There are parts of Jumilla that resemble nothing so much as a moonscape. Tread into the powdery soil and you leave a print like Neil Armstrong’s. There are myriad different soils in this arid corner of Spain, from sandy loams, silt and clay to marl and hard limestone but the abiding impression is one of whiteness: white stones on pale ground reflecting the cold white glare of an April sun.
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Sep 23, 2024 | 
cluboenologique.com | David Kermode |Henry Jeffreys |Joel Hart |Ashleigh Arnott
Going for a drink in Barcelona isn’t what it used to be. The Mediterranean hotspot, best known for its beaches, Gaudís and laid-back way of life has been overrun with cocktail bars. And not just any old cocktail bars.
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Sep 23, 2024 | 
cluboenologique.com | David Kermode |Henry Jeffreys |Joel Hart |Ashleigh Arnott
In episode 180 of The Drinking Hour podcast, host David Kermode travels to Château L’Hospitalet in the Languedoc-Roussillon to meet Gérard Bertrand, a former rugby star whose winemaking approach has yielded an innovative orange and the world’s most expensive rosé, amongst many other wines. Bertrand is approaching his 50th year of winemaking and with 17 estates under his belt, he is a formidable figure on the French winemaking scene.
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Sep 20, 2024 | 
cluboenologique.com | Henry Jeffreys |Joel Hart |Carolyn Boyd |David Kermode
Where power and money are found, there is usually good eating – and Bordeaux’s hegemony came from wine, itself an agricultural product and one that demands fine food.
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Sep 19, 2024 | 
cluboenologique.com | Henry Jeffreys |Joel Hart |Ashleigh Arnott |Louella Berryman
The year 1805 was a terrible time to be a Champagne maker. Napoleon’s warmongering was ruining the economy, the weather (and therefore, the wine) was awful and François Clicquot (Tom Sturridge), young scion of a Verzy wine estate, was clearly unwell.
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Sep 18, 2024 | 
cluboenologique.com | Henry Jeffreys |Joel Hart |Louella Berryman |Ashleigh Arnott
The quality and character of individual vineyards is a fashionable factor in the world of fine wine but it has been central to the identity of Masi’s wines since the estate was founded in 1772. After all, Masi takes its name from the Vaio di Masivineyard in Valpolicella Classico, a site that celebrated its 250th harvest in 2022.
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Sep 17, 2024 | 
cluboenologique.com | Henry Jeffreys |Joel Hart |Mathilda Hill-Smith |Ashleigh Arnott
In 25 years, Bordeaux has been transformed into a stunning city; its once-blackened Unesco-listed architecture has been polished and now the pale limestone mansions bask in the Aquitaine sun. Meanwhile, its once-industrial docks have been redeveloped into dynamic and attractive waterfronts, such as the Bassins à Flots district, which is also home to the Cité du Vin, an architectural masterpiece of a wine museum.
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Sep 16, 2024 | 
cluboenologique.com | Joel Hart |Mathilda Hill-Smith |Ashleigh Arnott |Ciaran Griffiths
In episode 179 of The Drinking Hour podcast, host David Kermode is joined by Alex Hunt MW, purchasing director at Berkman Wine Cellars, and sommelier-turned-communicator Shanteh Wale. Kermode, Hunt and Wale were all judges at the recent IWSC Judging in Australia’s Margaret River. The trio discuss the history of Margaret River as a winemaking area and mark the recent passing of the ‘godfather of the region’, Dr John Gladstones.
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Sep 16, 2024 | 
cluboenologique.com | Joel Hart |Mathilda Hill-Smith |Ciaran Griffiths |William Morris
Dining at Enigma is the closest thing to El Bulli in recent years,’ says Ferran Adrià. ‘Its minimalist cuisine makes it a unique project.’ Of course, Adrià’s idea of minimalism might be a little different from the average interpretation of the concept. At Enigma, intricate delights such as persimmon kimchi with yuzu sorbet follow the likes of koji marshmallow with caviar out of the kitchen.
