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1 week ago | 
hudin.com | Miquel Hudin
I was fortunate to attend a tasting in April led by Yiannis Karakasis which looked at a sample from the Great Greek Wines competition that he founded. It was exciting to me as a) it’s about Greek wines and b) it’s a new approach to wine competitions which has been a much needed breath of fresh air.
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2 weeks ago | 
hudin.com | Miquel Hudin
The Conseil Interprofessionnel des Vins du Roussillon (CIVR) is the body charged with the overall regulation and promotion of the wines from Roussillon in Southern France; a region of 19,000ha of vineyards and over 400 wineries. While this is a large entity, to put it into perspective, it’s nowhere near as large as the CIVL of neighboring Languedoc.
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3 weeks ago | 
hudin.com | Miquel Hudin
All of these wines were tasted on 24-25 April 2025 in the Collioure/Banyuls region and consisted primarily of a main tasting at the promotional body as well as smaller tastings with producers. Please see the Regional Report for additional information and context.
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3 weeks ago | 
hudin.com | Miquel Hudin
by | For several years now, I’ve been compiling reports on the Roussillon region of Southern France. When tasting through the samples at the CIVR (the local regulatory and promotion body), there was always this brilliant moment when I’d hit the wines of Collioure, the dry wine appellation that overlaps with the dessert wines of Banyuls.
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3 weeks ago | 
hudin.com | Miquel Hudin
All of these wines were tasted in situ at these wineries in the Roussillon region of Southern France on the 22nd and 23rd of April. Please see more details in the Regional Report.
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3 weeks ago | 
hudin.com | Miquel Hudin
by | There is nothing that’s static in the wine world. Thankfully this means that something which changed in Roussillon, was the weather. After several years of extreme drought which were exacerbated by the fact you can’t irrigate in France, 2025 has finally seen good rain fall. The only catch is that it’s been rather early and as to whether it will be sufficient for the wines to make it to harvest remains to be seen.
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1 month ago | 
guildsomm.com | Miquel Hudin
Around the hour-and-a-half mark of the flight from Lisbon to the island of Madeira, the plane begins its descent over the Atlantic. At first, there’s little but endless water visible from the cabin window. Then, the low-hanging clouds on the horizon give way to the broken, bony cliffs of Ponta de São Lourenço. Swooping over the top of these cliffs, it seems like the plane is about to land, but it then does a massive hook starboard, aweing passengers with the Madeiran landscape.
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1 month ago | 
hudin.com | Miquel Hudin
by | Château Musar is no stranger here and for good reason as they’re essentially the epitome of fine wine from Lebanon and they’ve a very unique style all their own. They’re able to blend Bordeaux and Mediterranean grapes in a manner that few ever pull off. Indeed, you may encounter one or two back in France, but it’s just such a “thing” when it comes to Musar.
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1 month ago | 
hudin.com | Miquel Hudin
I’m going to state which is obvious once you think about it in that any quality sparkling wine region in the world has to start with a ‘C’. No C, no quality. You think I’m joking? Look at France, there’s Champagne (obviously) and then eight of those ‘Crémant de’ things. You may argue that not all the Crémants are amazing which is fair, but they’re all French and thus they get a pass. Why does pèt-nat suck? Because it doesn’t start with a ‘C’, obviously.
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1 month ago | 
hudin.com | Miquel Hudin
Shortly after completing the Domaine des Crêts coverage, I was contacted by James Dunstan of Same River Twice to taste what they’re producing in the general Ventoux region of Southern Rhône. After a lengthy wine career spanning many different countries including Japan, Dunstan came back to his childhood memories of holidays in the Ventoux region to start producing the wines that he wanted. The focus is on lower alcohol, but as shown by the selection, there’s definitely no sacrifice of flavor.
