Ahead of this Thursday’s ‘Rhone Rangers’ LockdownLive! event, we thought we’d re-visit some basic principles of French wine labelling. Here’s a quick outline of what AOC means : In French – “Appellation d’origine Controlee” In English – “Controlled designation of origin” The principle is that a wine with an AOC classification has a guarantee of […]
A few years ago, we had a phone call from a friendly Spanish winemaker named Pedro, who happened to be in the area and wanted to pop by and share with us a few of his aged Riojas. Not wishing to be rude (or indeed miss an opportunity), we agreed to meet with him. Trouble […]
It’s extraordinary to think that volcanic soils are amongst the most fertile, yet it’s true. As volcanic soils begin to age, they begin the processing of breaking down, releasing the very nutrients and minerals that allow plants to prosper – nitrogen, potassium, phosphorous and chlorophyll. And because volcanic soil is virgin soil, it’s entirely organic […]
This past weekend, we spent with friends who are genuinely interested by the origins of our wines. Furthermore, by their support for organic farming and the overall ethical thinking of ourselves and so many of our great producers. But what they really wanted was a simple definition of what ‘organic’ means when it comes to […]
As the sun continues to shine (at least in somes parts), the summer of 2019 is seeing yet more rosé wine being consumed than ever before. Remember, there are two basic categories of rosé wine – the first is where rosé is the result of failed red wine (literally a bi-product of inferior red wine); […]
It’s rare that I talk directly about an individual wine in a blog post, but I feel the desperate need to share with you one of the most pleasurable wine experiences I have had this year. You can imagine that we get through a fair few bottles in a year, continually tasting both wines from […]
Today sees the launch of a new listing for us from a super producer, based in the stunning Paarl region of the South African Winelands. Anyone who has taken time to visit the wineries of the Western Cape will know that the region is arguably one of the gems of the wine world. My first […]
We took time out today to consider the importance of a consistent message throughout Hannibal Brown’s ranks. We all know how critical it is in any business to maintain a steady hand on the tiller whilst allowing the business to gather momentum and steadily move in the direction of success. So today, we practised singing […]
Today is Pancake Day! And on the drive into the office this morning, Jack (our student intern) and I discussed our preferred pancake fillings. It was no surprise to hear this 19 year old’s response, “Nutella!” he declared. Indeed, he’d already checked the shelves to see if there was any – sadly not. My own […]
Ever heard of Picpoul de Pinet? Some of you will have because there’s a fair bit of it around in the UK these days. Earlier this month, London played host to a series of Picpoul de Pinet winemakers who came over to showcase their respective wines and also provide a little more insight into the […]
The weatherman encouraged me this morning to believe that Spring really is just round the corner, with today’s weather not too dissimilar to that of northern Spain. So it seemed appropriate to unveil the first of our consumer wine tastings of 2019….. entitled Malbec & Masala, it’s our Spring pairing of fine wines with tempting […]
In this food and wine pairing, it’s all about the fruit characteristic of the Merlot which couples nicely with the contents of the muffin – sweet, ripe beetroot and fruity goat’s cheese. The components sit comfortably together in an attractive, gentle way. The touch of Mourvedre blended into this Merlot provides structure and backbone without […]