Amanda Barnes, Author at Circle of Wine Writers

Book review – Amber Revolution: How the world learned to love orange wine

Posted on March 8, 2019 by Amanda Barnes

Everyone remembers the first time they tried orange wine. It’s a revelation for most wine drinkers, who are typically used to just three colours of wine – white, pink and red. Some of us go on to hunt down many more orange wines in our vinous futures, and others adamantly avoid ever repeating the experience. For Simon Woolf, that magic moment came in a cellar in Trieste in 2011. A moment on the ...

Meet the Friend: Sophie Jump

Posted on March 4, 2019 by Amanda Barnes

Sophie Jump runs her energetic wine PR company, Jump Start Wine Solutions, in the UK organising events and wine trips, as well as helping international wine producers break into the UK wine scene. When she isn't working in wine, you might find her chasing rugby around the globe. Amanda Barnes interviews Sophie about her pathway into wine and what she's working on now. How did you deve...

New Member: Billy Abbott

Posted on March 2, 2019 by Amanda Barnes

Billy Abbott is a London-based drinks writer with a focus on whisky, fine spirits and beer. Formerly a computer programmer in the finance industry, he jumped into the world of writing full time in 2011. By day, Billy works for The Whisky Exchange, writing, blogging, managing online communities, leading the internal training program and acting as the company's whisky ambassador. The rest of the ...

Atypical ageing slips under the radar

Posted on February 4, 2019February 7, 2019 by Keith Grainger

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Dry Asti, Barbera, a new DOCG and the Brachetto beyond

Posted on February 4, 2019February 5, 2019 by Neil Fairlamb

Meet the Member: Neville Blech

Posted on February 1, 2019February 5, 2019 by Amanda Barnes

The Chinese Wine Renaissance: A wine lover’s companion

Posted on February 1, 2019 by Amanda Barnes

Amanda Barnes reviews Janet Z Wang's new book The Chinese Wine Renaissance: A Wine Lover's Companion. Chinese wine still feels like a relatively 'new' phenomena in the wine world, but Janet Z Wang is out to set the record straight. Wang makes it very clear within the first few pages of her book that wine is very much part of the culture of Ancient China, and spends the following chapters detail...

A brief history of grape wine in China

Posted on January 29, 2019 by Janet Z Wang

Meet the Friend: Rachel Davey

Posted on January 29, 2019 by Amanda Barnes

Gerard Basset: A tribute to the ‘world’s favourite sommelier’

Posted on January 26, 2019February 8, 2019 by Amanda Barnes

Gerard Basset sadly lost his battle to cancer of the oesophagus on 16th February. A member of the Circle, Gerard was a well-known and well-loved figure in the world of wine holding prestigious titles including Master of Wine, Master Sommelier and the World's Best Sommelier. Beyond his titles, Gerard was a kind, humble and generous man. He was a mentor to many aspiring sommeliers and inspired a ge...