The fatal spring 2021 frost in France

From Burgundy to Southern France, vine growers are grappling with the catastrophe of precocious budding cut short by sub-zero temperatures from April 5-8, reports L.M. Archer. “C’est reparti (Here we go again),” posted Véronique Drouhin-Boss on Instagram April 5 Her image, of a hazy night sky punctuated by hundreds of smudge pots flickering amidst frozen vineyards, foretold the unfolding guerre d...
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Meet the Friend: Donald Ziraldo

Donald Ziraldo needs no introduction to most wine writers around the world as one of the most influential figures in Canadian wine. After starting his career with a vine nursery, he became involved in winemaking with the founding of Inniskillin in 1974, remaining there until 2006, and later moved on to create his own independent label Ziraldo, planting his own vineyard in 2007. As a Friend of the ...
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Perusing premium Nebbiolo

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Stepping out of the Laguedoc’s shadow: The Wines of Roussillon

The wines of Roussillon by Rosemary George MW
Rosemary George MW shares why she believes that Roussillon deserves to be recognised as its own distinct wine region, no longer only an appendage to Languedoc, and how she researched her latest book on the region, The Wines of Roussillon. Why write a book on the wines of Roussillon? For the simple reason that Roussillon stands alone, proud and independent. For so long it has suffered a union of...
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Exploring Quinta da Boavista and the old vines of Douro with Carla Tiago

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A dearth of diversity

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Let’s taste… Cali Cab

California Cabernet
With the wines in her glass and the winemakers live on her laptop, Amanda Barnes is virtually transported to California in the inaugural session of the Circle’s new series of wet webinars. Kicking off The Circle’s first ‘Let’s Taste…’ talk series last month, a trio of California vintners took the hot seat, sharing their Cabernet Sauvignon blends last month. As the most planted and most revered va...
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Meet the Member: Stephen Skelton MW

Stephen Skelton MW interview for Circle of Wine writers
Stephen Skelton MW is one of the best-known authors of viticulture with his renowned and best-selling book, Viticulture. However, his knowledge and love of wine far surpass the vineyard, as Amanda Barnes finds out in this interview, in which Stephen shares his insights into making English wine, vineyard dogs and Japanese Ladybugs. You had an interesting route into the wine industry as an English...
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Foot trodden wine and talhas in Alentejo: Simon J Woolf and Ryan Opaz kickstart their new book

Exploring the foot trodden and handmade wines of Portugal, Simon J Woolf and Ryan Opaz's new book, Foot Trodden, is being funded and brought to life through a Kickstarter campaign which is live now. In this extract, Simon explores the wines of the Alentejo region in southern Portugal, and, in particular, those that are made in talha clay pots.   The best way to understand Alentejo’s stron...
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