Meet the Friend: Patrick Rea

Patrick Rea found his way into the world of wine through a fortunate acquirement by one of his clients. In this Meet the Friend interview, Amanda Barnes learns why he went from marketing medical services to marketing English Pinotage and why he's hoping to be able to invite members over for a round of golf at Mannings Heath one day soon.   Tell us how you got into the world of wine and ...
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CWW virtual tasting: Let’s taste… JING Tea

Janet Wang on the CWW May virtual tea tasting and reflections on why wine writers should know more about tea! I love the diverse range of topics discussed in the various CWW forums, so when the latest ‘Let’s taste…’ series offered a chance to try fine teas from the specialist house of Jing, I was surprised and delighted. It was straight into the diary in permanent ink. When the tasting set arri...
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The South America Wine Guide: The definitive guide to the wines of Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Bolivia and Peru by Amanda Barnes published

Amanda Barnes author of The South America Wine Guide
Amanda Barnes' tome to the wines of South America, The South America Wine Guide: The definitive guide to the wines of Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Brazil, Bolivia and Peru, was published last month and is now available in hardback and as a digital book. "I'm thrilled to finally have my guide to South American wine out and be able to share it with everyone, and thank you so much to the members who...
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Wine Faults and Flaws: A Practical Guide by Keith Grainger

Keith Grainger has published his hotly anticipated practical guide to wine faults and flaws, demystifying what can lead the enjoyability of a bottle and wine awry. Is mustiness in wine always caused by cork? Is a ‘reduced’ wine treatable? Why might a wine smell of Elastoplast? Are there faulty wines that exude excellence? “These and 1001 other questions are answered in my new bo...
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Forming deeps roots from past to present in Rioja Alavesa

Amanda Barnes learns how Luis Cañas is not only coaxing complexity out of its old vines and clones, but is also using them as a tool to tackle climate change. Rioja producer Luis Cañas has a family heritage of winemaking in Rioja Alavesa since 1928, and made waves in the 1970s when Juan Luis Cañas started putting the overlooked and under-estimated Rioja Alavesa region on the map, by bottling his ...
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The sensual terroir wines of Santorini

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Mornington Peninsula not a million miles away from home

Moorooduc Estate
Liz Sagues reports on the first of the Circle's May 2021 Let's talk about... webinars, presented by Kate McIntyre, marketing and business development manager at Moorooduc Estate. Time and again, as Kate McIntyre described viticulture and winemaking on the Mornington Peninsula, I thought: I've heard this before, but from somewhere far across the world from Australia. The story of that cool, windy,...
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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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