Working from home sounds like such bliss ... until you've been doing it for 6 years, in which case you may start to adopt a hermit-like loathing of having to leave the cave (aka home office) or you might have gone more than slightly mad from the lack of interaction with other adults. Coping mechanisms vary, and mine has been to delve deep into the social interactive pool of twitter, facebook, etc ... which creates great conversations and lots of business opportunities.

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See the full gallery on Posterous

Of course it has great coffee (REALLY good), and the people who run it are lovely and personable too, but in a sense this is expected. A coffee place needs to deliver with its product, and the personal touch makes you care. But how do you differentiate your coffee shop from all the others with similar coffee, cakes and lovely, carrying owners?

Style!

The benefit here is not just caffeine, it is a sense of belonging and of comfort.

I can't find the same level of differentiation, particularly focusing on comfort, in the way wine is retailed.

To much emphasis is placed only on the choice of wine, but a good list is not all I'm after.

Where are the cool wine bars?

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Apologies in advance. If you are not in the business or habit of tasting wines regularly, I strongly suggest that you ignore this post.

I need advice from my peers who taste wines regularly, not just for pleasure but also for business.

How do you deal with keeping a healthy mouth?

It may seem like an odd, and possibly rather off-putting, question to raise here, but where else to do this? (I think I might have to post the conclusions to Quora - finally found a use for it!)

I ask as I want to treat some possible gum disease, but I find I can't use any mouthwash. Have you ever noticed that mouthwash kills your ability to taste? I'm not sure if it is the alcohol ingredient or something else, but I had some surgery once and was forced to use Corsodyl for a while. After a week or so I found I could hardly taste anything and my tongue was numbed. It wore off after I stopped using it, but it worried me.

Recently I tried some of the more "delicate" styles such as Listerine Zero, and although I had no numbness I did find it was affecting my tongue and I did not want to continue.

Is there a wine-trade friendly solution to protecting your mouth and gums?

I have come across enough of my peers who seem to have suffered from the apparent lack of a solution to think this also deserves a public airing.

I would really welcome your hints and tips such as these by Simon Woods - Smile while you still have your teeth

For example, avoiding brushing too soon after wine-tasting as it strips the enamel from your teeth (did you know that?)

Thank you in advance, please resume your normal wine appreciation activities

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Tonight the boiler has broken down AGAIN. That makes it about the fourth time in this recent spell of winter.

In consolation of another night of cold, I decided to open this, something I picked up years ago in Alsace.

I do love wines from Alsace but they are a particular taste and my wife is not as big of a fan. I therefore make a pony of trying them when I have the (cold) house to myself.

This Gewurtztraminer is deliciously honeyed, it even looks like honey it is so dark, with a real taste of heather & hazlenut and a wild flower perfume too.

It is so rare to be able to appreciate wines with a decent time spent in bottle because they are sold so young. However, they really do develop interesting characters that make waiting for them worthwhile.

Unfortunately I can't say the same about waiting for the plumber.

[UPDATE 10/2/2012: This wine was superb, but honestly not for everyone. As a wine lover I seek out a variety of experiences, but I also understand that it is a bit far from people's comfort zone. My wife came home and tried it (there was still a little left) and did enjoy a small taste, but to her, the concentration of fruit and some sugar made it a "sweet" or dessert wine, which it isn't really, but I totally understand what she means.

If you have an inkling for a bit of adventure, see if you can get a good quality Gewurtztraminer with a bit of age from a good independent merchant, and try it  with friends so you don't need to finish it alone if not to your taste. Try it with some rich pork dish or something mildly spicy - I really hope it will excite you too]

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Vino Di Anna, IGT Sicilia 2009 - a 'natural' Wine made from Nerello Mascalese and bought from Green & Blue in east dulwich

Tasting note coming later

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This panier de fruits is quite a find for lovers of wines off the beaten track.

This fruit basket is definitely heavily biased towards the apple orchards. The first impression on the nose is an attractive, very ripe apple skin aroma, maybe some ripe red variety with some aromatic herbal flower note.

The surprise is the crisp, fresh, mouth cleansing acid tang of the perfect autumnal apple, bright, life enhancing, and indulgent. Then the rich fruit tang starts to open up and show some oxidative character that combines the autumn fruit with a dash of honey, wild herbs and a warm, baked citrus note too.

A Wine worth seeking out and a perfect match for the fatty, indulgent dishes at Brawn in London

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Wine spends a lot of time getting us to find stuff.

"Find us on the supermarkets"
"Available in specialist shops"
"On all good Wine lists"

but if you want people to REALLY see the brand, you've got to take it to THEM.

That's the great thing about the Champagne bar at Westfield (and elsewhere). Put the bar in the middle of the shopping area and make it harder NOT to notice it than to miss it.

Champagne is not in everyone's price range, but they've cleverly put it next to the aspirational and designer shops.

A great place to explore styles, regions, cocktails and more.

Today, I'm trying some Extra Brut from Billecart Salmon. Really lively, refreshing and a great pick me up while waiting for someone else to do shopping. A crisp little shopping tonic to remind the body that there is a benefit to hanging out in shopping malls to counter the sore feet and aching back.

See the full gallery on Posterous

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Did you know that the law detailed EXACTLY how much wine you had to be poured?

Thankfully, that law has just been made a little more wine-friendly.  

Most of us have been used to seeing 175ml (small) and 250ml (large) glasses on all wine lists. In recent months the 125ml (properly small) has been required on restaurant and bar lists too (thankfully) and the 250ml glass has morphed into the 250ml carafe of wine to be shared - BRILLIANT! 

However, in most cases, no restaurant or bar was allowed to sell you a measure of UNDER 125ml of wine. Why? Because it was supposed to protect you as a consumer, making sure you knew exactly how much wine you were supposed to get - no more, no less. The same is true of pints and half-pints. The glasses might get fancy but the little white mark is always there!

Enter the Enomatic

(photo of Enomatic machines in The Sampler in South Kensington)

A few years ago an Italian company created the Enomatic, a machine that could dispense small volumes of a wine AND keep the bottle fresh for almost 3 weeks - so you could theoretically open the world's most expensive wines and sell them in tiny, affordable, pours over enough time to ensure you did not waste it.

They are very successful in places such as the USA. However in the UK there is a problem. A sample is around 25ml, meaning you get 30 samples to a bottle, but this is not a legal measure as it was not your "guaranteed minimum" of 125ml.

It didn't matter that this is actually what you wanted, asked for and paid for, it was still technically illegal.

It seems that practically minded local enforcement officers in Islington and elsewhere decided that sampling in a wine shop, such as the wonderful The Sampler, was OK - you were "testing & tasting" a wine you might buy in legal measures. However, their Westminster colleagues took a different view in the Wonder Bar at Selfridges. 

Having paid what I would guess was a VAST amount of money to create and fit out the bar, the inspectors forced Dawn Davies, the sommelier heading the Wonder Bar, to stop selling samples. The reason was that this was a place to eat & drink, not just buy wine, so they were "retailing" the samples. Crazy, but that was after all the law.

It so happens that I made my first visit to the Wonder Bar the day after that fateful visit, just as Dawn was reprogramming all the machines to stop sampling.

Thankfully, after a long campaign, the law has now been changed in part thanks to her lobbying efforts, and maybe we can start to get creative with ideas that enable customers to experience a broader range of wines, at affordable prices, and get more people to love wine.

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Champagne brands really understand that the difference between one wine and another isn't so much about what is in the bottle or glass, as it is about the story that we build around that experience.

 Seeing James Bond drinking Dom Perignon* doesn't mean the wine will taste better, but it does mean that we get a vague sense of doing something daring and decadent when we see the familiar shield-shaped label emerging from the ice bucket.

“Intensity is the signature and memory of the 2003 Vintage. The intensity is unique and paradoxical, hovering between austerity and generosity.”

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Last week I was lucky to be invited to an "authentic" wine event to celebrate the launch of 'Authentic Wine: toward natural and sustainable winemaking' by Dr. Jamie Goode and Sam Harrop MW at the always interesting Artisan & Vine on St. John's Hill..

As people started sniffing and swirling, Goode was the first to speak: “Natural wine polarises people,” he explained, “so we came up with a concept of authentic wine.”  For the authors, so Goode, authenticity in wine meant five things:  adding as little as possible, having a sense of place, being fault free, being harvested at the right time (i.e. avoiding overripeness), and most importantly of all, being sustainable.  Admitting that they had “opened a can of worms” they thought that this definition was more inclusive than the term “natural wine,” which Goode said “has been one of the most exciting movements.”  He exclaimed that their book was really “a terroir manifesto.”

This was a top-end wine trade event, with a clutch of Masters of Wine, national wine journalists, major retailers, trade press and to the organisers' credit, some bloggers and interested wine consumers too.

The idea was to use the opportunity to bring the book's theme of 'authentic' wine to life by organising a head-to-head blind tasting of wines from two sides of the debate (with some lovely food provided by Kathryn O'Mara of Artisan & Vine, of course). The wines were put forward by David Gleave MW of Liberty Wines and Doug Wregg of Les Caves de Pyrène and then discussed by those present (wines listed at the end).

I have to admit that I have not yet finished reading the book (sent to me as a journalist's preview copy - thanks guys!), so I will leave the full review for another post, but I have to say that although I enjoyed the tasting, the event, the food and the company, I am not sure the format achieved the goal set.

Firstly, I believe that a blind tasting for "the trade" is the wrong way to present 'natural' wines to those not already convinced by the idea. The concept of blind tasting is to analyse & interpret wines based on your existing wine knowledge and experience (but not preconceptions). If the wines have been made in a way that challenges that knowledge and experience, then they will appear wrong, odd and at the very least unrecognisable. It is like presenting a musical piece by Schoenberg to someone brought up on "classical music" - no matter the internal logic of the modern piece, it just doesn't "fit" for most people.

If you are also comparing them alongside more traditional wines, these are almost certain to be preferred (at least by those not already converted).

Is this not an own goal?

Secondly, as I understand it, the book is not supposed to be about challenge between the 'natural' producers and the best of the traditional winemakers. Quite the contrary. We should have been contrasting the average winemaker with some more authentic producers to show that, with a greater understanding of the winemaking processes, and little difference in terms of cost, effort or risk, they could produce better, more unique and more rewarding wines.

I see the value in this book not in offering science as an alternative to the more fundamentalist, philosophical approach of the natural wine, or low intervention, movements. I believe that the greatest benefit is that it can be a self-help handbook for wineries, and more importantly regions, who need a guide for establishing a commercially viable, unique and sustainable personality.

Authenticity is not something simply lacking in individual wines, but in the industry as a whole - marketing, communications, appellation systems and retail.

What is a "Natural Wine" is currently a hot topic, so it is understandable that this element of the discussion becomes the focus, however making it the subject of the challenge does the book a bit of a disservice.

If nothing else, this evening helped to put this in sharper focus for me, and I shall complete my reading of the book with this in mind.

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You'd think that as a "knife in the sock" kind of person myself, I'd be less surprised by the dagger-wielding characters I came across last night, but I can't say it was any easier.

Happily for me, no daggers were drawn, and apparently the dozen or so men dressed in impressive grey jackets, with what appeared to be a cross between shotgun ammo belts and cigar holders sewn on, and long daggers in their belts, were actually there to sing not as bodyguards for the Georgian Ambassador.

(Photo by Levan Kipiani)

The event, which took place in Little Georgia, a restaurant dedicated to the food, wine and culture of the Republic of Georgia, was to promote a tourism project. Fortunately for me, it included a tasting of seven Georgian wines selected by Georgia's number 1 wine cheerleader, Isabelle Legeron MW.

Isabelle is the self-styled "kvevri girl", ... one of the many reasons she is known as "That Crazy French Woman."

Kvevri, otherwise referred to as Amphorae, are clay pots that usually only turn up in museums of ancient mediterranean trade. In Georgia, however, (and a very few other places) they are still in use as unusual and idiosyncratic vessels for fermenting and ageing wine.

http://www.lifebeyondtourism.org/photoblog/2009/12/our-bloggers/country/georg...

Now, this is important because the unique wines on show would probably be referred to as "Natural Wines" and be associated with a very recent, modern movement. That would be wrong, because in fact they represent hundreds of years of traditional winemaking in one of the very oldest winemaking areas of the world. Georgia.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Other writers more knowledgable about the country than me can better describe the reasons for this but here are my notes and my thoughts that hopefully will encourage you to click on some of the linke at the bottom of this post.

Sometimes you just want Disney, but other times you NEED Salvador Dali.

So, why bother with 'kvevri', Georgia and all these unpronounceable grapes anyway?

Because the world does NOT need another producer of Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. There are already SEAS of this stuff that recognised countries and producers struggle to sell, why add to it?

Georgia seems to be offering something unique. It may not be to everyone's taste, but that's great. It has its own voice and says something different about the person drinking it.

Sometimes you just want Disney, but other times you NEED Salvador Dali.

The unique methods and characters of these wines says something about Georgia and nowhere else. The grape varieties emerged here pretty much before anywhere else, and certainly before the did in "classic" regions in France and Italy, etc.

The production is about historic traditions, Georgian cultural beliefs including nature and religion, and very contemporary interests in sustainability and respect for nature. At the same time, these are young wineries not used to the concept of creating products to export around the world, so they are treading new ground as brave adventurers in need of support and patience because we have no idea what new wonders they may discover on their way.

So here are my notes; follow the links for the background information where it is available. As a brief overview, it is fair to say that the whites were a lot more impressive than the reds:

1. Chardakhi 2009
produced by Iago in Kartli,
Note: Honeyed notes on nose with wild flower. Reminds me of a good Chenin. More honey complexity in the mouth with green tea. Lots of great acidity, but surprising tannin also - an unusual combo, but fitting for the tea. Clean finish .. with tannin.
(Tasted on November 8, 2011)

2. Antadze Winery Mtsvane 2009
produced by Nika Antadze in Kakheti,
Note: Golden, amber colour, definitely oxidative. Orange peel on the nose, slightly nutty but not spirity. Mouth is drying from obvious tannins, with a not unpleasant woody, funky orange and hazlenut character. A complex wine, but pleasant as well as unusual
(Tasted on November 8, 2011)

3. Aleksi Tsikhelashvili Rkatsiteli 2010
produced by Aleksi Tsikhelashvili in Kakheti,
Note: Literally brown, oxidised in colour. The nose is like sniffing the contents of a Christmas mince pie - sweet, rich, raisiny, spicy, spirity and inviting. The taste is surprisingly crunchy. Amazing tannin levels, but in the context not so odd. A very unusual wine, but inviting and rewarding.
(Tasted on November 8, 2011)

4. Our Wine, Rkatsiteli 2006
produced by Our Wine in Kakheti,
Note: Golden brown colour, oxidative. Wet clay on the nose, along with saw dust, and something almost rubbery. If I have not put you off, READ ON! Quite bright acidity, a decent amount of alcohol which rounds out the taste which is warm, rich, nutty, with dusty tannins but yet still fresh and bright on the finish (but with a shovelful of tannins). TRY THIS!
(Tasted on November 8, 2011)

5. Pheasant's Tears, Shavkapito 2010
produced by Pheasant'sTears in Kartli,
Note: Bright garnet colour. Nose is slightly green with some stalky, inky notes. Reminds me of Cot. Light fruit palate, chalky tannins, but an unbalance. There's a hole in the palate where the fruit should be, and tannins and acidity rather overwhelm this wine. Not convinced
(Tasted on November 8, 2011)

6. Nika Bakhia, Saperavi 2009
produced by Nika Bakhia in Kakheti,
Note: Dark, intense purple colour. Funky nose. Is it red meat? Something smoky! Also slightly reductive. Reminds me of Rondo (#nothelpful) as a cool climate red that goes for colour over fruit. The delicate purple fruit is accompanied by some inky, young and tannic characters of an under-ripe grape. The tannins leave a sort of lime-mix coating in the mouth. Need more ripeness I think.
(Tasted on November 8, 2011)

7. Lagvinari, Saperavi 2009
produced by Lagvinari in Kakheti,
Note: Massively over-ripe fruit on the nose. Porty notes without the spirit; oxidised marachino cherry. Warning. Totally OTT in the mouth from alcohol and acidity. This is like a very weird Ruby Port, with unbalanced tannins and lack of spirit freshness. Overripe fruit ruined this. Not pleasant.
(Tasted on November 8, 2011)

For more information:

A great post from Alice Feiring

A recent trip by Dianne Letulle and Luiz Alberto

Some older notes from Jamie Goode

A (not very recent) visit by Tom Cannavan

(need to get more up to date information, obviously)

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In anything at all, perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away, ... - Antoine de Saint Exupéry

I have been impressed by the sparkling wines of Franciacorta in Italy. SO many of the wines I have tried have been interesting to drink - quite a feat for any wine region.

If there is a flaw in the current nature of Franciacorta, I would argue that it is "over-designed" and producers pay a little too much attention to measuring themselves against others' yardsticks and not clearly on creating a unique wine that will reach wine lovers all over the world.

Franciacorta is a very small region, and it produces barely enough to satisfy the local (northern) Italian thirst for its wines. No wonder the rest of us have not heard about it, or can't get hold of any. However, as their guests at the recent EWBC it made me look carefully at their wines, and what you (the wine-loving readers) might want to know about them.

First, what is "Franciacorta"?

If you've never heard of Franciacorta, you are not alone. This is the name of the region that creates probably Italy's most prestige "Methode Traditionelle" sparkling wine in the style of Champagne, using many of the same varieties and techniques. The main grapes are Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, just like Champagne (and other sparkling wine producing areas such as England or South Africa), but also Pinot Blanc. When it comes to Italian sparkling wine, Prosecco may currently be the best known having captured a market for informal, party, aperitif drinking, but Franciacorta is the elegant partner for dinner and more refined events.

a highly unusual level of cooperation

The region of Franciacorta is in Lombardy, in the north of Italy, just outside the City of Brescia (beautiful host of the 2011 European Wine Bloggers Conference), south of the beautiful lake Iseo, at the foot of the Alps, and on the main road between Milan and Verona. This is important. Not only are the climate and soils right for producing sparkling wines of quality, but this is Italy's commercial heartland where many wealthy investors live, and they have been the force behind the area.

The name Franciacorta comes from the latin Franchae Curtes, or Monastery-controlled courts that were, thanks to the power of the Church, exempt from the taxes of nearby Brescia. It is a small coincidence, therefore, that seven centuries later the name focuses attention on the inspiration of the region's wines - the prestige sparkling produce of France.

Sparkling wine production in Champagne is traced to around the 17th Century. In Franciacorta it can be traced back to 1961, which makes 2011 just the 50th anniversary. In that year, Franco Ziliani (not our fellow wine blogger, but his namesake) created 3000 bottles of a sparkling wine for the Guido Berlucchi winery ... and it sold well. So well, that the local entrepreneurs didn't just decide that they liked the wine, they decided to MAKE it, and so the region of Franciacorta was born and the fabulous, well-equipped and architecturally varied wineries we know today sprang up virtually overnight to establish the region.

No need here for too much detail, but because these wineries set up very much around the same time, and because they were backed by commercially savvy owners, it was also easier for them to club together to create a strong association, the Consorzio per la Tutela del Franciacorta. A Consorzio is a voluntary body that sets the rules on what grapes can be planted, how, where, etc. and how the wines should be made, and then promotes the work of the members. 

The Franciacorta body is recognised as one of the most thorough and strict in Italy, which is easier to do when there are only around 110 producers in the whole region, and 104 are members of the association. This, let me tell you, is a highly unusual level of cooperation in Italy!

What about the style of Franciacorta wines?

Very simply: Sparkling

Less simply: Dry, sparkling wines, made in the traditional method, with second fermentation in the bottle

And finally in a bit more detail: 

There are three main styles of Franciacorta wines:

• Sparkling (Vintage and Non-Vintage); the rules for these wines vary, but for each style a VERY strict and VERY long-term ageing regime is required. Even regular non-vintage wines need to be aged on lees for 18 months, and then in bottle for further 7 months. For Vintage dated wines, this increases further to 30 months!
• Rose; rules here are less defined, and there are different styles of rose, from the more challenging and refined 100% pinot noir wines to the chardonnay dominated styles with only a small percentage of pinot noir for colour.
• Satén; possibly the most approachable and unique style in Franciacorta. This was a style created to prove they could make a 'cremant' style wine with lower pressure (and therefore creamier feeling of bubbles) and only made from Chardonnay grapes, but must still be aged 24 months (almost half as much again as Champagne's requirement)

A game of statistical one-upmanship

Even these complexities are small compared to the detail of the rules applied to these wines, and this is one of the problems.

First, the Consorzio rules are very prescriptive. In the presentation to wine bloggers, the eloquent Ricci Curbastro (himself a fine Franciacorta producer) proudly showed off how in this region yields were smaller, quality higher, ageing longer and production smaller than its major competitors. In one case, yields in the winery were 1% tighter (64% instead of 65%) than Champagne in an apparent game of statistical one-upmanship.

Then there are the ranges. I have visited very few wineries in the region, but let me take one example I have. Majolini creates some lovely wines across the board. The family behind it are very friendly, welcoming and committed. However, they are a medium sized winery that owns 22 hectares of vineyard in this appellation, yet they make around 11 different Franciacorta wines (never mind all the other products they offer). On the surface this offers wine consumers lots of choice and uniqueness, but in practice it means that no wine is ever made in the quantities, and at the economies of scale, that will make it more affordable and available to more people around the world.

IF you've never tried the entry level wines of an area, are  you ever going to take a risk on the expensive, high end and low volume wines?

Where's the market?

Finally there is the dilemma of pricing. If you ask any Franciacorta producer what their market it (internationally), the response is generally along the lines of:

"to produce high quality wines for 'wine lovers' that are looking for something new, and to price these ABOVE Prosecco and BELOW Champagne."

As someone with commercial marketing background, this makes me wonder. How can they look to achieve success by OVER delivering on the style of the wine, being MORE strict in the vineyard, ageing it longer, making it in smaller quantities AND selling it for a lower price?

They can't, at least not for ever.

Franciacorta is a quality wine region still grappling with its identity, like the "teenager" it is in terms of development. It is not really clear what the Unique Selling Proposition (USP) should be, and more importantly, what moment, or occasion, for drinking that this region can claim for itself. It would be worth bearing in mind the advice of Antoine de Saint-Exupery above - cutting back, simplifying and deciding what is truly key to the region is much more important ultimately than adding ever greater details to the picture.

If I had to suggest a place to start, it would almost certainly be with the Saten style of wine, but others such as Simon Woolf have made another excellent suggestion to seek out wines that include Pinot Bianco in the blend.

However, what should not be doubted is the quality of the wines being produced, and the potential of the owners to deliver this in time.

I hope that these issues are resolved soon, and they find a way to get more of these bubbles into the glasses of wine lovers across the world so we may all raise our glasses and remember this 50th anniversary year as the one where Franciacorta truly took off around the world.

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A quick aside to look at an odd "cork" I came across the other day.

This is the Ardea Seal AS-Elite (also, apparently known as the Guala Seal Elite) ..., what do YOU make of it?

See the full gallery on Posterous

It looks ... a little odd however, don't you think? (Yes, I admit it, I childishly compared this to a suppository in appearance - I'm sure there's a joke in there somewhere)

One thing is sure, I bet it can't be cheap.

This closure was in an extremely expensive bottle of Grand Cru Burgundy. It seems that Burgundy producers looked at this closure because of the problems they have had with "premature oxidation"*, particularly in whites. 

What is interesting is that this particular bottle was subject of some discussion by the tasters during a "blind" tasting (I got the photos only afterwards) where several of us thought that the wine was "reduced" ... and therefore affected by TOO LITTLE oxidation (to put it simply).

It would seem a bit more evidence that there is NO "best" closure for wine bottles. All extremists, whether for / against the alternatives such as cork, screwcap, Nomacork, etc. need to acknowledge that this is a complex debate and instead of pushing agendas, wineries should explain why they made their own decision.

As a consumer, don't be put off by a wine because of how it is closed, but do ask whether the closure chosen "fits" the story of the wine as you understand it. The art is not just in the finished work, but also in the choice of materials.

* the wines from certain vintages in Burgundy basically got 'old' really fast and tasted tired and flabby. It happened to a LOT of expensive wines at the same time and no-one was quite sure why.

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At the very heart of Brescia is a beautiful and elegant historical centre, witness to this city's importance since Roman times, and in fact there are still important Roman remains here.

The City was a great setting for the recent European Wine Bloggers Conference (EWBC), as it was sponsored by the wine region of Franciacorta which neighbours the city. While I work on some wine and blogging related posts, I thought I would share some of my favourite photos of the city, that might encourage you to put it on your list of places to visit.

Of course I have to thank the Mayor, Adriano Paroli, and the whole Comune (but particularly Laura Castelleti and Giovanni Arcari), for making places like the Museo di Santa Giulia and the Loggia available to us.

I recommend it for the culture, the art, the food and of course, the great sparkling wines (but try a Pirlo if you are in town as well).

Hope you enjoy!

Here are some (unusual, maybe) favourites (and below is the full set):

And here is the full set of pictures of Brescia

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I decided that tonight was a slightly hearty meal night, what with the weather getting cold, nights drawing in ...

The food was pork, grilled, and I made a sauce of onion, pepper, tomato, sun dried tomatoes and herbs (with wine, of course) for flavour.

So, what to match it with?

This Shiraz has sat, waiting, under the stairs, for long enough. I always worry it will be "too big" and overpower dishes, but in fact the Teusner wines have often impressed me with a good level of restraint (it is all relative, this is still at least 14.5% alcohol).

Served in my biggest glasses, this opened up to be marvellously rich, not too jammy, with a whole cakeful of black forest fruit, a sprinkle of black pepper and a dash of cream. This is good stuff. Power and elegance like a rugby player dressed in a dinner jacket - you know he is muscular underneath, but yet on the surface he's suave ... in a sort of Daniel Craig as James Bond sort of way.

I'm not sure how easy The Riebke is to find, but it reminds me that "fine wine" is also about state of mind and context, so I need to keep buying a bigger range of wines and keeping them as long as possible to see how they age to get to know the real potential of countries such as Australia (that too often sell you their wines FAR too young).

The Riebke, 2008 Northern Barossa Shiraz, Teusner Wines

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I remember when I really discovered Port. It was on the East Coast mainline train from London to Aberdeen, somewhere between Newcastle and Berwick Upon Tweed. It had nothing to do with the dramatic slopes and scenery of the Douro Valley.

I was on my way back to my University and another student heading beyond, to Dundee, sat opposite me. These were the days before Twitter and Facebook, and "social" meant striking up conversation across a table. After a brief chat, he said:

"I always toast the crossing of the border (into Scotland). Want to join me?"

Who was I to refuse?

He dug out a bottle of LBV port, or it might even have been a young vintage, and proceeded to share it around. We had fun and I *seem* to recall running out BEFORE we reached the actual border, but it mattered little by then.

Port has always meant conviviality to me ever since. A drink of offering. A drink for ceremonies, however much they may be invented. A drink to take seriously, but not TOO seriously.

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Unfortunately, those days are behind me and I rarely drink Port these days. The supermarket special offers (that used to be a few pounds off decent LBV wines) are now for "finest" Ruby Port that is more often than not dire. I also rarely have "celebrations" at home because the kids are asleep upstairs, making rowdy dinner parties a thing of the past (and future).

I fear this is true for so many others.

Who drinks Port these days? Who pays extra for LBV, Single Quinta or even Vintage Port?

Are they the same ones who are also propping up the Sherry market, the German Riesling market, etc? In other words a small group of "wine geeks". I didn't get too many replies to this question on twitter, although some "foodie" friends made some mouthwatering suggestions for how to enjoy it (lots of venison mentioned). Port's main market is Christmas, but there are a lot of other celebrations throughout the year.

Port was not alien to me. It was my grandfather's tipple (well, one of them) - something I grew up aspiring to enjoy. Does that even happen today? Do YOUR parents drink Port?

Yesterday, I was extermely lucky to taste 18 "Vintage-style" (Single Quinta from individual years) Ports from 2006, 1999 and even as far back as 1950. The presentation and conversation was all about unique characteristics of some amazing, hard-to-find and expensive wines, and even some heart-warming history from the Symington family ... but not once did anyone mention the customer.

Of course, none of THESE wines are "train wines", and I realise that this was a high-end trade event, but I had hoped there might be something here that might help me encourage others to discover Port as I did.

Could the silky smooth, peppered black fruit of the 2006 Quinta Do Vesuvio be used to attract lovers of all things bright and bountiful ... and alcoholic?

Maybe it should be the elegant chocolate fondant and dark cherry centre of the 1996 Quinta de Cavadinha that might appeal to gourmands looking for new taste experiences?

(more tasting notes will be on Adegga soon)

Either way, Port, like so many wine regions and styles spends a little too much time preaching uniqueness to the converted and not enough time finding ways to get real bottles onto trains. I think this calls for a little exploring of the more widely available bottles of Port ... for research, of course.

There is a time for Port. I believe it is a GREAT way to enjoy your own (even made up) celebration. All you need now is the excuse. In fact, I have an event coming up very soon, as I intend to celebrate the fact that there are now just over 2 months to go to Christmas and I have yet to hear a single carol. Cheers!

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This 1997 was ripe and lively, with honey, passion fruit but also a strong biscuity (autolytic) character than brings so many extra layers of complexity. I could very easily be convinced that this was a top quality champagne that has aged and list its bubbles. Great! Shame it is probably unavailable

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A fabulous wine, an intense Forest fruit flavour, with a touch of something wild and leafy about it, but not as hard core "tar & roses" as its elder cousins in Barolo. Very drinkable with the fatty richness and occasional strong bacon flavours of the dish. Decanted for an hour before serving helped to open up the aromas too.

Look forward to trying a lot more interesting Italian wines at the EWBC (European Wine Bloggers Conference) in Brescia next week

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A selection of photos of a night on Calle Laurel in Rioja

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