Events
Coastal Wines tasting tour – April 2025
The wines were accompanied three cheeses (feta, aged cheddar and goats), olives, almonds, crackers and sweet biscuits. The group’s favourite wines of the evening were the Sardinian Vermentino and the Lebanese Merlot.
Read MoreRestaurant Wine Lists Tasting – March 2025
There can be wide variation in what good quality restaurants charge for similar wines, one of the factors influencing this is whether the establishment works on a fixed mark-up or a percentage. Some restaurants list wines in price order, others attempt to give an indication of style. All the wines in this tasting, from seven…
Read MoreWines of Northern Spain Beyond Rioja tasting – February 2025
The wines tasted were: 1. Muga Cava ‘Conde de Haro’ Brut 2020Region: Rioja, SpainGrapes: 90% Viura,10% Chardonnay; ABV: 12%Seriously good Spanish Cava from Muga in Rioja, fermented in bottle and aged for two years just like Champagne. This gives it similar depth and complexity, balancing youthful freshness and toasty richness with fine bubbles and excellent…
Read MoreBrighton & South Downs CAMRA Pub of the Year
As Pubs Officer I organised the Pub of the Year competition and judging – the region broadly covers an area between Shoreham, Haywards Heath and Seaford with well over 400 pubs, so to get recognised is a real achievement for these pubs. My thanks to all those who visited the nominated pubs and completed judging…
Read MoreGreat British Beer Festival Winter
I attended GBBF Winter held this year at Magna in Rotherham. The venue wasn’t ideal as it is not on the Sheffield tram network and once inside was very strung out with odd bars in corners. What was really disappointing was the lack of a beer list so you couldn’t decide which beers to try. …
Read MoreMaltby & Greek portfolio tasting
I was delighted to attend the above tasting on 20th January so thanks to Alexandra for the invitation. M&G work with 25 wineries and have an excellent selection of Greek (and now Cyprus) wines. I didn’t have the stamina, or tastebuds, to try all 90 wines; however some highlights for me were: Kokotos Estate (Attica)…
Read MoreWines of Sussex tasting – January 2025
It is easy to ignore the wines that are closest to home, so we decided to cut down the food miles and see the variety of wines that are produced in our home county. Hidden Spring Pinot Gris 2022£20.00 cellar doorPacked full of tropical fruit with a floral honeysuckle nose and a flinty minerality. Aromas…
Read MoreFortified Wines tasting event – November 2024
The wines we tasted were: Hidalgo Manzanilla Pasada Pastrana Sherry£18 Waitrose CellarVery fine Manzanilla Pasada. From a single vineyard, it has the typical and unique freshness and delicacy of Sanlúcar wines. Superb, mature, nutty manzanilla from the fine Pastrana vineyard in the Miraflores region, which has long produced the finest wines in the Hidalgo cellars.…
Read MoreBeer Tasting Panel / Kissingate Brewery Beer Festival
I had the pleasure of sitting on a CAMRA Beer Tasting Panel held at the Kissingate Brewery Beer Festival. The brewery has collected multiple awards including, on this occasion, “Beer of the Festival” for the South Downs Beer Festival. They laid on a very wide selection of beers, covering all styles; however the dark beers…
Read MoreOctober 2024 – Wines of Central and Eastern Europe
1. Bohemia Sekt ‘Prestige’ Brut NVRegion/country: Moravia, Czech RepublicGrapes: Riesling, Pinot Blanc, WelschrieslingABV: 13%Bohemia Sekt Prestige Brut is a premium traditional-method sparkling wine, aged for 15–18 months on its lees. The cuvée is a unique combination of quality varietal wines from selected vineyards in southern Moravia. Rheinriesling (aka Riesling) gives the wine a rich aroma…
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