Grape&Grain
Why champagne and fish go swimmingly together
Don’t dismiss sparklers when it comes to food and wine pairings, writes Peter Ranscombe. WHEN is a wine not a wine? When it’s a champagne, of course. While champagne and other bubbles are the bottles of choice for aperitifs to start a meal, seldom do you see fizz being served throughout a dinner. But why…
Read MoreOn patrol at Bon Vivant Companion’s fizz tasting
Edinburgh wine merchant The Bon Vivant’s Companion has plenty of ideas for sparkling wines to grace the Christmas dinner table, as Peter Ranscombe finds out. I PROMISE that I don’t have a favourite wine shop – but if I were to draw up a top ten then The Bon Vivant’s Companion tucked away on Thistle…
Read MoreWINE TO DINE – JANUARY 2019 – LOWER-ALCOHOL WINES
Drinks writer Peter Ranscombe selects five lower-alcohol wines. FEW months appear as bleak as January – the heady excesses of Christmas and Hogmanay are fading into the background and it feels like a long way to go before we can indulge in the whisky-fueled revelry of Burns’ Night. Fear not though; even if the belt…
Read MoreA sparkling education at the Fizz Feast
Today’s Fizz Feast in Edinburgh not only has delicious Champagnes on show but also sparkling wines from around the world, writes Peter Ranscombe. EDINBURGH Academy may be renowned for the sparkling success of its former pupils – with notable alumni ranging from writer Robert Louis Stevenson to physicist James Clerk Maxwell – but it was sparklers…
Read MoreLidl pops-up in Edinburgh with gin range
Peter Ranscombe heads down to the capital’s Castle Street for a preview of the German grocer’s gin range. POP-UPS have become a regular fixture on our high streets, filling empty shops with retailers for a short period of time. They can be a great way for new businesses to dip their toes into the water…
Read MoreWINE TO DINE – DECEMBER 2018 – CHRISTMAS BANQUET
Drinks writer Peter Ranscombe picks five wines to pair with the Christmas banquet. CHRISTMAS is a time for feasting – celebrating family and friendship over good food and good wine. Taking that feast outside into a location like The Secret Herb Garden in Edinburgh – as Scottish Field did for its December 2018 issue – makes…
Read MoreCalifornia collectin’
The futuristic-looking United States embassy in London played host to the first ‘Collectible California’ dinner, demonstrating how the state’s wines can age, as Peter Ranscombe reports. WHEN wine enthusiasts begin building their collection of bottles, they usually turn to the Old World classics from Bordeaux and Burgundy. But what about California? Can wines from the…
Read MoreApprentice star launches Canadian ice wine
Peter Ranscombe tastes Rebel Pi, the dessert wine created by Jackie Fast, star of BBC One television series The Apprentice. ANYONE who’s watched the current series of The Apprentice on the gogglebox will be familiar with Jackie Fast. With her direct business style and oodles of energy, the Canadian entrepreneur has already made her mark…
Read MoreQuinta do Noval: Blending tradition with technology
Peter Ranscombe dons his saltire boxer shorts to join in the crushing of the grapes in the Douro valley and along the way discovers how classic ports also need a modern edge. AS THE sun began to set across the Douro river valley, the sound of an accordion started to waft through the evening air.…
Read MoreWINE TO DINE – NOVEMBER 2018 – PEARS
Drinks writer Peter Ranscombe selects five wines to go with pears. WHETHER they’re sliced in a salad, smothered in chocolate or poached in wine, pears are one of the fruits that always grab my eye on a menu. Check out the pear recipes in the November 2018 issue of Scottish Field magazine and take a look at…
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