James Wine & Spirits
WINE TO DINE – AUGUST 2020 – BARBECUE
Scottish Field wine columnist Peter Ranscombe fires off five brilliant bottles for barbecues. I DON’T mind admitting that my mouth was watering when I read John Barclay’s barbecue recipes. Although I’m a bit of a woose when it comes to outdoor cooking – I’ve been known to grill sausages and burgers indoors before finishing them off…
Read MoreWinemaker’s love of Scotland shines during online tasting
Peter Ranscombe enjoys three great-value South African wines while hearing what their maker would serve alongside them. THE Co-op in Melrose is perhaps the last place you’d expect to find a South African winemaker – but Alastair Rimmer has an affinity for the Borders. The cellar master at Kleine Zalze winery enjoys fishing on the…
Read MoreIndulging in restaurant fizz at home
As indoor restaurants and other hospitality businesses get ready to reopen from 15 July, Peter Ranscombe ponders some food and wine pairing for a lockdown treat at home. SOMETIMES a particular grape variety or a style of wine will strike a chord with sommeliers. Riesling is a classic example; beloved by the trade, but never…
Read MoreSeven of the best from Edinburgh Beer Box
Brewers in the Scottish capital have been thinking ‘inside the box’ during lockdown, with a curated beer selection that demonstrates their talent, writes Peter Ranscombe. FROM historic names like Caledonian, McEwan’s and Younger’s through to the modern wave of micro-breweries, the words “Edinburgh” and “beer” go together like a cheeky wee “hauf an’ hauf”. Although…
Read MoreWelcome to the ‘lollipop vineyard’
While South Africa may have a strong reputation for its old vines, that isn’t stopping farmers from planning for the future, as Peter Ranscombe discovers. WHEN you see the phrase “old vines” on a label, it can mean dramatically different things in different places. On a remote hillside in Australia or Spain or the Languedoc…
Read MoreMeet the paper wine bottle coming to Scotland…
Peter Ranscombe ponders a cardboard wine bottle that’s been launched today – and revisits the wine inside. I ALWAYS feel more than a wee bit guilty on recycling day. As the blue box is lugged off the pavement and its contents heaved into the back of the bin lorry, I pause and think about the…
Read MoreEnglish Wine Week: If you like that, try this…
In the final article in his English Wine Week series, Peter Ranscombe takes your favourite styles of wine and finds an English alternative. WITH the names of weird-sounding grape varieties galore appearing on its labels – ranging from bacchus, otega and seyval blanc through to regent, rondo and dornfelder – English wine can sometimes feel like…
Read MoreEnglish Wine Week: The Welsh side of the story
In the penultimate installment in his series of articles for English Wine Week, Peter Ranscombe casts an eye over Welsh wines. IT MAY be called “English Wine Week” but this month’s celebration of all things vinous also includes vineyards and wineries in Wales. National identity is a minefield at the best of times within the UK’s…
Read MoreEnglish Wine Week: Urban wineries
Stretching from Gateshead to London, England has a growing urban winery scene, writes Peter Ranscombe in his latest English Wine Week article. WHEN you think of a winery, it’s natural to form a mental image of the sun-drenched rolling hills of France or Spain or Italy. Tyneside isn’t perhaps the first place that springs to…
Read MoreEnglish Wine Week: The college at the heart of the industry
Peter Ranscombe learns how winemakers are trained at Plumpton College – and tastes the fruits of their labours – in his latest English Wine Week article. IF I’D known it was possible to studying for a degree in winemaking then my UCAS form may have looked very different. Plumpton College near Brighton is the only…
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