Posts Tagged ‘farming’
An odyssey through Italy’s indigenous grapes – via Zoom
Falanghina, montepulciano and passerina all featured in the latest online tastings attended by drinks blogger Peter Ranscombe. FEW countries can boast as many varieties of grapes as Italy – the International Organisation of Vine & Wine (OIV), the keeper of the geekiest of all statistics, lists 454 varietals as being grown from the Alps down to…
Read MoreIt’s Bordeaux, but like you’ve never seen it before
Before the lockdown, Peter Ranscombe travelled to Bordeaux to visit winemakers who are caring for the environment as well as their vines. JEAN-BAPTISTE Cordonnier knew he was doing something right when the baby grass snakes started coming back into his kitchen. His father, Pierre, had farmed the family’s vineyards near Moulis in Bordeaux organically “without…
Read MoreHow does an online wine tasting work?
Peter Ranscombe joins Diana Thompson for her first Wine Events Scotland online tasting to learn how the format works – and tastes some great-value Chilean bottles along the way. I WISH I’d bought shares in Zoom. The video-conferencing app has become almost as ubiquitous during the covid19 lockdown as Jason Leitch, the Scottish Government’s national…
Read MoreScotch whisky firm give a $1million boost
Scotch whisky Chivas has announced that due to the current global coronavirus outbreak, this year’s Chivas Venture $1 million fund will be distributed evenly amongst the 26 global finalists with immediate effect. Now in its sixth year, the Chivas Venture gives away $1m in no-strings funding to startups who blend profit with purpose to have…
Read MoreBeautiful residential and sporting estate for £2.65m+
A superb Speyside residential and sporting estate has come to the market. Cairnty Estate comprises a fabulous Georgian-style contemporary home with glorious views across the Spey Valley and set in several acres of beautiful gardens and grounds. It offers excellent pheasant shooting, roe deer stalking and trout fishing and also includes farming, forestry and residential…
Read MoreA year as the ethical carnivore comes full circle
Louise Gray looks back at what she learned in a year only eating animals she had killed herself. The stag was lying down, his face turned towards me, his chin almost resting on the ground, having a wee midday snooze. ‘Go for his neck,’ said the stalker. ‘I can’t,’ I said. ‘It’s hidden. I’ll have…
Read MoreAnimal magic that’s rescuing thousands of creatures
Thousands of maltreated and injured creatures, great and small, are restored to health each year at the National Wildlife Rescue Centre in Fife. It’s usually the plight of red squirrels and wildcats that makes the headlines, but the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (the Scottish SPCA), makes it its business to…
Read MoreA digital makeover for Scots air raid shelter
An abandoned Scottish air raid shelter has been given a digital makeover. Up and down the country there are a vast array of historical buildings that are now abandoned or in a state of decay; but what if these buildings were bought back to life? Barratt Homes have been imagining how interesting buildings could look,…
Read MoreMore than £90,000 raised in one night for education trust
Scotland’s countryside education charity, RHET, held its first-ever gala dinner and auction at the Royal Highland Centre and raised in excess of £90k, with further pledges still being received. More than 450 people enjoyed a three-course meal of Scottish produce, comedy from Jim Smith and a fast-paced auction which included over 90 fantastic prizes donated…
Read MoreCall for policy makers to protect pollinators
Pollinating insects could thrive if improvements are made to agri-environment schemes across Europe, a new study led by Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) has found. More than 20 pollinator experts from 18 different countries looked at a range of wildlife habitats on farmland – named Ecological Focus Areas (EFAs) – to determine how well they support…
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