Posts Tagged ‘The Grape & The Grain’
Tesco: Seven of the best summer wines
The summer Tesco press tasting gave Peter Ranscombe the chance to select his seasonal recommendations. AFTER press tastings with Aldi and Marks & Spencer, Tesco was the next supermarket chain to unveil its spring and summer selection. I came away feeling more positive about Tesco than I have done for a while. The focus on…
Read MoreAldi: Toasting reliable fizzy favourites
Peter Ranscombe salutes Aldi for the consistency of its sparkling wines. SUPERMARKET shopping is – let’s face it – boring. Don your face covering and trudge down the same aisles, week after week, month after month. Pick up the same milk, the same bread, the same giant bag of crisps that you promise yourself will…
Read MoreWhy South Africa’s wines are ageworthy
Peter Ranscombe gets a sneaky peak at bottles from South Africa going under the hammer at the Cape Fine & Rare Wine Auction. FEW wine-making countries have such a dual persona in Scottish shops as South Africa. Look in a supermarket and South African bottles are often regulated to the bargain basement shelves. Yet delve…
Read MoreExton Park: Tasting the future of English sparkling wine?
Has Corinne Seely created ‘an English Bollinger’ at Exton Park, asks Peter Ranscombe. MOST English winemakers are faced with a simple choice. Make a “vintage” wine labeled with the year in which all the grapes were harvested. Or create a “non-vintage” blend by mixing a small amount of previous years’ wines – “reserve” wines –…
Read MoreHow pinot found a home on the Mornington Peninsula
Australia’s Mornington Peninsula is producing pinot noir in a variety of styles, writes Peter Ranscombe. WINEMAKERS have put up with a lot over the past year. Fewer restaurants to sell their wines, fewer pickers to harvest their grapes, and less sleep as they host Zoom calls for awkward journalists at all hours of the day…
Read MoreCap Classique: Are these the world’s best-value bubbles?
Peter Ranscombe celebrates 50 years of South Africa’s flagship sparkling wine. IF YOU went to a party and all the guests were sparkling wines then you’d be able to spot the usual suspects. There’s Champagne over there, holding court, and hogging the limelight. Then there’s Prosecco in the middle of the dance floor, causing trouble…
Read MoreWhy does Portuguese wine taste so different?
Peter Ranscombe hits the trail to find out what makes Portugal’s wine so special. IT WASN’T the grapes that first brought Peter Bright to Portugal – it was the surfing. Winemakers seem to have an affinity for the waves, no matter whether they’re from California or South Africa or Australia. Bright’s first visit to Portugal…
Read MoreChardonnay showdown: Australia v New Zealand
Peter Ranscombe had a ring-side seat for this afternoon’s virtual clash between two chardonnay giants. IN THE red corner: all the way from the southern hemisphere, the undefeated heavyweight champion of chardonnay, it’s Australia. And in the blue corner, from the other side of the Tasman Sea, the upstart challenger looking to land a knock-out…
Read MoreSeven South African wines you need to try
Peter Ranscombe revisits some of his recent favourites from South Africa as the country’s alcohol ban shifts direction once more. YESTERDAY’S news that the South African government has lifted parts of its alcohol sales ban will provide some relief for wine producers. Yet – as winemaker Bruce Jack warned in a recent article for The…
Read More12 Wines of Christmas: Chile
Day nine of his “12 Wines of Christmas” series sees Peter Ranscombe taking a look at carmenere from Chile. DIVING into a tin of Christmas chocolates can be a bit like a playing lucky dip at the showies – you’re never quite sure what you’re going to get. Back in 1994, Chilean farmers were faced…
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