China's New Frontier of Wine

POSTED ON 19/10/2013

If you were to visit a Disneyland of wine, you might expect grandiose castles with crimson turrets and golden gates, ‘classical’ statues with fountains, marble receptions rooms and wine museums, and come across hokey names like Chateau Bacchus, Chateau De Da and Saint Louis Ding. All this, and much more, exists, in China’s Ningxia province two hours west of Beijing by air.

Don't Discount Aldi

POSTED ON 12/10/2013

This month sees the opening of Aldi’s 500th store in the UK. That’s right, 500. Hardly surprising with 32 per cent growth in the past year. The German discounter has been one of the main beneficiaries of the recession and not just for food but for wine too. You may not impress your dinner party guests with an Aldi own-label wine , but you almost might with Aldi’s extravagantly entitled Exquisite Collection wines. Exquisite may be overegging the pud, but if Tesco can go Finest and Asda Extra Special, why shouldn’t Aldi indulge in a little bit of poetic licence?

Game and Match

POSTED ON 05/10/2013

I’m no more a fan of the so-called Glorious 12th than your average grouse served trussed-up in haste on dinner and restaurant tables throughout the land. It seems as unseasonally early for game as the increasingly premature kick-off to the football season. October on the other hand is true autumn and for me that means game of the pheasant, guinea fowl and partridge variety. So this week I’m celebrating autumn with some deliciously autumnal reds to go with our feathered friends.

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