First Game of the Season


I had my first game of the season the other day. A good friend who shoots on Sundays brought me a few partridges and a grouse. They were roasted wrapped in bacon and served with Anna Potatoes and red cabbage. Ployez-Jacquemart 1996 en magnum set the scene for the Josmeyer Alsace Grand Cru Hengst 1997,…

Cellar Craft


What wines should any good cellar contain? By cellar I mean a collection of wines either in an underground cave or a simple wine rack in the kitchen or under the stairs. These days who has a cave anyway? If wine is best enjoyed with food, it follows that ones cellar should be stocked with…

The End of An Era


I have been storing my wine in the cellars under my office at 86 Station parade in Harrogate for a quarter of  century. In ten days time, the property will be sold and over the last three months, I have been moving my wine to its new home, a few cases at a time. Today,…

Where is Rudding Heading?


There are many things good about the tasting dinners at Harrogate’s Rudding Park, introduced last August. The idea seemed to be to offer discerning wine lovers an opportunity to drink quality wine with good food at reasonable cost in elegant surroundings. Rudding offered all this and more. One year on, things have changed, and it…

Talking Wine With Etienne Hugel


I met Etienne Hugel in Harrogate on Wednesday. We drank coffee and mineral water and talked about wine and food and mistresses. Etienne said he would return to Harrogate in May to host a Hugel Tasting Dinner for us at Rudding Park. We will sip chilled Muscat on the terrace and drink Riesling Classic 2007…

For Lovers of Good Food & Wine!


New Season Asparagus At last the asparagus season is here. If you were having lunch in the Rheingau this time of the year, you would order a pound of white asparagus, new potatoes and a herb omelette with a bottle of Riesling. Even though you could happily drink Riesling or Sauvignon Blanc with English asparagus,…