Jonathan Ray is The Spectator’s drinks editor.
From our UK edition
Berry Bros & Rudd is the grand old man of St. James’s, family-owned and still trading from the very spot it in which it was established in 1698. Berrys’ has the most innovative and informative website of any wine merchant, anywhere in the world, and boasts an unrivalled seven Masters of Wine. Corney & Barrow
From our UK edition
Buying wine in a restaurant can be both an uplifting and a dispiriting experience. Uplifting because you are very likely to come across wonderful wines you just won’t find anywhere else, wines chosen specifically to suit the style and food of the chef, with a highly trained sommelier on hand to proffer genuine and useful
From our UK edition
Mrs Ray and I took the train the other day. All the way from Ashford to Marseille – direct. And it was absolute bliss. I booked it on a whim, Eurostar having recently launched their new direct route from St Pancras to the Côte d’Azur, just to see whether we could fall in love with
From our UK edition
When I was last in Perth – more than ten years ago – it was well and truly shut. There was nobody around, nothing to see and nothing to do. I was bored to screams and couldn’t wait to leave. Back then, Perth used to bang on proudly not only about its 19 beaches and
From our UK edition
They’re a crafty bunch at FromVineyardsDirect.com and no mistake. One of their smartest wheezes is to ferret out, very discreetly, small parcels of surplus production from the top — and I mean the top — châteaux of Bordeaux and sell them on to their customers at extremely reasonable prices. These ‘defrocked’ wines (as they like to call them) are made from
From our UK edition
Well, that’s January done and dusted. Phew! An immense relief, I’m sure, for all those clinging to the wagon by their fingertips. But pity the poor souls about to give up booze for Lent; it starts this coming Wednesday (10 February) and goes on all the way till 24 March. Best get some decent wine
From our UK edition
Once in a while, you stumble upon a restaurant that unexpectedly hits the spot perfectly. It’s unlikely to be pricey or smart, and very likely to be cheap and cheerful. It might be well-known to everyone except you or – much more likely – the well-kept secret of a select few. It probably doesn’t look that
From our UK edition
Well, that’s January done and dusted. Phew! An immense relief, I’m sure, for all those clinging to the wagon by their fingertips. But pity the poor souls about to give up booze for Lent; it starts this coming Wednesday (10 February) and goes on all the way till 24 March. Best get some decent wine
From our UK edition
I don’t know about you, but I was rather crushed when the Chief Medical Officer, Dame Sally Davies, declared that none of us should be drinking more than 14 units of alcohol a week. It was only a few days ago that we chaps were permitted 21. I can’t say that I’ve exactly taken Dame
From our UK edition
Much has already been written about The Spectator’s notorious spin around the Med this summer on board Cunard’s Queen Victoria, and there’s nothing much I can add except to confirm that, yes, we did indeed have a complete and utter hoot. In fact such a complete and utter hoot was it that once we’re
From our UK edition
It’s already started — the festive flood of shoddy champagne on BOGOF deals in the supermarkets. Well, BOGOF indeed. Such fizz might bear the magical name of champagne, but all too often these wines will have been made from the second or even third pressing of inferior fruit from the less good plots, and aged
From our UK edition
They’re a crafty bunch at FromVineyardsDirect.com and no mistake. One of their smartest wheezes is to ferret out, very discreetly, small parcels of surplus production from the top — and I mean the top — châteaux of Bordeaux and sell them on to their customers at extremely reasonable prices. These ‘defrocked’ wines (as they like to call them) are made from
From our UK edition
A serious wine merchant stands or falls by the quality of its own-label or house wines. When I worked at Berry Bros & Rudd over 20 years ago, doing shamefully little to help make it the award-winning success it is today, my boss, Simon Berry, used to stress that any fool could source, market and
From our UK edition
We have three remarkably fine bottles from the Wine Company this week, each a classic example of its type. First, the Michel Guilleminot Blanc de Noirs Brut Champagne NV, a fabulous fizz from the Vallée de l’Aube. Fresh, vibrant and fruity, with a delicate mousse and a touch of biscuit and brioche, this mouth-filling, 100
From our UK edition
Jason Yapp has been even more ebullient than usual, if such a thing was possible, Yapp Brothers having scooped three awards at the International Wine Challenge, including ‘Languedoc-Roussillon Specialist Merchant of the Year’. Jason knows Languedoc-Roussillon like nobody else: he and I had a memorable trip there recently thanks not only to the spectacular wines we
From our UK edition
Just in case you hadn’t noticed, the Rugby World Cup kicks off this Friday with England vs Fiji at HQ. The delicious prospect of six weeks of international rugby prompted sports-mad Laura Taylor and Amanda Skinner from Private Cellar to present a fine selection of wines for me to taste drawn only from those rugby
From our UK edition
Ok, so first things first. Jeremy Clarke didn’t fall overboard after all. He did, though, dance all night every night (almost), have everyone in stitches and host a rip-roaring High Life vs Low Life pub quiz. He even wore a fez with unexpected aplomb. Taki forwent the delights of his own High Life to join
From our UK edition
It’s back to Tanners this month, whose offer in June was such a great hit with readers. We’ve another fine selection this time too. There is no theme as such — these are simply the wines I liked the most and they’re jolly well-priced too, with only one over a tenner. Discounts are hard to
From our UK edition
James Franklin of Corney & Barrow presented a very strong selection for this offer, any bottle of which I would have been happy to recommend. We did finally narrow it down to four wines, though, and a tip-top quartet it is too. Readers will be delighted to hear that all prices are discounted, and the
From our UK edition
A really strong team of wines from The Wine Company this week, drawn from France, Italy and New Zealand and including two delicious oddities. And so proud of our final choice was The Wine Company’s Mark Cronshaw that he rashly agreed to some very decent discounts. I hope you enjoy the selection as much as