JANUARY
France’s first ‘dry January’ campaign divided the nation, criticized by several leading writers and chefs as an ‘Anglo-Saxon and puritan obsession’. Australia’s bushfires dominated headlines. Wine Australia said less than 1% of vineyard land lay in fire zones, but Henschke reported 1,100ha of vines in the northern Adelaide Hills damaged in late December, including 90% of its own 25ha Lenswood estate. Most of the vineyard would be back in production by 2022, it added in an April update. Meanwhile, Bordeaux’s Surtep cooperage launched oak barrels toasted with hot jade stones. Diamonds would also work in theory, said CEO Thomas Moussié.
FEBRUARY
Plans were revealed for a £60m wine cultural center in Beijing, designed in partnership with Bordeaux’s Cité du Vin. Despite the tension, US officials continued 25% import tariffs on some European wines, from Rioja to Burgundy. Figures showed the tariffs had already curtailed shipments. Italian wines, unaffected by the EU-US trade dispute, only became more popular among fine wine buyers. Separately, there was excitement for the new-release Barolo 2016s. Elsewhere, burglars stole £170,000 of Domaine Leroy and DRC wines from the one-star Michelin restaurant Formel B in Copenhagen.
A Resource for the World? - Argentina is unique in the genetic diversity preserved in much of its vine material. With climate change and disease posing increasing threats worldwide, Catena Zapata winery is asking what lessons can be learned to protect vineyards within and beyond the nation's borders
Argentina is unique in the genetic diversity preserved in much of its vine material. With climate change and disease posing increasing threats worldwide, Catena Zapata winery is asking what lessons can be learned to protect vineyards within and beyond the nation’s borders
Great Cabernets of South America
Other varieties may hog the limelight across South America, but the world’s most popular grape for red wines has played a critical role in the continent's wine heritage. We trace Cabernet Sauvignon’s story here, and recommend 16 benchmark wines to try
PROVENCE by train and bike
With rail links to Paris, Nice, Marseilles and beyond, a vast network of cycle paths and quiet roads, and a plethora of historic wine estates, Provence is an ideal destination for an eco-friendly, car-free and carefree) holiday
IN THE MIX
These days most of the world’s vineyards are planted to just a single variety, but what happens when multiple varieties are planted, harvested and blended together?
Malvasia A BUYER'S GUIDE
If ever a grape was hard to pin down, it'd be Malvasia. Indeed it’s not even a single grape variety. In all of its many varied, and often completely unrelated guises, it has been the mainstay of popular wine styles across the centuries. Our expert takes a closer look...
RIBERA ADOPTS THE NEW OLD WAYS
It’s not so much a new direction for winemakers in Ribera del Duero, but a growing recognition that traditional methods and wine styles set aside by the previous generation can now provide a way ahead to revitalise the region
Roussanne around the world
Up for a challenge? For winemakers as much as wine drinkers, getting a handle on a mercurial grape such as Roussanne isn't easy. But wherever it's grown, when the balance is right, it truly repays the effort
Napa Cabernet 2021
There's a lot of excitement about this vintage, in which conditions were relatively calm and temperatures stable through summer. Ongoing drought reduced yields but intensified flavours, but it means quantities are down and you may need to act fast to secure top wines. Our Napa correspondent selects 60 great wines from more than 500 that he tasted, with many very high scores
10 reason to discover Uruguay
Squeezed between Brazil and Argentina on the Atlantic coast, Uruguay has mostly flown under the tourist radar - until now. Once dubbed 'the Switzerland of the Americas', it's a welcoming country that has much to offer the travelling wine lover
Leo Erazo
The old vines and special terroir of Itata, southern Chile, have beena source of inspiration for this intrepid winemaker. The 2023 fires were a setback, but his commitment to this ancient wine land is undiminished
