Food and Wine Pairing with crunch

Our feet crunched through layers of dry oak leaves as we climbed a pebbly path towards the vineyards behind the farmhouse. Roots go deep here. Not just the tall oaks and squat vines, but families too. I walked the vineyards at Mas de Libian with Hélène Thibon, but it was her father Jean-Pierre that greeted me when I arrived. Hélène’s sister Catherine was out front with Bambi the horse, ploughing the sandier plots. Later, we tasted in the winery with Hélène’s son Aurélien. Three generations of a ...

Pale salmon in colour, a basket full of freshly-picked summer berries backed by the tell-tale, mouth-watering English acidity – these pink delights are wines made for summer and glorious celebrations. In fact, rosé is likely to become ‘one of the most important styles made in Britain over the next 10 to 20 years,’ as Oz Clark put it in his 2020 book on English wines*. The top examples of English sparkling rosés tend to be made mainly from the red Champagne grapes using the traditional method, wi ...

In spite of growing worldwide demand for bubbles, recent challenges arising from the pandemic and the cost of living crisis have put the brakes on consumers’ willingness to spend on non-essential products. In search of new and imaginative ways of rising to the challenge, Cava producers believe that while it can be tough for consumers to fork out for fizz, they can continue to enjoy ‘the little luxuries of life’ by purchasing reasonably priced Cava. This isn’t to suggest going for the cheapest op ...