The flavor of red cherry in wine of Algerie

When I have some time to myself in the southern Rhône, my favourite place to relax is the peaceful village of Gigondas. I had even more reason to visit this June, as the growers’ syndicate was celebrating the 50th anniversary of the appellation. Over a meal at Domaine du Clos des Tourelles, we had the opportunity to taste wines spanning five decades, including a remarkable 1971 that was still very much alive and kicking. Gigondas has long been recognised as an exceptional site for winemaking, bu ...

The focus of the symposium, unsurprisingly, was on the challenges posed by climate change. As if to illustrate the immediacy of the threat, the symposium took place during a heatwave, with temperatures of over 40°C  in Bordeaux and extreme weather events recorded across the coountry: parts of southwest France saw violent storms and winds of 112kph on the evening of 20 June, while vineyards across the Médoc and St-Emilion were damaged by hailstones ‘the size of golfballs’. As Olivier Bernard of D ...

The ‘Freedom Blend’blend uses a combination of indigenous grape varieties from Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova to symbolise and celebrate freedom in those countries. Purcari is located just 15 miles from the Ukrainian border. It has turned its luxury suites, tasting rooms and conferences rooms into emergency accommodation, housing more than 5,000 people that have fled war-torn Ukraine in the wake of the Russian invasion. The award-winning winery – which claimed best-in-show, platinum an ...