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When an Italian wine-loving friend calls you to say that they are in the French Alps and asks if would we like to meet just across in Italy as they have heard so much about the region from us, well, what do you say? It’s only 8 hours away (plus a 2-hour delay at the Mont Blanc tunnel and then a car broken down inside it so that it had to be temporarily closed…). But once you have eventually managed to get through the tunnel, you have a magnificent choice of Nebbiolo in all i

‘Tasting Victory – The Life and Wines of the World’s Favourite Sommelier’ by Gerard Basset Published by Academie du Vin Library, 2026 Sadly, I never met Gerard Basset. I read a lot about him, used to stay (eat and drink) in his Hotel du Vin and followed him as he won all the top international sommelier contests. He was a UK wine tasting superstar, (all be it that he was French), as you can see from the tributes written in his book by Jancis Robinson, Raymond Blanc and more.

I thought it would not be too immodest to publish this review from The World of Fine Wine, which is in my opinion the wine publication which carries the most serious writers and articles. They very kindly reviewed my book, all profits from which go to charity, to Vendanges Solidaires. I very much hope this will encourage people to buy it and raise some funds for such a good cause. Many thanks to Raymond Blake for the very kind and thoughtful review and to the editor Neil Beck

Looking across Brunello vineyards and the Val d'Orcia towards Monte Amiata These days top Italian wines are famous, expensive and sought after, especially Barolo and Brunello, but even recently it was not always thus. A century and a half ago they were mainly white and unknown, and this century opened with the so-called ‘Barolo Wars’ and ‘Brunellogate’. We forget how new all this renown, quality and wealth really is. If the road was rocky, much of the demand, and in my opinio