Wine of the moment

Matching jumper

When tasting one of the most famous wines in the world, Chateau Mouton Rothschild, it is important to make sure your jumper matches the label. By the way, the artist was Georg Baselitz, appropriately a German, as 1989 was of course the year in which the wall fell between East and West Germany. This was …

Wine of the moment

Volcanic wines rock

From one dormant volcano and one active one, both these wines show that typical saltiness and minerality associated with wines grown on volcanic soils. The Anydrous Assrytiko from Santorini comes from old ungrafted vines (woven into a basket shape, a bit like a bird’s nest to give protection from the strong winds and allow dew …

Wine of the moment

Reasons to be cheerful

(if your name is Axel Neiss): 1) wind – plenty of it, ideal for dring the grapes after a bout of rain to avoid those pesky cryptogammic diseases; 2) elevation – height brings slopes and cooler temperatures – just the ticket when temperatures rise; 3) stoney soil rich in limestone – great for water retention …

Wine of the moment

The new rising star in Piemont

As if Italy did not have enough indigenous grapes, there is now a new white wine star, rising from the ashes like Phoenix. Timorasso. From small beginnings, Walter Massa re-energised this fascinating grape variety so that today 300 hectares are planted in the Colli Tortonesi (which is, rather strangely, called Derthona on many wines labels, …

taste by flemming

John Malkovich

What an honour to have John Malkovich, the renowned and sometimes controversial American actor and film producers, be our guest in one of the IMW 10th Symposium discussion sessions, hosted by MCs Susie and Peter Barrie, a married MW couple. Here he is with the „internal team“ of MWs who executed the symposium. John talked …

taste by flemming

Old & Rare

No, this is not about us, but about an extraordinary tasting on the final day of the IMW Symposium in Wiesbaden. Eight decades of wine history were discussed and tasted: over 70 year old Tawny Port from Taylor’s (especially bottled for the symposium); 1955 Gonzalez Byass Oloroso Sherry (also the year of the inauguration of …

taste by flemming

Patisserie par excellence

If there was a Guide Michelin for patissiers, Daniel Rebert, patissier and chocolatier with his eponymous shop in Wissembourg in Alsace, would be top of the tree. Fortunately he is generous with his skills and came to Heidelberg to teach master patissier students how to make the best out of chocolate and co. Pictured here …