It's good to have friends.

Hey Everyone,

Today I'm writing to you from one of the most lovely neighbourhoods I've had the pleasure to visit in many years. I woke up this morning to the lovely sounds of church bells, my favourite alarmer. I can hear the sounds of Sunday morning in the city outside and a beautiful sense of peace and calm pervading. I am sitting in a small but cosy flat here in the heart of Montmartre. I often marvel at the good fortune which comes my way, even if it comes along with some rather embarrassing lost in translation moments.

Some years ago I chose that wine would be my calling. It presented itself as an option and, loving the stuff, I went for it. I don't know exactly what the future might hold for my career in the wine industry, but for now I have come to the conclusion that it need not worry me, so long as I have friends. This doesn't mean contacts that can set me up or anything, but really genuine friends which make the world of wine so colourful and vibrant. This was my first visit to France which lasted more than a day (for details of my hellish 20 hours in Charles de Gaulle, ask me personally) and while the focus was officially on the wine and the competition, I was really most impressed by the hospitality and the eagerness to please.

I came to Paris with three friends, two on the Univeristy Wine Tasting Team with me to compete in the Sciences Po International Tasting competition. The competition was amazing and the wines we tried were delightful. The questions were challenging and the results for the team were exhilarating. Overall the most interesting bit was how friendly the people involved were. The people at Bollinger, the hosting Champagne house in Ay, were incredibly welcoming, were generous with their wine, giving us the chance to try four different vintages of their champagne as well as plenty of their basic rose and non vintage.

Bollinger RD

By the time we left the winery, those hosting our visit were eager to stress that we were welcome to come visit anytime, that we could come experience a harvest in September and that we were always welcome to stay in Ay. From what I've been told, these offers are not hollow promises and once you are brought into the fold with someone like Bollinger you are always welcome to come again. For this visit, I cannot sing the praises loudly enough for the hospitality of Sciences Po and Bollinger. I am truly fortunate to be in this kind of trade. Sometimes I am nervous about my choice of career, but when I see that's will be working with people this friendly, I can't help feel I've made the right decision.

Delightful Grand Année

For those interested in the actual competition, there were twelve teams from Britain, France and Italy with competitors from around the world, St Andrews achieved its highest ranking ever, at third behind Dauphine and Oxford and just above Cambridge. We were hard pressed on the theory questions, but scored very well on the blind tasting. We were given three champagnes, three whites and three reds, with the breakdown as follows;

The champagnes were Bollinger RD 1995, Bollinger RD 1996, and Bollinger RD 1997.

The whites included a 2004 Vouvray, Chilean Chardonnay 2009, and an Alsace Riesling 2008

The reds were Saint Joseph 2009, Chilean Syrah 2009, and an Australian Shiraz 2009

The final three teams were given a Bollinger Grande Annee 2002 and a 1998 Chateau Palmer.

So a huge thanks to Bollinger and to Sciences Po for hosting this truly enjoyable competition. It was a great opportune to meet people with similar interests and to see a beautiful place.

Much love,
G

Photography compliments of George Flickinger

The Season for Barbecues

Hey everyone,

Today I'm writing to you from what appears to be a wintry relapse in the UK, following close on the heels of a week of amazing, summery weather. Sitting outside in the sun on days off seemed almost too good to be true in March in Scotland, and lo and behold it was. On the day of a much anticipated barbecue planned amongst friends to celebrate one of our number's time in St. Andrews before his return down south we were met with an amount of rain and wind which can only be described as typical. Classic Scotland.

Rain or shine, it is the season for barbecues. Nothing screams fun afternoon like a grill, an easy burn bag of charcoal and a bottle of wine. I've done my fair share of barbecues, sometimes with over a hundred people present and it can be a bit stressful making sure everyone gets fed. But for a small number of people, limited to close friends there's nothing quite like a cook-out to feel the lightness of spring and summer.

Despite the weather, we pressed on with the affair, the brave troopers we are and not only cooked food in the damp weather, but we cooked for seven hours producing a steady stream of burgers throughout the day, culminating with a particularly magnificent double rack of ribs. Marinating with a heavily peated whisky sauce for several hours these ribs were delicious and warming in the fresh climate we occupy. The best part though? Obviously the wine. Pairing wine with a barbecue is one of my favourite things because it's just so fun. Nearly anything works really. I mean, you could happily drink a cold white on a hot day for a barbecue, just as you could enjoy a big, jammy Shiraz or Cabernet. It's all about the context and what your feeling.

We had a lovely, and truly unique bottle of South African red to match our ribs. The 2008 Sijnn red blend is a smashing concoction of Shiraz and Mourvedre, a classic pairing with an inspired cameo appearance by the Portuguese varieties, Touriga Nacional and Trincadeira, with just a splash of Cabernet Sauvignon in the mix perhaps for a bit of added complexity. It was herbal, almost feral on the nose and for some of the tasters present it took sometime for them to decide whether they actually liked it. I definitely did and it matched the ribs and burgers perfectly. It also suited the after party rather nicely as we sat sipping from nice big glasses around the bonfire staying warm.

A barbecue is a great way to get your friends around and make a regular day into a great event. I definitely encourage you to regularly throw together a nice cook-out this spring and summer and if necessary take up the mantle of Master Barbecuer if necessary. It requires strong shoulders but the rewards are many and worthwhile. I hope you all find time to get outside and open a nice bottle of something you really enjoy with your friends.

Much Love,

G