Monday, June 1st: Opened a bottle of Kumeu River Estate Chardonnay 2024 from New Zealand – the first from a case. What a great wine. Happy I bought a dozen.
Tuesday, June 2nd: Dinner: roast chicken with Peller Estates JEP Red.
Monday, May 18th: Dinner: shrimp in cream sauce with rice. And a bottle of Riverlore Sauvignon Blanc 2025.
Tuesday, May 19th: Dinner: chicken wings with a bottle of Stratus White 2010. Continue reading
Sunday, May 10th: London. Deborah and I are staying at the house of our friend Livia Prior in Hampstead. We took her to dinner at a local Lebanese restaurant, coincidentally named Oliviya. We started with Chateau Ksara Blanc de Blancs 2022 and moved on to Chateau Musar Hochar 2021. Back at the house we had a nightcap of Marquis de Sylène Calvados Vieille Reserve.
Monday, May 4th: This is the 20th year of the Pauwels-Aspler food & wine tour in Europe.
Deborah and I flew to Florence airport to rendezvous with our group for the bus transfer to Siena. Our initial base was the 5-star Grand Hotel Continental Siena, located only steps from the Piazza del Campo, which, twice a year, hosts the Palio, the world-famous bareback horse race. The group took a 90-minute, guided walking tour of the city centre ending with an aperitif overlooking the Piazza del Campo. Continue reading
Monday, April 27th: Tasted the following Strewn wines:
Strewn Sparkling Blush (Charmat process)
Equal parts Cabernet Franc and Riesling. Deep coppery-pink in colour;
lightly floral nose of strawberries. Petillant, medium-bodied, dry, strawberry and yellow cherry flavours; well-balanced and easy drinking with a touch of sweetness in mid-palate. (89)
Strewn Chardonnay 2025 (Niagara Peninsula)
Pale straw in colour; toasty, apple bouquet with vanilla oak spice; medium-bodied, dry, richly extracted apple and pear flavours with well-integrated oak and good length. (90) Continue reading
 | Vaughan Bowser on A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 952… |
 | Andras Borbely on A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 934… |
| A Wine Lover’s Diary… on A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 882… | |
 | John Stuart on A Wine-Hosted River Cruise wit… |
 | Bernie McCarthy on The World’s Top Winemakers of… |
