The Fine Wine Column
By Dr Jeremy Howard
This occasional column will try to illuminate the rarified world of fine wine from the perspective of a non-expert. I have been drinking and enjoying wine for a number of years but have had no formal training. I do read books, now and again, and am aware of what some critics write, but for me wine is an unpretentious and social affair. My friends and I (none of whom are experts or in the wine trade) go to tastings in our jeans, and when we organize tastings at home they are often arranged around football matches.
There will be no formal agenda for the column, just a lot of layman’s tasting notes and some observations on what I think is interesting in the world of fine wine. Where-ever possible, I will try to write (good or bad!) about wines that can be bought through Slurp, but otherwise it will be a free-for-all of whatever is interesting at any given time.
I hope you enjoy it.
Jeremy
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A Château Angélus Vertical
The Château Angélus master class organised by Decanter magazine in November 2009 was well attended... -
A Lunch with Paul Draper-Winemaker at Ridge Vineyards on 24th November 2009
A Lunch with Paul Draper: Winemaker at Ridge Vineyards on 24th November 2009 -
How Long Does White Burgundy Really Last?
I spent an evening in the company of the Wine and Dine Society... -
A French Aristocrat and an Aussie Pretender
This little taste off (conducted blind as far as my guests were concerned)... -
Decanter Fine Wine Encounter 21st February 2009
There was no sign of a downturn in the fine wine market at the London Decanter Fine Encounter... -
A Week in Bordeaux - Day Five - 5th September 2008
We stayed on the Right Bank for Day Five, starting out at the St Emilion producer Troplong Mondot... -
A Week in Bordeaux - Day Four - 4th September 2008
Day Four began with an earlier start and a passage across the Gironde River... -
A Week in Bordeaux - Day Three - 3rd September 2008
Day Three saw us still on the Left Bank but heading south of Bordeaux... -
A Week in Bordeaux - Day Two - 2nd September 2008
Our second day started with a trip north to St Estephe... -
A Week in Bordeaux - Day One - 1st September 2008
For anyone interested in wine, there is no better way to learn than to visit wineries... -
A Pichon Lalande Tasting Amongst the Portraits - 8th July 2008
A Pichon Lalande Wine Tasting Review -
Jancis Robinson versus Robert Parker -- a Slurp Taste Off!
Review note by Slurp fan Dr Jeremy Howard... -
A Chateau Lynch-Bages Vertical with Sylvie Cazes-Regimbeau
Following last week's rather disappointing Bordeaux whites tasting I needed something to restore my faith in the region's ability... -
1990 in the Sunshine - (May 2008)
Tasting note from Dr Jeremy Howard. Two friends and I decided to use the unseasonable May weather to try some Left Bank Bordeaux 1990s...