Tag Archives: France

Pandemic Update French Paradox As we reported last Monday 4 May 2020 in Pandemic Update!, France Health Minister Olivier Veran announced that anyone entering the country will be subject to a 2-week quarantine, including returning residents and citizens of France. This mandate will apply till 24 July 2020 when it will be reviewed. There has …

Striking a balance between fruitiness and freshness is an art, not a science. You cannot, for example, measure that sort of harmony by units of acidity nor gm of sugar. Such a result is mind over matter. Philosophy rather than science. Winemakers capable of achieving such sublime results believe that …

In 1993, Pascal Jolivet bought his first vineyards, a hectare of Le Chene Marchand and 3 ha of Les Caillottes. Both are in Sancerre. Les Caillottes has clay, chalk, and limestone soil. The 2017 shows a complex array of fruit including unripe green guavas, apples, ripe citrus, and rich minerality. …

I have been a citizen for quite a few years now. I am not patriotic because I have divided my citizenship between Schiphol Airport Amsterdam (the first hotel that was opened in 2008), London, Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, and Gare de Lyon. CitizenM was founded by India-born Dutch businessman Rattan Chadha and …

Vines are believed to have been planted here by the Romans since 600 BC. Much more recently, the De Wulf Family became proprietors in 2010 and started converting to organic farming. They also own Jas d’Esclans, another nearby winery. Both are close to the famous Chateau d’Esclans owned by Sacha Lichine. All …

“The will of the estate is to produce a wine in harmony with the land. Wine is the memory of the grape, it is able to convey the taste of the earth”. A wonderful mission statement by the owning family which has roots to winegrowing since the 17th century. Certified organic …

Christian Moueix, proprietor of this great Pomerol, told me many years ago that Trotanoy is the only wine he could mistake in a blind tasting for Petrus. Incidentally, he was also in charge of that estate for his elder brother Jean-Francois Moueix at the time. Both wines were made by …

Champagne Paul Launois, founded in 1872 in Les Mesnil sur Oger, is out to make history this Friday 14 June 2019. The Champagne house is offering for auction 10 barrels of Grand Cru Champagne Blanc de Blancs Chardonnay for a minimum price of €23,400 a barrel. Each owner will work alongside …

My favourite Chardonnay is a Chablis. Anyone truly interested in learning about terroir must get to know this pristine white wine. There are great chardonnays produced outside Burgundy but no one in the rest of the Old and New World has succeeded in anything that reminds of this unique region of France …

The family traces its origins to 1687 when Pierre Tarlant cultivated his first vineyards in Aisne. Some 100 years later, they moved to the village of Oeuilly in the Marne Valley where they have remained since 1780. Today, 12th generation Benoit and Melanie Tarlant are in charge. I have met …