Diary of a wine writer

In March 2026, I had the pleasure of attending a press trip to Tortona, alongside the public tasting Derthona DueZero, a celebration of the Timorasso grape variety and the wines of the Colli Tortonesi. Early spring days, committed growers and winemakers, great hospitality and the charm of Tortona itself made for an informative and thoroughly

When wine lovers say they love Piemonte, nine times out of ten they are talking about Barolo and Barbaresco. The well-informed might mention the Langhe, the area around the two world-famous Nebbiolo denominations. This is entirely understandable given the exceptional quality of the wines from those two denominations. But it is a bit like saying

How have the wines of the difficult 2023 vintage in Barbaresco turned out?  The wines will be released in January 2026. However, thanks to Vinexus, who import these wines into the UK, it was possible to get an early tasting of wines from some top producers. Many of the wines were cask samples, bottled and

I am delighted to start work this week for Nebbia e Luce, a Nebbiolo-focused company headed by Simon Farr and Chiara Ovaleo Pandolo. The company’s name means ‘Fog and Light’, encapsulating its Piemontese roots. It has been buying and storing Nebbiolo wines from various parts of Piemonte. It will then release the wines when they

I was hugely honoured to present ‘Piedmont: off the beaten track’ at Texsom in a tasting/seminar in Dallas. If you had told me even a few years ago that I would present Piemonte in Texas, I would not have believed you. My session was on the Monday of the two-day event and was followed by

It is a year since I wrote to you about the publication of The Wines of Piemonte. It has been a full and exciting year. Here are the highlights in a review of the year:  The Classic Wine Library which published my book has a new home. The Académie du Vin Library bought the company, founded by

Giuseppe Mascarello is one of the storied names of Barolo. I recently had the pleasure of tasting a Mascarello Monprivato vertical which merely confirmed the greatness of these wines. Mauro Mascarello, now approaching his 90th birthday, decided back in 1970 to bottle Nebbiolo from the Monprivato vineyard as a separate wine. What a great move

I spent quite a lot of time in Alto Piemonte in 2022 researching for my book, The Wines of Piemonte. I couldn’t go to the big annual tasting and press trip in 2022 as my good friends were getting married at exactly the same time. But this year it fitted in well and gave me

It is always a pleasure to visit new producers. I have commented on Emanuele Gambino before, a winery only set up in 2016. He makes a very good dry, still Moscato, a rarity in the Asti area. I visited his winery and boutique hotel outside Costigliole d’Asti in May 2024. This allowed me also to