Carmen Stevens needed help.

• Despite being head winemaker at the super-premium Amani winery, and turning out amazing award-winning wines.
• Despite being the first black female to graduate from winemaking school in South Africa, rising to the top thanks to her talent and determination.

But she wanted to achieve something she’d always dreamed of – to make her own wine, for herself. But that’s tricky in South Africa, when you don’t have the money to do it, nor are you white, Afrikaans and male. And when you refuse to believe a word of it when Naked Wines founder Rowan Gormley tells you that he has 50,000 Angel customers willing to make it happen.

At Naked Towers we’d taken a bit of a hammering when we launched MarketPlace two months ago – the world’s first open trade market for wine, where customers bargain directly with the producer over price, and Naked taking just 10% margin. And it was successful to an extent – we sold 250K worth of wine in that short time – with some producers selling on the UK market for the first time, and customers gaining access to some new and interesting stuff.

But a vocal group was dead against MarketPlace and we couldn’t but listen. Too much choice! Too much unknown! they chorused in the forums and social media networks. Then the bids started to dry up and we knew we had to change something.

So on Thursday we moved to MarketPlace 2: ONE winemaker and ONE price, ONE week at a time. Exactly the same as before, except winemakers pitch their wines to us and we decide, based on quality and price, to offer them the weekly slot to pitch to our customers.

So a new dawn for MarketPlace was about to begin. And what a great way to help fund a winemaker, in true Naked spirit! Simply put, we needed 1,000 people to buy a case for Carmen and her dream could become a reality.

We were amazed with the response. Not only did we reach the requisite 1,000 cases, we did so in an astonishing 2 hours 17 minutes. As the sun set on an epic day, the maximum 2,000 cases sold out at 9pm.

Carmen seemed happy enough, writing ‘THIS DAY WILL GO DOWN IN HISTORY FOR ME AS ONE OF THE GREATEST DAY S OF MY LIFE ! I AM LIGHT HEADED , DUZZY , SPEECHLESS BUT HAVE THIS HUGE GRIN ALL OVER MY FACE!!! AMAZING , SIMPLY MIND BLOWING , WOW THANK YOU, THANK YOU !!!!’

Some other amazing stats on one special day:

• 2,000 happy Angels
• 12,000 bottles of Chenin Blanc and 10,000 Shiraz made possible
• 2,000 bottles of premium £15.99 Amani Pendana Shiraz thrown in for good measure
• £120K raised to set up a winemaker in business in 9 hours
• 357 customer comments
• 1 life changed (and maybe 2 little ones!)

This was a true collaborative effort to make this happen made possible by the power of the internet and a human story – between Naked customers funding a dream, other Naked winemakers chipping in and lending their support, Rowan and all the Naked staff being there to help it happen – I feel very privileged to be part of this special story. If you got a bid in too – so should you.

Now I can’t wait for my wines to arrive!

The only question remains – how do we follow that up next week??

As the tunes pumped out. grown men hugged and danced to the tune of Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel (‘come up and see me, make me smiiii-iiiiiiiile’), knocking back mediocre Merlot in paper coffee cups. Did it matter what the wine tasted like? That Miles of Sideways might not have approved? That it gushed from giant taps and was available in handy take-away plastic bottles? That you smelled more fresh green grass in the pit of the Pyramid main stage than in the pissy sauvignon? Not a bit.

I was possibly just relieved to get served – my first venture to the beer bar that day sans identification ended in failure and being told to ‘rack off’.

The Wine Bar wasn’t the only vinous highlight of the weekend. I’ve always been reluctant to go to music festivals, mainly because of cesspit toilets and rammed bar facilities. One day of beer at Glasto and I’d had enough. So I hit my groove with rosé wine.

This is why rosé is such a bloody good idea at a festival:

• For the volume of liquid and alcohol you’re taking on board, visits to the toilets and bars are dramatically reduced, leaving you to enjoy the very reason for being there, i.e. the music. Or the girls, drugs, fights, VIP treatment, protests, whatever reason you have for being there
• Order a double and cram that pint glass so full of ice that you can barely taste that sickly, sweet, mass-produced tang
• Sip away responsibly while you watch the sun set and Kaiser Chiefs rock out their Angry Mob. You should see out a typical 50-minute set comfortably with one drink
• Shit rosé is bound to be a fair match for food of similar standard.

Life is too short to wade through shit and mud to refuel, when you could be in the thick of the Coldplay crowd and getting a slap off the Rooney entourage.

Which takes me to one final last point – why are we subjected to crap wine at festivals? There seems to be a move towards higher quality food, why not wine? Or does it matter?

I shot these clips at the 2011 Fête des Crus du Beaujolais at Fleurie, where 1930s was the theme. This was to mark the creation of the region’s AOC and the image falls in nicely with Fleurie’s character – elegant and feminine in style.

Thanks to Cru Fleurie and Miss Vicky Wine for being a wonderful host – NB you can bid for her wine on Naked Wines MarketPlace, but you only have 2 days, so get bidding!

It’s English wine week, so why not seize the chance to try something new?

Less than an hour from weary Waterloo I found myself in the English countryside. Apart from the expected quaint villages, sunshine, hills, farms and orchards, there were fields containing long rows of grape vines. Seyval Blanc, Bacchus and Chardonnay amongst others growing on chalky limestone soils, similar to those found in the Champagne region in France. Welcome to the land of world-class fizz, and exciting white wine.

From an Irish perspective – given our penchant for all things royal wedding, HRM Queen Elizabeth II, and rioting in Manchester United replica shirts, it’s only natural we next turn to what’s going on in vineyards across the pond. And as if you needed any more convincing, even our own Barack O’Bama drinks it!

A recent blind tasting in London confirmed the excitement. A group of journalists, trade professionals, and er, a blogger gathered to blind-taste and rate 36 English (and Welsh) wines to help decide on a wine list for a new English wine shop. This is what I found:

Super Sparklers

The quality of English sparkling wines is now well reputed – last year an English sparkler beat off competition from some of the finest French Champagnes to win the best sparkling wine in a major wine competition.

The English sparklers on the night were absolutely delicious. Top of the list for me was Balfour Hush Heath 2006 Sparkling Rosé (£36), while non-vintage efforts from Primrose Hill (Brut Prestige NV, £23) and Nutbourne (Nutty Brut NV, £17) were superb. The Camel Valley Brut Reserve 2009 (£19.99) was also yum. These wines are clearly excellent value for money when compared against their French cousins.

The 12 sparkling wines I tasted in total were all consistently good. The most recent edition of the Decanter World Wine Awards would seem to back this up – of 42 sparkling wines tasted in the competition, 90.5% were awarded a medal, reflecting the general high quality of English fizz.

Mixed Whites

The whites for me were much more of a mixed bag. I found a couple of excellent whites from the Bacchus grape. Camel Valley (Bacchus 2010, £12.95) and Shawsgate (Bacchus 2009, £9.95) scored highly. Elegant, minerally and floral, and very refreshing and persistent in the mouth meant I got exactly what I was looking for in these whites.

There were, however, some absolute stonkers, which were some of the worst wines I’ve tasted in recent memory. Many English whites commonly have a rustic nose, reminiscent of ‘hedgerow’ as some put it, which can catch the uninitiated (i.e. me) off guard. When good, aromas of wild strawberry and flint leaped from the glass; when bad, my senses were invaded by seaweed and onion bhaji odours (according to my notes on the night). I accept that you get poor wines in every tasting however.

Reserved on Red/Rosé

Reds were intriguing if a little unexciting. Give it another 30 years for the country to warm up and there could be something. I tried some perfectly charming rosés but with prices around the £12-14 mark from the bigger estates, I won’t pay that much for frivolous summer drinking.

Having said that, the Denbies Wine Estate has just picked up a gold medal in probably the world’s largest wine competition, the International Wine Challenge, for its Chalk Ridge Rosé 2010. This was the best of 367 entries, which is some achievement.

Conspiracy?

There is still a lot of confusion out there regarding “English wine”. Some tabloid rags such as the Mail seem intent on lumping “British wine” into the same category. This is merely imported glunk from other countries and blended in the UK. And sells for about 3 pounds in shitty supermarkets. English wine is a totally different matter, made domestically and tested for quality.

US-based mag The Wine Spectator recently ran a feature on ‘top’ sparkling wines from outside the Champagne region – yet not one mention of English wine. They even included ruddy Greece, Argentina and Portugal! Is it simply the lack of availability of English wine overseas, or a sad case of ‘cash for columns’?

It is this confusion at home and abroad that has prompted Julia Stafford to quit the corporate world and start her own new business focusing on the promotion of quality English wine.

The Wine Pantry

Julia’s tiny new shop, Wine Pantry, has just opened in Borough Market, focusing solely on English wine and produce. The concept is to make English wine accessible and affordable to consumers. People don’t know what to expect with English wine – Julia is installing enomatic wine dispensing machines with 8 sparkling and 12-16 still wines available; expect to pay 50p to £2 for a 35ml taster. Pour yourself a glass and feel free to take it away with you as you explore the rest of the market.

The future’s bright

One thing’s for sure, English wine is on the up, and I’m on board. For me, sparkling and the Bacchus grape is where the immediate future is at.

If you find yourself visiting Borough Market on a weekend, you absolutely must pop in to Wine Pantry and see what the fuss is about.

The Wine Pantry in Borough Market is open Monday – Wednesday 11am to 8pm; Thursday – Friday 11am to 10pm; Saturday 11am to 8pm. It’s closed on Sundays and bank holidays. Click here for directions.

I recently went along to the West London Wine School to find out more about biodynamics, an ideal which causes some debate in the wine world. I’m not sure how seriously people take it, if at all.

Biodynamic winemaking aims to achieve balance and harmony between the land, the plant and the environment. This achieved by methods such as burying filled cow horns in the ground at certain times of the year, or making compost out of cow manure, eggshells and ground quartz. No pesticides are allowed on the vines. This supposedly adds up to ‘true taste of terroir’.

Anna Roque from Domaine Cazes, the largest biodynamic producer in France, guided us through biodynamic principles and the wines. We started by flicking through the lunar calendar, and discovered as the day was unfortunately a ‘leaf day’, meaning there was a danger the wines would not be showing so well. Sigh. This is all to do with the situation of the moon; generally when it is ascendant it looks above the ground (leaves, fruit, plant) and descendant it looks below it (to the roots).

At this stage I was starting to wonder if I was at a wine tasting in west London, or Divination class at Hogwarts with Professor Trelawney (admittedly a long term ambition of mine).

Despite all of this, I was eager to try the wines to see what all of the fuss was about. The first three wines we tried, Le Canon du Marechal Blanc 2009, Le Canon du Marechal Rouge 2009, and Marie Gabrielle 2008, were impressive enough yet unspectacular. Sure the freshness of the fruit on the nose was noticeable, as was the purity and minerality on the palate, which could well be the ‘taste of terroir’ thanks to biodynamic methods.

My main gripe however is with the price. I could find similar quality for less than the £10-12 recommended price. The higher cost is down to labour (25 people work all year round in the vines to maintain bio-dynamic principles) and there are lower yields in the vines due to lack of pesticides. In addition the domaine had to buy out their neighbours land whose nasty chemical-fuelled air blew into their vineyards, spoiling the biodynamic effort.

Despite my doubts, Anna raised some valuable points to chew on, and there are clear benefits to these methods:

• Years ago some Cazes family members developed cancer, which they suspected of the pesticides used in their wine-making; this prompted the change to biodynamic methods in 1997
• Biodynamic vineyards become vibrant eco-systems, housing bats, birds and moles. Horses are also used for ploughing
• Minimum sulphur use in order to keep the wine alive (this is not natural wine however)
• It’s a real ‘return to roots’ of winemaking, using traditional methods in the vineyard.

It’s an age-old debate, but a fascinating Guardian documentary on pineapple production in Costa Rica really spiked my thoughts about what exactly is in everything I consume. When I eat a pineapple to be healthy, i.e. the ultimate Vit Hit, how much benefit, or damage, is it doing to me?

London water also pisses me and my skin off at the moment, but until I discover a way of staying clean and hydrated without it I’ll have to put up with its murky mysteriousness for the time being.

These sort of questions are behind the surge in demand for natural, organic and biodynamic wines. Personally I cannot take a cow horn burial seriously, but if you are at one with the earth and motivated enough to part with the extra cash, then knock yourself out. On this evidence though, it’s not for me.

Looking to learn something new and interesting about wine? Book a course or tasting at the West London Wine School, and follow Jimmy on Twitter here.

A food match for 30 year old Grand Cru Burgundy? Why, fish n’ chips of course, with a generous dollop of mushy peas. The occasion was the 30^th anniversary of Patriarche Wine Agencies, and the venue was Geales restaurant in Chelsea, London. Wine industry luminaries and legends and er, My Grape Escape were invited along to celebrate.

It was the second time in a week that I have encountered wine from the 1981 vintage, and it’s a hobby that I’m perfectly happy and willing to develop. Keith Isaac MW had laid out a very special treat for his guests in six magnums of 1981 Burgundy, from their parent company Patriarche Père et Fils in Beaune.

There’s something really amazing and special drinking a wine that’s older than you – the last time these wines saw the light of day I wasn’t even born yet. Since that time I was put on a baby diet (1984), Leeds United won a championship (1992), and I learned how to poach an egg (2011) [insert which momentous life-shaping occasions apply to you].

How were the wines? The word ‘terroir’ is kicked and beaten about the wine world even more than the English rugby team at Lansdowne Road last Saturday. However one sniff of an aged Burgundy like this and you suddenly understand the meaning of the word in its truest and most wonderful sense.

Earth, dirt, mushroom, snail, stone and truffle were all rustic aromas which sailed from the glass to my receptive senses, but in a graceful and elegant way; more like a perfectly flighted chip from Ronan O’Gara to the corners, rather than the snarling aggressive might of Matt Banahan in the centre.

The highlight was surely the Corton Perrières Grand Cru – lots of ‘terroir’ on the nose with layers of fruit and minerality. In the mouth – savoury, smooth, and meaty with a freshness of red fruit after all these years. A long, delicious finish helping you appreciate what a special wine it is.

It almost transports you back in time and urges you to reflect on your own life too; how your life develops and matures and takes on new complexities just like the wine.

To my chagrin, drinking any more pre-1984 wine will probably be a rare occasion, but I can’t wait for the next one.

“It’s either corked or the wine isn’t showing well today, it’s as simple as that”, Spurrier explained, very possibly peeved by me questioning this perfectly fine 2004 Chateau Haut-Batailley. He was about to give a masterclass on ‘Understanding Bordeaux’ to a group of Decanter readers, and hadn’t factored in a masterclass on how to taste wine with a young upstart like me. “Besides, you’ve just tasted two smooth St-Emilion and Pomerols, obviously the Cabernet in the Pauillac will taste rather tight and closed after that”.

Obviously, Eamon.

I’d been asked to pre-taste through the 31 bottles that were to be served on the night, and naturally I considered it a great honour to be tasting wine for someone of Mr Spurrier’s stature. Not since I landed the milk monitor job in 4th class of primary school was so much owed by so many to so few.

But with the straightforward brief of ‘make sure nothing is corked’, my head decided to play games and the slightest oddity jumped out at me. Particularly this Haut-Batailley – I explained to him that it lacked fruit and tasted ever so slightly bitter and tart on the finish. There was ultimately no need, and I immediately regretted wasting the time of a man who essentially set the platform for revolutionizing the wine world in Paris in 1976.

However with the job done I could relax and enjoy the masterclass. Spurrier took us through an amazing flight of Bordeaux wines, many hand-picked from his own cellar, starting with a 2008 white Graves, tasting down through the decade with reds from Pomerol, St-Emilion, Pauillac, Pessac-Léognan, St-Julien and Margaux, and finishing with a gorgeous 2001 Barsac-Sauternes.

Since moving to London I’ve had the privilege of attending a few of these ‘masterclasses’. As well as tasting some incredible wines, I particularly enjoy the knowledge and off-piste anecdotes that this calibre of speaker usually brings to the table. And who better to talk through Bordeaux than Stephen Spurrier? Here are some highlights:

Spurrier on value in Bordeaux: for him the most underrated Bordeaux wines come from the appellations of Fronsac and Canon-Fronsac, where you can expect to pay £10-15 for excellent wines even from the hugely hyped 2009 vintage, while you would pay double for similar standard wines from neighbouring St-Emilion. You can also find great value in the ‘Côtes’; Côtes de Castillon, de Bourg, Blaye among them.

Spurrier on the crafty French: back in World War I when Germany declared war on France, some bordelais (‘foodies’, you might call them these days) were worried about the supply of caviar running out from Russia. So they started a family of sturgeon in the Gironde estuary and started their own caviar industry.

Spurrier on Chablis: he doesn’t believe Chablis is the best wine match for oysters, contrary to popular opinion. This title should go to Graves and Muscadet. Walking through a Graves vineyard you’ll see the ground is full of ancient oyster shells, because Graves used to lie underwater. Chablis never lay under the sea.

Spurrier on laying down wine: if you have a valuable case of Bordeaux and are wondering when to drink it, he along with Michael Broadbent and Hugh Johnson live by this principle: drink the first 3 bottles while the wine is in its ascendency (7 to 8 years old), so you have an idea of how it is maturing. Enjoy the next 6 bottles while it’s at its peak during the next 15-20 years. Keep the final 3 bottles for its sad decline so you can appreciate how great it once was!

Spurrier on terroir: he didn’t once mention it all evening (until asked about it). He said he takes it for granted in Bordeaux.

Spurrier on the new world: his favourite new world wine country is Chile. He believes that there is so much undiscovered potential in that country.

Spurrier on the 1855 classification: when asked if the wines will ever change, Spurrier answered “no chance in a million years will it be touched”. However these days, wines are re-classifying themselves according to price.

Spurrier on my taste buds: when it came to drinking the aforementioned 2004 Chateau Haut-Batailley. Spurrier conceded when tasting with staff earlier that “it was a little tight, green in the bottle”, but it had rounded out beautifully in the glass. He declared it “not ready”, needing a few years to lose its austerity.

It was certainly a nice feeling to be acknowledged by the great Steven Spurrier. It was fascinating to see a wine completely change and evolve after being open and in a glass for a little while. So it wasn’t corked – lesson learned!

View Decanter Educations’s 2011 Spring Term schedule here.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=-y7bNArddgU

On the last day of my September 2010 trip to Burgundy (as kindly invited by Patriarche Wine Agencies) we headed for Patriarche Père et Fils‘ wonderful 17th century underground wine cellar for a special early-morning tasting. Amongst the wines we tasted was a flight of 2008 Premier Cru wines from three of the top appellations in the region - Chassagne-Montrachet, Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet - where some of the world’s best Chardonnay comes from.

Keith Isaac MW, general manager at Patriarche, expertly navigated us through the flight, explaining the subtle differences in these wines from adjacent villages. We learn that Chassagne wines tend to display more yellow plum fruit and floral notes, while from Meursault you can expect more oatmealy, dried apricot and pear. Puligny is more in the middle with blossom and citrus/limey fruit dominating.

That was until the most unwelcome of unwelcome surprises showed up - a corked bottle of Premier Cru Puligny-Montrachet worth 50 pounds.

‘Bummer!’ exclaimed best-selling author Tara Devon.

‘Bugger!’ blasted Keith.

‘Merde!’ cooed the exasperated Frenchman who’s name eludes me.

I made some sort of grimace after inhaling wet socks, old lady and doggy slime, which everyone seemed to find amusing.

Billy Forrester of Bubble Brothers (or the The Smug Screw-cap Show-off Society) coolly seizes the moment and declares ‘Screw-cap, bring it on!’

And on this evidence, it’s hard to argue.

The producers and members of

I’m sure you’ve all heard of Saint-Emilion. It is a beautiful medieval village on the right bank of Bordeaux, with its clay-dominated soils suited to producing super Merlot-dominated wines. The wines here fall into two appellations, St Emilion and St Emilion Grand Cru. And within St Emilion Grand Cru we have two further sub-categories, Premier Grand Cru Classé and Grand Cru Classé. Still confused? Probably. In a country like France inevitably things get complicated – as Charles de Gaulle once quipped, ‘How can anyone govern a nation with 246 different kinds of cheese?’

2007 – the weather

Most growers declared 2007 to be une année difficile, with frequent rain in the months of May, June and July destroying the early hope for a good harvest. This caused widespread disease such as mildew, and uneven ripening. Thankfully a sunny September saved the day. Those who picked late were rewarded for their patience. One producer told me he finished picking as late as the 15th of November. This was a veritable année de vigneron where winemakers’ experience and expertise was crucial to produce decent wines.

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2007 – the wines

I was struck by the bright fruit flavours and the drinkability of these wines, descriptions which are not usually associated with young Bordeaux. These are genuine vins modernes - approachable with succulent fruit and smooth silky tannins. Although some were a little light for my tastes, I was impressed by the producers’ refusal to use poor vintage conditions as an excuse for not meeting the high standards that are expected of a St Emilion Grand Cru.

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2008 – the weather

This was an improved year, despite early dampness and humidity, and a wet June meaning output was reduced going into the summer (down 40/50% in places). Thankfully a largely dry 3 months followed and what was left of the harvest was in very good condition. Some producers reported freak hail in July which decimated further parts of their crop.

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2008 – the wines

Very impressive. For me this was all about structure and shape in the mouth. Tannins, acidity and concentration intact. Most wines were closed and lacking primary fruit but it’s clear that this will come in 6-10 years. For now they are dark, dense and brooding, but with the elegance and finesse that I coincidentally noticed of Parisian women last weekend. One producer spoke of les trois glorieuses (2008, 2009 and 2010 vintages) so this could be a bargain year as the hype focuses on 2009 and inevitably 2010.

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The verdict

The elegant, feminine wines of 2007 are ready to drink now, and will improve over the next decade. 2008 wines are not ready, but I would jump at the chance to try them again in another 6-7 years when that fruit is bound to start showing itself. At prices starting around £25 and up, these don’t come cheap, but against the hyped 05′s and 09′s I believe there is some genuine ‘value‘ to be found with these wines.

As for the white shirt… we’ve all done it.

Personal highlights

I didn’t get to try absolutely everything but the following wines stood out:

• Château Canon-la-Gaffelière 2008
• Château Corbin Michotte 2008
• Château Dassault 2008
• Château Faurie de Souchard 2008
• Château Fleur Cardinale 2007
• Château Haut Sarpe 2008
• Château Le Prieuré 2008
• Château Ripeau 2007
• Château Yon Figeac 2007

Thanks to The Winesleuth for the photos of the tasting!

Tuesday marked my one-year anniversary as a wine blogger, and what a decent year it has been! Some highlights included getting a snippet in Ireland’s Sunday Tribune, representing my country at the 2010 European Wine Bloggers Conference, celebrating the 2010 grape harvest in Meursault, and getting published in a book along with 28 other ‘international wine experts’.

I also joined thousands of others in emigrating from Ireland. I switched careers – made the move from corporate slave in Accenture to an exciting new role with the Publishing team at Decanter magazine. I have spent the last few weeks adjusting to life in London – mainly finding somewhere to live – hence the lack of updates here but in the meantime you will find regular musings over on my Tumblr micro-blog.

As I became more immersed in wine throughout the year, my obsession with it turned sadder and sadder. And having met many new people in the same time period I can confidently declare I’m not the only one! I used to think my dad was a loser for drilling holes in his roof.

Well these are some of my observations; ‘confessions of a wine loser’ as it were.

1. You visit a famous wine region, and fly home with a bag full of rocks. I came home from Burgundy in September weighed down with grand cru stones from famous vineyards.
2. Unusual food-wine combinations are thrilling. Recently I discovered Barolo and Milka chocolate, and tweeted my excitement. @GrapedCrusader eagerly tweeted back with an apparently unbeatable Cadburys mini eggs and Sauternes combo.
3. You preach to the masses how sherry is underrated and undervalued. And no-one listens.
4. Making friends on the Internet and meeting them in real life is totally acceptable. I have so many new people in new places this year through Twitter and wine. Without this I may not have made it further than County Clapham high street.
5. The gravy tin loves fine wine as much as you do. It deserves a great glass now and again. And what magical gravy it rewards you with!
6. You wouldn’t dream of ordering wine in a pub. Pubs are for beer. Beer is great, in pubs.
7. You have a passionate view on the cork/screw-cap debate. You have weighed in on such an online discussion at some stage, and got praised and kicked in the baby maker in equal measures.
8. A photo of an expensive/memorable bottle of wine MUST be tweeted and shared with the world. Dining partners are unimpressed as their food runs cold – ‘Hold on dear, I’m just taking a twitpic!’.
9. You take far too long with the wine list in a restaurant. The food menu hardly gets a look-in. You agonise over it, trying to be both crowd pleaser and value maker. Your friends snigger and shake their heads as you taste the wine. You’re only trying to do them a favour! If only BYO was everywhere.
10. Tacky branded shit rules! Novelty t-shirts and Moo cards with the farting grape (it’s supposed to be escaping!) logo are kickin’.
11. A dribble of enomatic 1985 Mouton-Rothschild is a sensible and rational way of spending 25 pounds in Islington on a Sunday.
12. Sideways is shit. Merlot is not.

Any more confessions out there?