Andrew Jefford's articles
La Clape’s white secret
[Andrew Jefford] Bourboulenc is usually part of the blend for white Châteauneuf du Pape, but rarely much more than 10 to 30 per cent; here in La Clape, by contrast, it’s the backbone of the blend.
My babe appeal
[Andrew Jefford] No wine producer is required to list any of the 250 or more potential additives which can find their way into wine, sulphur aside. This is palpably unfair, since food manufacturers are generally required to list additives, even if such l
Hail: everything you never wanted to know
[Andrew Jefford] Is hail the most tangible negative effect of climate change, at least in France’s fine-wine vineyards? And if so, can we do anything about it?
No grumpy people
[Andrew Jefford] French wine’s increasingly effective lobbying arm is called Vin et Société. After a tendentious success in October last year, it has recently launched a new campaign – to try to clarify some of the vagaries of interpretation surrounding t
Learning on the hill
[Andrew Jefford] The week before last, as hail flayed unlucky Cognac and the Northern Médoc, it was encouraging to see so many Burgundian smiles.
Drunk on time
[Andrew Jefford] Too much time must elapse between grape delivery and eventual sale as a great 75-year-old bottle of frasqueira; it will be the auctioneers and the collectors who profit most...
Yeast: call me dad
[Andrew Jefford] Indeed yeast’s invisibility to the naked eye seems regrettable, since it makes us wildly underestimate the significance of these micro-organisms.
A chill in the air
[Andrew Jefford] The world may just have recorded its warmest April on record, but May in Bordeaux closed with a chill in the air.
Hume at Tobacco Dock
[Andrew Jefford] Can we wine drinkers appreciate wine in a similar manner to the way in which we savour novels or symphonies? I think we can, even if winemaker and terroir must be regarded as co-authors or co-composers...
Young, energetic and needy
[Andrew Jefford] Anyone know what a SAFER does? They’ve been in the news recently regarding the controversial sale of Clos des Lambrays to LVMH. Wasn’t this precisely the sort of sale SAFERs were designed to prevent?