Blog: Magandeep Singh

The trouble with Indian cuisine is that it has the most possessive and over-zealous of people to protect it - us Indians. So opposed are we to any form of change or modification that anyone may try and induce in this style of cooking that it is rejected as substandard and compromised even before being given a fair duelling chance.

But then that is true of most countries.

..Read More >>

Posted in: Wine and Food, Indian Wine | Comment (2) >>

Blog: Steven Spurrier

Almost all wines today are produced by a type of vine known as vitis vinifera, which has been refined and developed over the centuries for the production of grapes for wine, rather than for the table. Different families of vines have evolved that carry specific names and these are known as grape varieties, or “varietals”. Wine from a single grape variety are called “varietal ..Read More >>

Posted in: Wine Education, Grapes | Comment (0) >>

Blog: Magandeep Singh

It was while having a shower that I realised that old writers had it easy. Nothing had been written, which left them with the entire fairway to prance about on. The simple probability of stringing a few random words together to end up with a sonnet was much higher then than it is today. The novelty of saying “I Love You” made it easy to get away with forgetting an

..Read More >>

Posted in: Wine in India, Indian Wine | Comment (0) >>

Blog: Magandeep Singh

Wine sparks off so many conversations. Little good comes of them, but many find them healthy. Much like a treadmill really: running without going anywhere and definitely unimaginative as a way to lose calories.

The problem is this: wine suffers from being itself. If it is a reserved and sombre drink then people complain that it is too fuddy-duddy. If it tries to be cool and

..Read More >>

Posted in: Wine Events, Wine Awareness, Indian Wine | Comment (4) >>

Blog: Magandeep Singh

I like crystal ball gazing. It is right up there next to voodoo dolls on my list of Xmas gifts. Don’t snigger; I can cast spells too...

2009 has been a jinxed year so far. Not because of itself but mostly because of all that preceded it. All that commotion and action in the hotels have shown us how much of a dog-eat-dog world we live in. And then the terrorist attacks worsened things. Markets were already low, and now Satyam has just made the equivalent of a substantial chunk of our defence budget disappear.

..Read More >>

Posted in: Wine in India, Wine and Food, Indian Wine | Comment (2) >>

Blog: Steven Spurrier


Burgundy – the 2007 vintage

Each year in January, the UK wine trade holds a series of tastings of the last but one vintage in Burgundy .  Over two weeks, literally thousands of wines are tasted by the trade and Press and much of the wine is sold at that time.  The most exciting vintage in recent years was far and away 2005, but the 2006s were well received, especially the ..Read More >>

Posted in: Wines, Wine Education, Wine Awareness, Wine, White Wine, Red Wine, Old World Wines, French Wine | Comment (1) >>

Tasting wine is easy:  if you can taste food, you can taste wine, for the senses of smell and taste that enable you to capture the aromas, flavours, spices and texture of food are the same as you use for wine.  But there is a difference between tasting and drinking, which is Paying Attention. 

After the first experience or two, you don't need to pay attention to the taste of Coca Cola or of Kingfisher Beer, for the taste will always be the same.  But the taste of wine, of different colours, from different grapes grown in different parts of the world, is almost never the same and each glass will more likely than not be a new experience.  So to get the most out of the experience, just like tasting a new dish at table, you have to follow certain steps which, in a very short time, will become a matter of habit.  The four steps are:  Appearance/Colour; Nose/Aroma; Palate/Taste; Aftertaste/Conclusions.

..Read More >>

Posted in: Wine Tasting, Wine | Comment (2) >>

Wine is a simple beverage. It rarely demands much of us. The unconditional love of wine is not one that can be matched by even a cat or a dog; wine requires way less cleaning up after. But that is why we often end up taking wine for granted.

This is when wine seems like a chore, or worse yet, like a wife of ten years. Complacency is the worst way to punish a wine habit which is why I am listing a

..Read More >>

Posted in: Wine | Comment (2) >>

..Read More >>

Posted in: Wine Awareness, Wine | Comment (0) >>

So we have heard the term often. Perhaps we have even met one but were too occupied to notice, or remember. But few of us know what they really do. I am talking about the sommeliers. Is it a different species? Are they from Krypton? Is it a cult? Do they have super powers? Is it true they can tell a wine from 30 feet with their hands tied behind their backs?

To answer all that together:

..Read More >>

Posted in: Wine | Comment (3) >>