By Charles Lea on 09/04/2024
In 2009 one group of like-minded 'grower-Champagne' producers ('Terre et Vins de Champagne') got together to put on a tasting which focused to a large degree on the vins clairs (the still wines) from the 2008 vintage, before they were bottled for the prise de mousse (the second fermentation in bottle which produces the bubbles).
By Charles Lea on 08/03/2024
Last night saw the 19th time that L&S has sponsored the City Fine Wine Challenge quiz evening at One Great George Streeet. Teams of City luminaries competed for the Patrick Sandeman Trophy, and this year, in an upset of the long-standing dominance of headline sponsor FNZ, the quiz was won by the team from JP Morgan, who were clearly on fire! A late note addition - the final net figure for this year's CFWC was £203,797.
By Charles Lea on 06/10/2023
36 years ago this autumn, I went to the office where we both worked at the time determined that I was going to speak to Patrick Sandeman about our future.
By Charles Lea on 06/07/2023
Neal Martin's latest article on the Vinous website is timely and, in a most measured and reasonable way, lays out how an apparently well-motivated individual is capable of making all the right noises about quality of wine and how to achieve it, so that the back story sounds plausible, while marketing it entirely on price.
By Charles Lea on 19/05/2023
The major Champagne houses have a long history of leveraging their access to vast resources to create exceptional blends. With a wide array of vineyards, grape varieties, and reserve wines at their disposal, they can ensure a consistent and high-quality product year after year.
By Charles Lea on 19/05/2023
Following on from the explanation of the various classifications of producer of Champagne ('Champagne - NM, ND, CM, RC, MA, or RM - what and why?'), this is how the pieces fit together in terms of their place in the market.
By Charles Lea on 19/05/2023
Following our 'Celebration of Spring' tasting, where we showcased our range of 'grower' Champagnes, Charles Lea is sharing some of the secrets of Champagne on our blog. First, a brief breakdown of the label codes found on Champagne bottles, which can help clarify the origin of what's in your bottle.
By Charles Lea on 21/04/2022
'Our first proper tasting for ages, and I was unable to attend having contracted Covid, (the reason for the long hiatus since our well-attended Italian tasting in March 2020). This was particularly galling after I had helped organise the attendance of some of the winemakers, notably producers of three new grower Champagnes who I had unearthed on on my post-vendanges trip in October.
By Charles Lea on 04/03/2022
The 2022 City Fine Wine Challenge in aid of NSPCC Childline was held on the 3rd March, and we were delighted to be back in One Great George Street after the virtual event last year.
By Charles Lea on 30/12/2021
Chablis - arriving in Fleys on the road from Tonnerre Towards the end of October I planned to set off from Kent to start a trip to Chablis and Champagne, and was told, when I began to make appointments for the Monday, that the Sunday was by chance the rather local event, the 'Fête des vins de Chablis' - a chance for the local vignerons to show their wares in a street closed for the day, and a good opportunity to try the wines of quite a number of different domaines - so I set off rather earlier than I'd originally intended to get there in time.
By Charles Lea on 19/11/2021
[caption id="attachment_33650" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Harvest at Domaine Hubert Lamy[/caption] Domaine Rémi Jobard - Meursault Remi Jobard told us:- ‘It was the shortest harvest ever – even my father had never seen anything like it. 1/3 of the normal harvest, and short in red as well as white. I picked late – starting as most people finished.
By Charles Lea on 20/10/2021
An interesting report given that there seems to be a 'blanket' view that 2021 is a disaster in France. In Burgundy the quantity of white is certainly disastrously low, but there will as usual be some nicer surprises.