Grogger

A ludicrously piggy Christmas lunch featuring a whole pig, the most delicious wines, including some from the reserves, and my first ever taste of Yquem. Legendary celebration for the award-winning team.

It’s the end of and I’m not gonna lie, the combination of Australian botanicals in the vermouth, and Scottish botanicals in the gin, made for a very cough-lozenge-y Negroni. Also, no oranges in the house. Will try a less funky version next time.

Cahors with herby sausages, natch.

But what was really special was the Vintage Fortified Shiraz Chambourcin, still heady and ripe after 18 years in bottle.

It was given to me to look after by an old friend, flatmate and OddBins colleague when they moved to Europe. Luckily we had the chance to drink it together last month, a real treat.

Yeah, just a massive Romanian wine barrel in the garden of someone in the village…

(…who we know. They work for the local brewer, and this was left over after some experimental brews. Gonna be a summer house!)

Yes, the Côte Rôtie was beautiful and delicious! But Asda had the Vidal-Fleury on offer at £9, and I think I’d take six bottles over one bottle of the Rôtie. 😬

With the Pecorino only £6 on offer, I can’t think of a better way to spend £15 on two tasty bottles.

Just some of the amazing wines tried and enjoyed last night

Despite my young, hip credentials, the Burgundy and Bourgogne Aligote were my favourites over the funky sulphury stuff.

But the 85yo Crimean wine was an experience!

Prrrrrrrrrrego! Monday night pasta, wine and aftershock

Tuesday Night Shiraz & Carcasonne in a Cosy Pub Night.

Friday fajitas, smoky smoky!

Yes well f**k your New Year Run and 10,000 Steps Challenge. It’s January, f**k that s**t. Happy 2023!

Bottles and things enjoyed over Christmas (obviously many more bottles out of shot…)

Thanks to and among others

What kind of wine goes with sushi and sashimi? Turns out, all of them!

An alternative BYOB Christmas dinner with and some REALLY unusual wine combos. Starting with Txakoli and pickled beetroot, and ending with Sauternes and cherry rice pudding.

Outstanding wines were the the biodynamic Alsace ‘orange’ wine Le Jeu de Verts and the ripe, rich Oregon Pinot Noir.

It’s a numbers game…

Heady blackberry Malbec from and a surprisingly not-awful £4.50 Sicilian blend from the local shop.

Oh, some really lovely discoveries in here! New Zealand Viognier a delightful surprise and Columbia Valley Merlot very smooth and more-ish. But biggest surprise of? Actually enjoying Bordeaux in a way that makes me want to go buy some scarlet corduroys.

Mussels and Pinot Grigio (and carbs) with a delicious fresh wine from

A bit late, but a very Halloween-y colour palette from and

Well, don’t have lots to say about these other than great job, well played, thoroughly enjoyed across the board.

But special mention to the M&S Roero Arneis; perfect peach-stone match for an autumnal roast chicken.

The grapes at Maison d’Edouard have successfully undergone ‘veraison’ – which was a surprise as I thought it was a white grape vine!

Only have four bunches now, after pruning a couple of smaller ones. The expectation now is that the grapes will grow in size and sugar content.

One 25cl bottle of super-funky natural wine coming soon…

A wide selection of bottles for from, in order, in London (dream wine shop!), Aldbury May Day village fair tombola, Euston and where I needed something red and screwcap.

Really enjoyed the crisp Chardonnay from north-east Italy, and the Côtes du Rhône was a great value reminder of their wines - have topped up my account with some Rosine bottles as a result.

A double lesson in oak-aged smoky wines that had us desiring some charred lamb to match.

Who knew that a 10yo Austrian red would taste so much like Pinotage?

Glühwein, de-icer, deodorant, cystitis relief, Bombay Mix and Mentos. Tesco merchandising on point.

Got a bit overexcited about the weekend and drank the weekend’s wine supply.

Forgotten just how good Petaluma is! Forgot how much I love Ribena-y Carménère! Forgot how good off-dry Riesling is with cheeses!

Popped into Lidl for the essentials.

We don’t talk about…

Wine and joke from

Crisps and wine? Our kind of restaurant.

Total punt from the lower shelves of and it’s an absolute winner! Lots of fruit, like a decent pavlova, and a ripe boozy cherry lick just crying out for herby sausages or pink lamb.

Taste buds still not functioning properly post-covid. Feel like everything is either too acidic or too chewy.

Recycling roundup! Finished the Starward Australian whisky as a delayed Burns Night dram on Australia Day. Other wines I think were nice but after a week of covid, really not tasting much.

Bringing out some birthday big guns…

No buds, flowers or grapes this year, but lots of growth. Severe pruning ahead to be ready for training next spring.