France

The week gone by was  an unforgettable culinary voyage for me. It began with lunch with a sommelier from Italy, and culminated in two very special events related to Gôut de France- a culinary extravaganza that unfolded across the world

Having six Champagne glasses in front of you with  corresponding bottles to be poured in distant vision is a proposition most of us would call fit for a dream. Add a tasting sheet in the foreground and the context changes

How important is ambience for  wine enjoyment? Does a change of place affect the wine experience you have? While it is no secret that a setting for wine appreciation should be devoid of any strong odours, coloured lights et al,

A visit to Bordeaux invariably implies venturing deep inside vineyard territory, getting a close view of the vines, and of course the opportunity to taste umpteen wines. But amid all the vineyard fervour one tends to overlook the latent beauty

Get to know James Bond's Champagne- based on our first hand experience with Maison Bollinger.

With yet another harvest season commencing in the vineyards of Europe it's nostalgia time for me, with memories of the last year's harvest   in the picture perfect vineyards of Beaujolais. The region has such cult status that it needs no

Beauty lies in the eye of beholder and so every individual has  personal preferences. Maybe this is the reason some people prefer a wine that is complex and long lived, while others go for  an easy drinking  version that could

When several people from different professions get together, the interest has to be common- and tasting wines could easily be counted amongst the best of these! At a recently concluded event called Bienvenue that I hosted  in association with Eau

Travelling all over France to vineyards in Champagne, Bordeaux, Provence, the Rhone valley and Beaujolais would not have been the same without my French friend Laurent Piaton's indulgence.

Wines for the Evening Pervasive luxury has to be the norm when a glitzy and glamorous Champagne House does a national level launch of its beauties. We are talking of Cattier- the famous Champagne house, that was recently in news