Blog | Joanna Simon

Dec 2, 2015

What does a winemaker do when he doesn't like his own wine?

Marcelo Papa, winemaker for Concha Y Toro, Chile What a difference a year makes. It’s a statement of the obvious where wine is concerned,...

Nov 27, 2015

WINE OF THE WEEK: Uvaggio Primitivo 2011, California

£14.95, Berry Bros & Rudd, bbr.com It’s a bit late to be thinking of this for Thanksgiving, but it’s not too late for the Christmas...

Nov 22, 2015

Cheap Entertaining: Pears in Moscatel

Anything this lacks in colour compared with pears poached in red wine it more than makes up for in flavour - and on the budget front it...

Nov 20, 2015

WINE OF THE WEEK: Marisco The King’s Thorn Pinot Gris 2013

£9.99 when you buy any 6 bottles, Majestic There’s more to New Zealand white wine than Sauvignon Blanc, but the other grape varieties...

Nov 15, 2015

Cheap Entertaining: Pork Chops with Mustard & Honey

Pork is cheap, but chops are often so lean (obsessively so in supermarkets) they need remedial treatment to stop them being dry. The...

Nov 13, 2015

WINE OF THE WEEK: Taste the Difference Priorat 2013

£10, Sainsbury's You can pay a small fortune for a wine from the remote, hilly region of Priorat in Catalonia – home to some of Spain’s...

Nov 8, 2015

Cheap Entertaining: Milk-Braised Lamb with Fennel

If the sound of meat and milk sounds odd, remember that pork braised in milk has a impeccable pedigree from both Venice and southwest...

Nov 6, 2015

WINE OF THE WEEK: Fess Parker Santa Barbara County Chardonnay 2014

£13.95, The Wine Society, thewinesociety.com This wine is a great match for cashew nuts. You might think that anybody worrying about...

Nov 1, 2015

Cheap Entertaining: Lazy Baked Chicken with Soy and Ginger

Another from my Sunday Times recipe series, again very relevant right now - November and the run-up to Christmas are definitely a time...

Oct 29, 2015

WINE OF THE WEEK: Zensa Nero d’Avola 2013

£10.50, Oddbins, oddbins.com Love the retro label, love the wine - a full-on, spicy, cherry-scented red that will go down a treat (as...

Oct 25, 2015

A 2-minute guide to wine and cheese matching

Oozing with flavour: Fromagerie Caseus, the excellent cheese shop in Montreuil, Pas de Calais, France Let’s cut to the chase: wine and...

Oct 24, 2015

Secret Burgundy

Marine algae sprays, anti-hail nets, a secret vineyard… I was in Burgundy in June and some fascinating things emerged at visits to Louis...

Oct 23, 2015

WINE OF THE WEEK: The Lot Series Apalta Colchagua Carmenère 2012

£7.99, Aldi Maybe you already buy wine at Aldi. If you don't, maybe you'll want to reconsider… At a tenner, the red I've chosen is one of...

Oct 22, 2015

Negroni for wine lovers: aged in a Bordeaux barrel

£23.95, worldofzing.com I know, I know, it's not wine, but World of Zing's Negroni is aged in oak barrels that previously held Bordeaux...

Oct 15, 2015

WINE OF THE WEEK: João Portugal Ramos Vinho Verde Loureiro 2014

£7.99, cellarandkitchen.adnams.co.uk and Adnams stores Hear this: Portuguese wines are some of the most overlooked and underrated and you...

Oct 14, 2015

Breakfast & Brunch: Lemon curd

I don't know why more people don't make lemon curd. It's much easier than marmalade or jam and bears no discernible relation to the...

Oct 10, 2015

Breakfast & Brunch: Friands

These light, moist almond cakes, also known as financiers, are French in origin, but they’ve been taken up by the Australians and you’re...

Oct 8, 2015

WINE OF THE WEEK: Berry Bros & Rudd Côtes du Rhône Rouge 2012

£10.75, Berry Bros & Rudd Côtes du Rhône can be simple and quaffable or a bit rough around the edges or it can come with smart...

Oct 3, 2015

Breakfast & Brunch: Bacon Muffins

Continuing on from last week's breakfast and brunch comes another alternative idea, this time an homage to that all-important brunch...

Oct 1, 2015

WINE OF THE WEEK: Bolney Estate Pinot Noir 2013

£15.99, Waitrose There are going to be plenty of opportunities to hunker down with big, beefy reds in the months to come, so here, for...

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