The Morning Claret

Simon J Woolf & Friends on Wild and Wonderful Wines

Year: 2017

Dom Bliskowice – J’16 Johanniter Ultra 2016 ©Taka Takeuchi
3 minute read

Dom Bliskowice Johanniter Ultra 2016

Poland doesn’t get the respect that it deserves, either with food or wine. Ignorance too often clouds the landscape. I was recently on a train to Warsaw eavesdropping as four Brits struggled to come up with a single dish other Read more

Father and Son - Valter and Klemen Mlecnik
4 minute read

Refinement and classicism in Mlečnik Ana

One of the more popular questions I get asked in masterclasses is “how many days of maceration is necessary before a white wine becomes an orange wine?”
Mlečnik Ana is a great way to answer this question.

5 minute read

Six Georgian wines to get you through Christmas

Christmas means different things to everyone but to me it means dodging career talks and getting new pyjamas. It doesn’t stop there – There is much, much more not to like. To pick but a few from the Grinch’s hat: Read more

6 minute read

Molto Forte biodynamics, mezzo-forte wine

Wineries can soak up a lot of money – as per the popular industry joke “How do you make a million in wine? Answer: Start with two million”. The landscape is littered with vinous vanity projects created by wealthy industrialists, Read more

3 minute read

Julien Meyer – Crémant d’Alsace Brut “0” 2010

I love Champagne. But whenever I start talking about it, I fear being labelled elitist. But, but… Grower Champagne? And then there are those Champagne enthusiasts who think any other form of effervescent wine inferior. They huff and puff and Read more

2 minute read

A toast to the Georgian harvest

  I’d like to propose a toast to the Georgian grape harvest. To Georgia’s ancient ladies and their pirate knives and three-legged stools, their hair in scarves to deflect the burrs I still find in my socks. To a total Read more

Josko Gravner contemplating in the qvevri cellar, Sept 2017
4 minute read

Worth the wait – Gravner’s Ribolla Riserva 2003

Almost every week, Simon selects an orange wine (a white wine made with extended skin contact) that grabbed his attention. View the whole series here.   The idea of releasing wines when they’re mature is no longer in fashion. Late release is still Read more

Rennersistas - Chardonnay 2015 © Taka Takeuchi
4 minute read

Rennersistas – Neusiedlersee Chardonnay 2015

As Amber Revolution approches its second stretch goal on Kickstarter, what better way to celebrate than by reviewing another orange wine? This time we’re heading to Austria to revisit a producer already mentioned briefly on this site: The Rennersistas Chardonnay 2015. I first Read more