Both Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies kicked off their 2020 calendar of events with a snapshot look at a selection of top class Australian wines – the majority of which a number of us had visited while on tour in November 2019. With the terrible bushfires affecting so many people and with a number of…(Read More)

We’ve kicked off the festive season with three tastings at Richmond and our customary Friday night at Teddington. We kept the lineup of wines for tasting small, for good reason – they were pricey.  And all suited to Christmas day, although this required me to describe consumption somewhat in excess of what most people might…(Read More)

Over three tastings at Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies we explored neighbouring countries, whose wine cultures have taken somewhat different directions. Hungary, with a long winemaking tradition, particularly around the Tokaj region, has struggled in recent years to establish a position for itself in the modern pantheon of wines.  While sweet Tokaji wines have a…(Read More)

Richmond Wine Society met on Monday and Tuesday, and Teddington on Thursday and Friday last week, and over 100 of us sampled some of the best wine from this year’s wine awards. The Decanter World Wine Awards, International Wine Challenge, Sommeliers Wine Awards  and Independent Wine Merchant Top 100 are made each year, judged…(Read More)

Last week at Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies we took ourselves on a journey up the Loire Valley and back again.  Loire wines tend to suffer from being from a region that everyone thinks they know well (think Sleeping Beauty chateaux), with some wine list regulars (think Muscadet, Sancerre and Anjou Rosé), but lacking a…(Read More)

No, not a football match, but the last topics for our monthly tastings at Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies.  At our Modern Germany tastings in April we covered, as would be expected, some superb whites, but not all were Riesling!  We tasted a lovely Pinot Blanc (Weissburgunder in German) from the Mosel and a Gew…(Read More)

The famous regions of Rioja and Ribera del Duero were the focus of the Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies’ March/early April tastings and we enjoyed three very buoyant nights. Of course, it is impossible to do justice to these wines in just one tasting, but what showed through was some stunning fruit filled quality…(Read More)

Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies welcomed Robbie Rugman – the Fine Wine ambassador for Gallo Family Winery this week with the clear aim of broadening our taste horizons and showing a very different, high quality side to the extraordinary and famous wine company. While many people are familiar with Barefoot, Turning Leaf and Gallo Family…(Read More)

Thank you to everyone who braved the cold this week to kick off the Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies 2019 tastings. We had a fantastic turnout over the three nights. Tuscany with a Twist was our theme, as we endeavoured to explore some of the lesser known facets of the region as well as celebrate…(Read More)

The March tasting at the Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies celebrated the wines of New Zealand. Specifically, we focussed on the Family of XII – a fraternity of twelve of New Zealand’s most prestigious and enduring artisanal wineries. We tasted twelve wines – a top class example from each estate – incorporating Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay,…(Read More)

Teddington Wine Society meets on 31st March. Not long now till we taste twelve wines from New Zealand’s Family of Twelve, and I’m completing the round up of the wineries we will be exploring. Villa Maria is so well known it is hard to imagine it is a family owned winery – but it…(Read More)

Continuing my preview of our exciting lineup of wineries represented at our New Zealand tasting this month. James and Annie Millton established Millton Vineyards and Winery in 1984. Their four individual dry farmed vineyards are situated on the East Coast of New Zealand in the wine appellation of Gisborne. Located just a few kilometres from…(Read More)

Our celebration of New Zealand’s Family of Twelve approaches, and I’ve been reminding myself about the wineries whose wines we will be tasting. Twelve independent wine producers from across the two islands, who share best practice but retain very distinct personalities, including: Kumeu River, the most northern of the family, whose vineyards are…(Read More)

Victoria, in the south east corner of Australia, was the focus of our tastings at the Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies last week. Thirty people at Teddington enjoyed a superb lineup of wines with an Australian-themed meal on Friday, while on Tuesday and Wednesday Richmond Wine Society experienced a similarly great wine selection, with…(Read More)

Richmond and Teddington Wine Societies visited Spain last week in what was deliberately a Rioja Free occasion. The theme was Spanish innovation and we took a good look at a number of lesser known regions and some wonderful local grapes. No one can dispute the success of Rioja and their importance to the Spanish wine…(Read More)