A unique wine tasting for London Branch members was held at the Army and Navy Club, Pall Mall. Ian Shane, an IWFS member of London Branch since 1988 (and also of New York since moving there in the late 1990s), took us through these wines selected from his cellar. We had the privilege of comparing Zinfandel wines all from the …
Wines from the Cellar of the late Hugo Dunn-Meynell
The late Hugo Dunn-Meynell was Chairman and then Executive Director of IWFS over 15 years in the 1980s and 90s. Amongst his many achievements, he transformed the Society to its great benefit, bringing financial soundness, modernised management, a dedicated staff and branches in many parts of the world. He and his wife, writer Alice Wooledge Salmon, Tish, co-authored The Wine …
A TASTING OF FINE 2008/9/10 CLARETS
This wonderful tasting, held at the Army and Navy Club in Pall Mall, led by Jeffrey Benson, featured ten wines from the cellar of one of our members, Lancelot Jaundoo. We tasted the clarets in flights of three. Château d`Angludet, Margaux : 2008, 2009, 2010 This estate had been neglected since before the Second World War until Peter Sichel acquired and …
A Tasting Dinner with Savoie Wines
It is some years since Laurent Faure last entertained London Branch to one of his wine tasting dinners at le Vieux Comptoir, so we were well due for a return visit. This time the wines were from the Savoie region of France. These are mostly consumed locally, and only tiny quantities ever find their way to the UK. Those on …
A Tasting of 1995 Clarets
Thanks to the generosity of our member Lancelot Jaundoo, we were fortunate in early October 2021 to be able to enjoy a magnificent 1995 Claret tasting, rescheduled from 2020 and led by Jeffrey Benson. The 1995 summer in Bordeaux was extremely hot and dry, but there was rain in early September and fine weather from the start of harvest in …
LUNCH AT GALVIN LA CHAPELLE
On the hottest day in summer for a while, we happily convened for a delightful real lunch round a rectangular table in the private dining room, in Galvin La Chapelle restaurant near Liverpool Street, east of the City. Its suitably cool interior for such weather has high stone double-height ceilings from the ground floor upwards past the mezzanine floor where …
A Tasting of English Sparkling Rosé
London Branch’s first live tasting since lockdowns was held in the garden of Christopher Davenport Jones who led it – and to whom many thanks. We were warned to wear appropriate clothing lest the weather proved inclement. In the event, the forecast rain held off, and it was a fine evening for us to compare English sparkling rosés (and one …
An Italian Trio – A ZOOM WINE TASTING WITH IWFS LONDON
Our foray by Zoom into Italian wines concluded (for now) with three quite different wines: A white from a native grape grown in North West Italy Wine from a native red grape grown in Sicily A red wine from North East Italy, made by the ‘ripasso’ technique. Each of us had a selection of the wines described below, bought from …
ITALIAN REDS – SANGIOVESE FROM TUSCANY
ITALIAN REDS – SANGIOVESE FROM TUSCANY Members of London Branch and friends from other Branches zoomed to Tuscany to taste three types of red wines made from Sangiovese, the most planted grape in Italy. Ambitious and dedicated wine producers are drawn to Tuscany. Once the aristocratic Florentine wine merchant houses such as Antinori and Frescobaldi held sway. Now there are …
FINE CHOCOLATE AND ALCOHOL TASTING – A Zoom Tasting with IWFS London
Never economise on the small luxuries of life. Drinking fine wine and eating chocolate won’t solve your problems – but they won’t hurt either,” said Ernie J Zelinski. Taking this quotation to heart, London Branch held a wine and chocolate pairing event by Zoom. None better to lead the tasting than Chantal Coady OBE, an internationally renowned chocolate expert and business …