Phew! Back home in London at last after successive stints at Prowein in Germany, Bordeaux immersed in 2008s (all last week) and Vinitaly in Verona last weekend.
The wine world is certainly alive if not in the rudest of health, and of course the first question I was asked by the likes of Angelo Gaja and the head of Vinitaly was 'How was Bordeaux?' The wine world is truly global now.
The major questions on Bordeaux are 'What are the wines like?' and, much more importantly, 'How much will they cost?' I will attempt to address these in detail with an overview on Saturday in the FT and here in Free for all, and by publishing the hundreds of tasting notes that Julia and I took last week just as soon as we can marshall them into a decent order. Though I cannot believe that there are many wine lovers impatient to pour thousands into 2008 bordeaux. If you have any views on this, feel free to add them below.
I have already had a request for a report on the great Gaja tasting and celebration of 150 years in Verona last Saturday morning so will, of course, oblige. The picture shows some of the wines, including on the far right the most wonderful Barbaresco 1964.
There are also two wonderful Riesling tastings (one in Germany, one in Italy) to report on as well as the Portuguese wine marathon in Dusseldorf. Lots to keep our fingers out of mischief.
