Matching Food & Wine | Recent posts

Weekend wine bargains at Waitrose

Fiona Beckett — Thu, 16 May 2013 07:50:00 +0100

Having gamely ploughed through 200-odd wines at the Waitrose tasting yesterday here are seven that are currently on offer I’d be happy to put in my trolley this weekend. Prices apply until May 21st:

New #vinematching videos on Vine and where else you’ll find Matching Food & Wine online

Fiona Beckett — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 08:29:00 +0100

I’ve been thinking for a while about adding some video content to the site and have now found the perfect way to do it: six second videos on Vine, the video world’s equivalent of Twitter.

Top food and wine matching experiences in the Cape Winelands

Fiona Beckett — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 15:35:00 +0100

So sophisticated is the South African food and drink scene now that you can expect to find suggested wine pairings at practically every restaurant you go to but some wine farms have made even more of a feature of their skill at combining the two - a fun way of learning the art of matching food and wine.

What to drink with Middle Eastern food?

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 09:01:00 +0100

Following on from my middle-eastern inspired pairing yesterday, Dubai-based blogger Sally Prosser of mycustardpie.com gives a broader overview of what to drink with middle-eastern food

Last minute Easter wine bargains

Fiona Beckett — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 15:37:00 +0000

If you’re one of those who likes to take it to the wire when it comes to Easter food shopping - or are simply nipping out for some last-minute supplies here are 10 wines which are selling at a great price this weekend.

10 tips for cold weather drinking

Fiona Beckett — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 09:26:00 +0000

With snow on the ground and temperatures well below freezing it’s a timely reminder that matching drinks is not just about flavour but temperature and alcohol levels too.

20 food and wine pairings to learn by heart

Fiona Beckett — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 10:06:00 +0000

Inspired by the recent spate of minimal ingredient cookbooks such as Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s Three Good Things I thought it might be helpful to come up with 20 wine matches that are easy to remember and which pretty well everyone will enjoy.

Is cider more food-friendly than wine?

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 09:48:00 +0000

Susanna Forbes of Drink Britain reports on a vigorously fought contest over dinner at The Thatchers Arms near Colchester last month

How - and when - to buy good lamb

Fiona Beckett — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 08:42:00 +0000

Given that it's St David's Day here's a piece I wrote a few years ago on Welsh salt-marsh lamb - and why spring lamb isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Can you match wine and chillies?

Fiona Beckett — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 08:11:00 +0000

Who better to turn to than the Aussies for advice on pairing wines with a wide range of spicy Asian food? Here's another preview of the food and wine matching sessions at the Melbourne Food Festival - Solving the Eternal Chilli Dilemma. Answers from Neil Prentice of Moondarra Wines and chef Benjamin Cooper of Chin Chin.

Will Studd's tips for matching cheese and wine

Fiona Beckett — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 17:45:00 +0000

Those of you who are lucky enough to live in Oz have the enticing prospect of the Melbourne Food & Wine Festival coming up next month - a two week extravaganza of feasts, workshops and tastings with some of the country's top foodies and wine experts.

How many calories are there in wine?

Fiona Beckett — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 11:11:00 +0000

There’s been a huge focus on calories in the last couple of weeks - whether wine should be labelled with calories and whether we’re counting them the right way. For once I’m inclined to agree with the Department of Health which says it sees little benefit in revising the system according to yesterday’s report in the Guardian. "The difficulties of implementing a change to the current system of calculating energy content would far outweigh the minor gains in accuracy from such a change and would offer little practical assistance to consumers" a statement says.

10 wines under £10 from Marks & Spencer’s current 25% off deal

Fiona Beckett — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 10:54:00 +0000

I've just spotted Marks & Spencer has another 25% off promotion across its wine range which runs until March 3rd. Here are the wines I recommended back in November which would still be a good deal if they're available.

Does great wine need to be aged?

Fiona Beckett — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 09:49:00 +0000

It’s been an article of faith as long as I’ve been writing about wine that you need to age the best wines in your cellar. We sniff at consumers who buy and crack open a first growth as unsophisticated but maybe they’re the ones who know best?

Why the Chinese prefer to drink red wine with food

Fiona Beckett — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 07:58:00 +0000

To most westerners the idea of drinking young red Bordeaux with Chinese food seems bizarre. Especially with delicate Cantonese dishes, the most widely available of the Chinese cuisines in the west . Clearly though the Chinese who are paying stratospheric prices for first and second growths - and presumably drinking them - think differently. They don’t turn to riesling and other aromatic and off-dry whites for a reason.

German wine and Scandi food - natural born partners

Lucy Bridgers — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 16:44:00 +0000

Scandinavian food is becoming increasingly popular but what type of wine should you drink with it? Lucy Bridgers reports on how German wine fares.

Kate Goodman: the new Jilly Goolden

Fiona Beckett — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 16:46:00 +0000

The reaction of many people to the news that the new BBC Food & Drink show was to be co-hosted by Kate Goodman would have been Kate who? I confess it was mine.

20 top Australian Chardonnays

Fiona Beckett — Sat, 26 Jan 2013 09:59:00 +0000

To celebrate Australia Day here's a feature I wrote a year ago on Australian chardonnay - not as out of date as you might think as many of the vintages will only just have worked through.

Introducing Cheese Feast!

Fiona Beckett — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 16:40:00 +0000

You might be aware that I’ve been involved in a project called Cheese School for a while together with cheesemakers Todd and Jess Trethowan, producers of Gorwydd Caerphilly.

So you want to be a microbrewer . . .

Fiona Beckett — Sun, 06 Jan 2013 10:45:00 +0000

A friend of mine’s brother in law apparently wants to take up brewing so I thought I’d ask Twitter for advice. As usual, people were fantastically helpful and gave so many good recommendations I thought I’d post the advice here together with a few links I unearthed myself: