Given the selection, it's perhaps not surprising several people have been asking to hear a bit more about our foray into Greece, Macedonia, Georgia and Lebanon for the Off the Beaten Track Winemaker Series on 17 and 24 June. I therefore thought it would be worth a bit of a preview. We've got six great wines from six very interesting producers so if you feel like something a bit different you'll love this. Also, many of you are aware of my passion for indigenous grape variet

Despite being very sorry not to have been zooming into see winemaker Faouzi Issa in the vineyards of Domaine des Tourelles last night, we had a thoroughly enjoyable evening with hugely knowledgeable Brand Ambassador Madeleine Waters tasting through this premium range of stunning wines. We started with Marquis des Beys, a dously fresh & clean Chardonnay, followed by the Old Vines Cinsault - a mouth-filling Cinsault which was certainly not the marmite love it or hate it style w

This is perhaps the most exciting red wine selection Lidl has put into a Wine Tour. Being Lidl's first New World focussed Wine Tour, judging by the scores from our esteemed group of tasters it's not going to be the last. We had great fun and much laughter with Lidl's Lead Taster, Richard Bampfield MW and Chris Scott Lidl's Marketing Manager for Scotland joining me to present the wines. As with the Whites (results here) the favourites our audience of wine lovers chose were

How different can five Sauvignon Blanc based wines at entry level be? Lidl has certainly excelled with their latest Wine Tour which we had great fun tasting last night. Our 40-strong audience over two sessions was invited to score each wine out of 5 and the results were not what we’d expected. It would probably be fair to say that my fellow presenter and Lidl’s Lead Taster Richard Bampfield MW and I thought the elegant Axis Margaret River Sauvignon Semillon would steal

On 16 July we Zoomed off to the beautiful Colchagua Valley to visit Viña Caliterra. Admittedly that evening we could see the rain clouds coming in the distance beyond the vineyard but it was still beautiful. One of the first wineries in Chile to be certified sustainable, Viña Caliterra focusses on what they do best and what they do naturally. With an extensive range starting around £8.99 they have something to suit all wine enthusiasts and every occasion. Winemaker Rodrig

We certainly had a very bubbly evening on 1 July for our Lidl Fizz on Friday. Along with Lidl's Lead Taster, Master of Wine Richard Bampfield we tasted through six popular sparkling wines from Lidl's range, scoring each as we went along. With an audience of 30 all independently giving their comments and scores it was quite a unique event. The winner was, perhaps not surprisingly, Lidl's Comte de Senneval Champagne. The full results based on the average scores out of 5 were;

Following on from tasting the Lidl Whites from the latest Wine Tour last week we had fun tasting the reds on Monday. Since the latest Wine Tour was launched a few weeks ago and many of the wines had already been whisked off the shelves we decided to just taste two from the latest Wine Tour and others from Lidl's Core Range. Everyone was given the list of the wines we were tasting and chose if they wanted to find all 6 wines or just a few to taste along with us. Lidl's Le

We had a lot of fun with Lidl's Lead Taster, Richard Bampfield MW showing these Lidl wines in the latest style of our Zoom tastings. Most were from Lidl's latest the Summer Wine Tour range with the addition of the Pecorino from the Core Range. After getting their ticket everyone given the list of wines we were tasting and it was up to them if they'd like to get one, two or all of the wines. Alternatively, they could simply listen to what everyone else had to say about the

We had a great evening on Monday trying a host of wines I'd selected from retailers in and around Edinburgh which were either on special offer or offering exceptional value for money. We normally taste 6 wines but being Christmas and there were so many to choose and we had a few extras! All the wines were winners, some more than others so I thought it would be fun to share them further in case you're looking for some inspiration . Everyone was asked to score each wine out o

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. In the spirit of constantly trying to bring something new and off-the-beaten track to Fizz Feast, let us introduce you to Goldenacre Wines, which is tucked away at the back of Costcutter in Inverleith, so quite literally off that well-beaten trac

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. Of course, it’s not all about the Fizz at Fizz Feast – the ‘Feast’ part has to be catered to as well, which is why we are delighted to be welcoming Sardinian Food Specialities into the mix again this year. Headed up by renowned chef Stefano Sanna

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. If you haven’t experienced the joys of Franciacorta – the wonderful Italian sparkling wine made in the same traditional, bottle-fermented method as Champagne – you are in for a treat. Contadi Castaldi produces some of the finest Franciacorta and

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. In our bid to continually bring new and exciting exhibitors to Fizz Feast, we are delighted to welcome Croatian Fine Wines for the first time. Established in 2011, this still-young company started out with the aim of introducing exciting new wine

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. Italian wine has a great reputation both in terms of variety and quality worldwide so we are delighted to be welcoming Bellissimo Vino Edinburgh to this year’s Fizz Feast. This relatively new kid on the block in Edinburgh sources and imports sup

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. Having built a reputation for excellent-value wines that deliver on taste too, we’re delighted to be welcoming Lidl back to Fizz Feast again this year. With numerous drinks industry accolades it's belt and voted Supermarket Wine Retailer of the Y

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. In our opinion, when it comes to making the most of a foodie moment, you can’t do without a fine condiment, which is why we are delighted to welcome Fife-based business Trotter’s Independent Condiments to Fizz Feast for the first time. Byam Trott

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. The Wine Society has been loved by many for generations, which is only one reason why we are delighted to welcome this membership-based wine company to Fizz Feast and perhaps introduce who they are and what they offer to a new generation of wine

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. What artisan food and drink festival would be complete without a fabulous cheese to sniff, savour and take home for a treat? Which is why we are so delighted to welcome Isle of Mull Cheese to Fizz Feast this year. Made on the only dairy farm on th

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. One of the things we are keen to do at Fizz Feast is to introduce you to new wines and winemakers you may not have come across before, which is why we are delighted to introduce you to Hans Wirsching, a family-run business that has been making awa

As part of the run-up to our fourth annual Fizz Feast on Saturday 16 November at Edinburgh Academy, we’re giving you a brief introduction to the fabulous food and fizz exhibitors lined up to tantalise taste buds and please palates. You can’t say we don’t cater to all of the senses at Fizz Feast, particularly when we are welcoming back The Aroma Academy to test your sense of smell! Having primarily worked with drinks producers, The Aroma Academy now has a ‘scent’-sational s