A blog from Jeroboams

All keen gardeners will know the pain of popping down to the allotment and seeing that Peter rabbit has been at your carrots, turbo the snail has feasted on your lettuce, and there seems to be a plague of aphids hell bent on sucking your raspberry plants dry. Well, the same goes for grape growers. Maggie MacPherson takes us through all the lovely pests and diseases of the viticultural world.

Probably not the sexiest of topics when it comes to learning about wine, however trellising and training vines have a surprising impact on the end product. Maggie MacPherson takes us through all the important details.

Each culture around the world has a history of distillation that stretches back centuries—especially of distilling alcohol. It is a chemical process that, in it’s most basic form, is unchanged even today. James Phillips, Jeroboams’ Spirits Buyer, takes us through the basics.

The Languedoc is one of the most important regions for supplying the UK and the source of some excellent value wines. This is still the largest vineyard in the world at (with the Roussillon) 235,000 hectares and produces over 130 million cases of wine each year. To put that in perspective, the production averages more than any of Argentina, Chile, Australia or South Africa. Peter Mitchell MW takes us through this wonderful region.

Fortified wines once held a far more important position in the world of wine than they do now. Peter Mitchell MW gives us the inside track on all things fortified, which will almost certainly leave you wanting a glass!

Central Italy comprises Umbria, Marche, Abruzzo and Lazio. These regions deserve far greater recognition. It is an achingly beautiful province, with some of the country’s finest food and some hugely characterful wines, epitomised by the mighty Sagrantino grape. Peter Mitchell MW walks us through the key features of these stunning regions.

Argentinian Malbec and Steak is one of those magical combination that has taken the world by storm over the last decade. A fiery country of tango and football, Argentina produces some spectacular wines at some of the highest altitudes anywhere in the world. Maggie MacPherson introduced to this fantastic, underappreciated country

Unlike its red sibling, white burgundy has more genuine equals in the world of wine, with Chardonnay a more malleable variety to different terroirs than Pinot Noir is. However, Burgundy remains the spiritual home of Chardonnay, where is makes spellbinding wines. Peter Mitchell MW introduces us to the key facts of white wine production in this amazing part of the world.

Chile may known for mass-produced cheap wines, but as the narrowest country in the world, flanked on one side by the ocean and by mountains on the other, it offers a huge variety of terroir perfect for making adventurous wines. Maggie MacPherson introduced to this fantastic, underappreciated country

The pace of life in Southern Italy can be very slow. Sun baked throughout the growing season, one would assume this is red wine country. But, alongside some powerful reds, there are interesting, fresh whites. As well as arguably the oldest Grand Cru of the south, Taurasi. Peter Mitchell MW takes us on a journey through this beautiful part of the country.

Whilst many very good and some genuinely great Pinot Noirs are made elsewhere in the world, none have yet scaled the heights of the finest Burgundy. The Côte d’Or is home to a complex array of terroirs and producers. Peter Mitchell MW introduces us to the key facts of red wine production in this amazing part of the world.

South Africa is a beautiful country with a hugely varied landscape, from deserts to beaches, lions to penguins: its impossible to discover South Africa in only one visit. Every time you go back there will be something new that surprises you, and this is perhaps why South Africa’s wine industry is one of the most exciting in the world right now. Maggie MacPherson takes us through this fantastic country.