How a former hedgie manager is challenging the Bordeaux status quo February 26, 2013 THE BOTTLE OPENER I’m delighted to say I spent last Monday evening drinking fine Claret with a revolutionary. Not that Arnaud Christiaens, a polished Belgian former hedge fund manager, is your usual rebel. But with his new venture Le Secret des Grands Chefs, he is setting out to turn the accepted order of things in [...]
The future looks cloudy for this Sauvignon Blanc February 12, 2013 bottle.opener@cityam.com Once the wine of choice, Cloudy Bay now has some real competition Whatever HAPPENED to Cloudy Bay? A few years ago the release of the new Cloudy Bay Sauvignon vintage was greeted with excitement amongst wine lovers. After all, this was a wine to celebrate – a taut yet ripe Sauvignon Blanc with real [...]
A cynic’s solution to not loving Valentine’s day February 12, 2013 City A.M.’s cocktail expert Call ME a cynic, but there is only one thing worse than being single on Valentine’s Day and that is being forced to sit with your significant other in a bar or restaurant, spending hand over fist in a vain attempt to quantify your affections. And every year the expectations for [...]
Nuno Mendes: how to throw the ultimate dinner party January 28, 2013 When Krug decided to host an event based around the concept of happiness, they called on Nuno Mendes, the experimental Michelin-starred chef behind Bethnal Green’s Viajante restaurant. The ambitious project aimed to create the ultimate dining experience – helped along, of course, by some of Krug’s finest fizz. We caught up with Mendes to ask [...]
It is high time the steamed pudding made a come-back January 28, 2013 Head chef, Paternoster Chop House Can you remember the last time you ate Spotted Dick? I’m betting that for many of you it was several decades ago at school, covered in lumpy custard. Aside from that eternal favourite sticky toffee pudding, we don’t tend to eat a lot of steamed puddings these days. This is [...]
Catch game birds before they fly January 21, 2013 Head chef, Paternoster Chop House Blame IT on TV schedules stuffed with period dramas like Agatha Christie and Downton Abbey, but every winter, I always end up feeling nostalgic about everything that is quintessentially British. Watching the upper crust engaged in their traditional pastime of shooting game birds reminds me that there’s only a few [...]
What’s up, duck September 4, 2008 Duck season is here, so make the most of the bird, says Timothy Barber Can there be any dish more redolent of the bad old days of restaurant food than duck a l’orange? It may be a classic, but let’s be honest, duck in a sweet orange sauce is more likely to be the sorry [...]
InBev plans £1bn deal September 3, 2008 Belgian brewer InBev is planning to put its South Korean beer business up for sale, sources said yesterday. The move is an effort to shed a noncore asset and raise what could be roughly £1bn for its purchase of US brewer Anheuser-Busch. Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan Chase will run the auction for the business, called [...]
Diageo bullish as profits rise August 29, 2008 With two world wars and a few revolutions under its belt, alcoholic drinks giant Diageo is well placed to weather the economic downturn, its chief executive Paul Walsh said yesterday when announcing the group’s results – despite warning of slowing growth ahead. The maker of Guinness and Smirnoff posted a 2 per cent increase in [...]
Summer is the time to drink yourself cool August 14, 2008 Never mind the weather, you can get a bit of sunshine in your glass with fresh and seasonal cocktails, says Zoe Strimpel The past week may have been dodgy weather-wise, but we’ve still got a month till summer’s officially over. Rain or shine, there’s no better way to grasp that summer feeling than a good [...]