Category: Paul

Not even chewy

Whilst enjoying The Pianist (my capitals belie it being a film rather than a friend) I also had a very small (honest) glass of my housemate’s port. It was a Dow’s non-vintage which was blended by experts from recent harvests in 2000. It was, of course, 20% as most...

Different beers, different ideas

I have a selection of friends all of whom enjoy the odd beer. It always amazes me to discover just how differently each of us views beer, however. For example, I mostly prefer a lager, but I know several people who laugh at lager drinkers as though they’re an...

Leaving party

My housemate Peter (the recent anotherfoodblog celebrity) will soon be moving to Dublin to start work with Google. In celebration of this fine achievement, he hosted a party on Saturday night to enjoy a final farewell to most of his university friends. It was a great party with lots...

Dinner chez Gerard

Although I’ve never met Gerard personally. I started with an excellently smoked salmon and crayfish salad. I couldn’t quite work out what wood the salmon was smoked with, then I remembered other smoked meats I’ve eaten and decided it was oak-smoked. After it I moved on to a dish...

Non-vintage?

I may be young and inexperienced, but I think finding a wine without a year is an experience I would share with many. It’s called Cellier des Dauphins and usually doesn’t get a second look as it’s too expensive, but a discount brought it to three quid, so I...

I decant. Do you?

My housemate, Peter (there, now he’s a celebrity), bought a bottle of Rioja for £5. He asked me how long wine lasts for if you decant it. I replied that it depends heavily on the wine, but in general, the stronger it is, the longer it lasts. I was...

Trinity College BA Dinner

After the massive enjoyment of the Clare formal hall (see below), I simply couldn’t refuse when out of the blue, the day after, I was offered a ticket to Trinity’s best weekly formal. It’s designed exclusively for graduates or people who could graduate but haven’t yet, perhaps to take...

Clare College formal

Last night, I was the lucky recipient of an invitation to dine in Clare College’s magnificent hall. It was part of the Central European Society’s annual list of events and the number of languages I heard reflected the popularity. There must have been thirty people in our group, which...

Château Faugères

From 1999, this was a rare treat. My housemate had bought it for a Valentine’s date, and, probably, knowing I’d want to write about it, offered me a taste the moment I got home. He said he brought it back from a cycling holiday, which can’t have been easy....

It’s just as good

On Madsen’s recommendation, I recently bought a bottle of vintage cava from Sainsbury’s. It was amazingly good value at £4.99 given how pleasant it was to drink. It’s made in Spain, of course, and this one was from 2004. Brut, as I like all my champagne and 11.5%, the...