My first visit to Bordeaux shattered romantic notions of rambling grapevines. Seeing those tightly clipped vineyards, I wondered where all those passionate winemakers had gone, and when the bean-counters had moved in. At the time, we were enroute to Northern Portugal, where vineyards were still growing in wild abandon. It …

The pink wave from Provence just keeps on swelling, which is funny given that for many years in London, Stephen and I had to indulge our Rosé passion in the comfort of our own home.  We never really got served any at dinner parties and bars would only have a …

This easy recipe for Chocolate Fondant Cake made with only 5 ingredients, in record time, is from our friends at Mirabeau wine. Hope you love it and if this isn’t a good excuse to bake a cake, I don’t know what is.

Contributor blog post by Célia Gentaud @MirabeauWine: There’s nothing more magical on a hot summer’s day than enjoying a glass of chilled, dry rosé in the shade of a towering Plane tree in the square. The hub of most French villages, especially in Provence, Plane trees are symbolic of socialising and …

Contributor blog post by Jeany Cronk @MirabeauWine: Somehow salads get short shrift in winter, yet this is probably the time when we need vitamins the most to get through the cold period. I enjoy eating and making salads all year round and like to add richer ingredients in autumn and …

People are often surprised that most wines are blends, and even more surprised that even single-grape variety bottles are blends from different tanks. In Provence, it’s the law of our appellation that wines are blends from the local varieties like Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault and Carignan. A good …Continue reading here …

Contributor blog post by Mirabeau Wine: Taking a punt – according to most dictionaries – means to take a chance, to give something a go, place a bet, or even… to take a flat-bottomed ferry boat. You could also be handed a long pole and then ushered onto a long …

Contributor blog post by Victoria Koning @MirabeauWine After a hectic festive season, this delightful salmon and shrimp dish is ideal as an apéro, starter or light meal. Browsing through the interwebs, I got the inspiration from a BBC Good Food recipe using prawns, which also looks yummy. While this isn’t a …

Contributor blog post by Jeany Cronk @MirabeauWine  As we know well from having read Peter Mayle’s tale of life and construction in Provence, nothing (apart from buying baguettes and Rosé) is ever easy in this neck of the woods. We do forget that construction is mostly a nightmare, wherever you are …

Now that winter has truly arrived in Provence, we all enjoy warmer and richer food than we do most year-round. Contrary to popular belief, it gets incredibly cold here (though not for very long), and a delicious warm stew makes everyone in the family happy.  Continue reading here for the …