Giles Cadman

by Giles Cadman En Primeur tasting week in Bordeaux is always a fascinating experience, and a great place to meeting many interesting people from the wine industry. The 2012 vintage is receiving mixed reports, which is probably not surprising considering the tricky growing season.  Decanter‘s consultant editor Steven Spurrier is largely positive at this stage, having begun […]

by Giles Cadman This is a sad story of an embittered former employee committing massive vandalism against his employer. A former employee of Brunello di Montalcino winery Soldera has been sentenced to four years in prison after sabotaging thousands of litres of the celebrated producer’s wine. Andrea Di Gisi was sentenced following a brief trial […]

by Giles Cadman Unfavourable weather conditions made the 2012 Vintage problematic for Bordeaux. In a better harvest for dry whites and rosés than for reds or dessert wines, widespread rain – most notably later in September – caused a host of problems including rot, mildew, poor flowering and inconsistent fruit set. ‘You remember some vintages with […]

by Giles Cadman  It is not often that one gets to say that they have tasted a first growth Bordeaux from the legendary 1947 vintage, and I would consider myself extremely lucky if I ever got the chance to do so again. Anyone who follows this blog will be aware of the high esteem in […]

by Giles Cadman Growing grapes is weather dependent, and the quality of vintages is at the mercy of the seasons. The great vintages come from great growing seasons, when the weather is perfect for the entire period. Modern wine making techniques make it possible to produce reasonable wine from bad growing conditions, but it is […]

  by Giles Cadman – Venulum Ltd I have been observing with keen interest the rise of Château Pontet-Canet to the unofficial status of Super Second over the last decade. Of course the prices have also risen in line with its growing reputation and increased global demand, yet it still looks like a great relative […]

by Giles Cadman – Venulum Ltd The Summer edition of Venulum’s Uncorked Summer 2012 newsletter is available. In uncorked this month we look at Chateau Latour and Bordeaux‘s famous left bank. A favourite wine of many, and one of the truly great wine growing regions. We describe how to decant wine, and which wines to decant. […]

by Giles Cadman Trotanoy has long been regarded as one of the handful of top estates from Pomerol on Bordeaux’s right bank; and in a Bordeaux vintage where the best estates produced wonderful wines, but which is otherwise considered a bit of a minefield, Trotanoy seems to have excelled with consistently brilliant reviews over the course […]

by Giles Cadman – Venulum The Wall Street Journal has some sensible comments about the quality of the 2011 Vintage. Our team of wine experts hold similar opinions, and from what i am reading the consensus across the industry appears to be that after two amazing vintages the 2011 vintage will struggle due to weather […]

by Giles Cadman – Venulum The Telegraph’s wine section is always worth a read. Some days they have real gem’s like the article about Berry Bros & Rudd’s interactive guide to French Vintages from 1978 to 2011. They make the sensible and telling point that wine lovers should always bear in mind: Of course, vintage […]