Big wine retailers following biodynamic principles as cosmos demands to be taken seriously

As soon as I saw the sub-head (Supermarket chains check lunar calendar before inviting critics to drink) I just knew I was going to love this story. The idea is by no means a new one: the taste of wine is affected by the moon. How so? Well, just as the moon affects large bodies of water like oceans, some believe they affect small ones as well, right down to a 750ml bottle of vino. Cosmic.

What is more surprising (at least for this cynic), is that the UK's major wine retailers have now bought into the belief that the day, and even the hour, on which wine is drunk, alters its taste. Believe it or not, Tesco and Marks & Spencer, which sell about a third of all wine drunk in the UK, now invite critics to taste their ranges only at times when the biodynamic calendar suggests they will show at their best.

It gets better: the lunar wine calendar has been published for the last 47 years by a gardening great-grandmother called Maria Thun, who lives in rural Germany. She categorises days as "fruit", "flower", "leaf" or "root", according to the moon and stars. Fruit and flower are normally best for tasting, and leaf and root worst. The theory was put to the test at a tasting hosted by David Motion, a London Wine Merchant. Jo Ahearne, winemaker for Marks & Spencer, is now absolutely convinced of the moon's impact after sampling more than 140 wines over two days. "Before the tasting, I was really unconvinced, but the difference between the days was so obvious I was completely blown away." The Guardian conducted its own tests and reported five out of seven bottles showing a marked improvement on 'fruit days' over 'leaf days'.

Others are far from convinced, as the Scotsman pointed out, "including Waitrose [and] most scientists, who point out that the ultimate inspiration for Thun's calendar is Rudolf Steiner, who came up with the notion after reportedly consulting with spirits, although not of the liquid variety. Steiner, a well known educational reformer, also believed that the moods of humans could cause earthquakes". 

On reading all of this one person was foremost in my mind: 'Randall Grahm', one of the original 'Rhone Rangers', proprieter of Bonny Doon vineyard and widely respected as one of the finest winemakers in California. Here is a man who can happily spend hours explaining each and every natural and scientific facet of the winemaking process, only to finish-up telling you that it all comes down to where you put the magic crystals (straight-up, we've discussed this with him at length). And if his wines are anything to go by, maybe there is something to all this cosmic stuff after all?

Women's Commonwealth Expedition fuelled by Wineaux

The wine business takes you to some unusual places. And it so was that we found ourselves in the presence of royalty down at the Commonwealth Club last week for the launch of the Commonwealth Women’s Antarctic Expedition. We're sponsoring their fund-raisers and saw them off nicely with with a Penet Chardonnet Champagne. 

The CWAE will see women from the Commonwealth countries of Cyprus, Ghana, India, Singapore, Brunei, New Zealand, Jamaica and the United Kingdom brave blizzards, crevasses and temperatures below -30C as they ski over 800 kilometres across Antarctica to the Geographic South Pole. Marking the 60th aniversary of the Commonwealth, the expedition aims to demonstrate the potential of greater intercultural understanding and exchange, while at the same time highlighting the achievements of women across the world. The expedition team of 8 women from the Commonwealth countries of Brunei, Cyprus, Ghana, India, Jamaica, Singapore, New Zealand and the United Kingdom were selected from over 800 applicants. The women from Brunei, Cyprus, Ghana and Jamaica will be the first person from their nation to ski to the South Pole. Those from India, Singapore and New Zealand will be the first women from their country to do so. 

We salute their efforts and wish them every success (donate here).

Wine is bad for you, but not as bad as Facebook

In a week when the Daily Mail carried the story that “Facebook causes cancer”, we should probably take claims that "a glass of wine each evening is enough to increase your risk of developing cancer" with a pinch of salt. Especially as you might also have read this week that a "glass of wine 'could prevent gullet cancer'", "a couple of glasses of beer or wine every day is good for your bones" and that "white wines improve the digestion of low fat food and help prevent cardiovascular diseases".

Mixed messages indeed. I'm not a real doctor but i recommend giving up the newspapers. That, or taking one cancer-beating glass of wine with every cancer-causing one. Sadly the contagion's even spread to France, where the current official "drink with moderation" is to be replaced with cigarette style warnings that "the consumption of alcohol is detrimental to your health". In case you're wondering, the idea has been around in the UK since at least 2006. Perhaps we should start preparing for pictures of pickled livers on our pinot?

Merlot in the snow

You've got a wine business. You get a dog. He's got a better nose than Robert parker. You call him "Merlot" because your girlfriend won't let you call him Randall. We think he's the cutest thing on four legs, but then we're all full of doggy pride so we would, wouldn't we?