Working at Yapp HQ has always been an interesting experience and there’s never a shortage of recommendations about new vintages, new wines and particularly new food and wine pairings. As a man who came from the cider and cheese school of thought it’s been a real eye opener – not that cider doesn’t go with […]

It is interesting how authors, actors, artists and musicians can arrive on the scene by breaking barriers and pushing people out of their comfort zone one day and then, in what seems like no time at all, they are perceived as National Treasures who are fondly regarded by one and all. What challenges the established […]

As I mentioned back in November I’m a sucker for a ‘soft’ restaurant opening because there is a wonderful feeling of dining before the critics descend and pronounce the received view of an establishment, of virgin piste if you like, and, even better, you tend to get a benign bill when it’s time to call […]

The final leg of our buying trip begins in Faugères, an up and coming AOC that sits atop an impressive bedrock of schist, north of Beziers. Château des Estanilles is an estate that has recently changed hands and the good news is that the pioneering work of Michel Louison is being augmented by Julien Seydoux, an […]

After a hugely informative, if fairly exhausting, visit to the Salon des Vins de Loire we headed south to Bordeaux for a spot of castle-creeping with the Baron and Baroness d’Anglade at Chateau d’Abzac. As any fule kno, it is relatively easy to source good, classed growth Bordeaux but you get what you pay for. […]

The annual Salon des Vins de Loire takes place at the end of January takes place in the unprepossessing but functional Parc des Expositions in Angers and is always an informative affair. While a mid-winter gathering is convenient for winemakers, it can make for a chilly and challenging tasting programme for visitors. This kind of event, although […]

It is a testament to how busy we have been over the past twelve months that the night for our staff Christmas Party appeared to come round again so quickly after last year’s great evening at the Museum Inn, Farnham. This time our Yapp car convoy was heading into Frome and the newly-opened Archangel. It […]

I am heartened to report that all 5 of our Border Terrier puppies are thriving as they have just reached 4 weeks age and we are no longer fearful of losing one to squashing or malnourishment. Unfortunately some cynical readers of this blog have suggested that the only reason I am writing about adorable infant […]

January 25th is, as our Scottish cousins are well aware, Burns Night (or more accurately Burns Supper, or even more accurately Burns Nicht). Traditionally a celebration of the life of the poet Robert Burns, he is honoured by the consumption of haggis, washed down with scotch whisky. There is a lot of pomp and ceremony […]

Yapp Brothers supplies wine to around 500 restaurants, hotels, bars, clubs and pubs in the UK, so wine lists in other countries is of particular professional interest to me. It also has a significant bearing on my holiday finances and choice of tipple. Three weeks in Colombia over Christmas and New Year presented me with ample opportunity […]