Just a few days left before Christmas and if you are stuck for present ideas don’t forget that a decent bottle of wine or gin is always a welcome gift.

With unpredictable colder weather and Christmas almost upon us, it is time to talk about fortified wines.

The June Bank Holiday is easily my favourite holiday especially as it heralds the beginning of summer.

What's big for food in the week ahead?

Christmas is approaching rapidly and it is wise to begin planning a little and thinking about your wines for the season. 

There is a tendency among wine enthusiasts to constantly refer to the beauty of vineyards and wine regions, but some of this I think comes from the fact that we feel so at home in these magical places that produce our favourite sustenance.

Does wine have a gender? There was a time when tasting notes would refer to a wine as feminine or masculine — a delicate fragrant chablis might be feminine but a big fruity hermitage from the Rhone would always be masculine.

Want a little Christmas spirit? From sparkling wines to cider, beer to gin, our wine columnist, Leslie Williams, has the perfect list to choose from.

Ireland and Spain have had many connections throughout history but one you might have overlooked is Spain’s contribution to Ireland’s most famous drink — whiskey.

The autumn is wine fair season in Irish supermarkets. Aldi was first out of the blocks last Sunday with an intriguing selection of wines from around the world at their usual low prices. 

Ireland is a small country that drinks a relatively modest amount of wine per head of population — around 17 litres per year compared with 24 litres in the UK and 53 litres per head in France.

In recent days the vineyards of Champagne and those of the Cote d’Or in Burgundy were both given United Nations World Heritage Status for the continuity and quality of their wines and ancient vineyards.

When I tell people that I write about wine they immediately ask “how do I get a job like that?” The answer I generally give is that I have no specialist skills but I do think about the wines I taste and drink a lot more than most people.

CAN you trust a wine score or tasting note? One of the more animated discussions at the Ballymaloe Literary Festival was on the subject of wine competitions and point-scoring for wines.

This is award season in the wine trade as much as in the movie business.

I once heard one of Chile’s most illustrious winemakers, Aurelio Montes, affectionately refer to the pinot noir grape as being like his teenage offspring: full of potential for a great future — but a royal pain to deal with right now.

BORDEAUX is the classic match for beef, be it steak or stew.