Terroir is one of those frustrating French terms that is beloved of winemakers and wine-writers but remains little understood by most of the wine-buying public. 

Readers of this column may be getting tired of my raising the issue of excise duty on wine but bear with me for just a few sentences. 

THERE was good news for the Government this month as it seems their take on wine duty was significantly up over Christmas, despite the criminal increases introduced in November’s budget.