To get a feel for the world of wine you need to get a feel for geography and do a bit of driving – perhaps from Napa to Sonoma, from Bra to Barbaresco or take a drive up the D2 from Bordeaux through Margaux, St. Julien, Pauillac and St. Estephe. 

In my garden at the moment my plum and two apple trees are in full bloom and I am already anxiously anticipating a good crop of fruit.

IT ALL comes back to France. That country’s wine sales may have fallen dramatically in recent years, but it is still the benchmark producer for most grape varieties and wine styles.

SO how many new year’s resolutions have you broken yet?

Spain’s Interior Ministry says an alleged leader of the Basque separatist group ETA has been arrested in eastern France.

Briton Bradley Wiggins survived the Tour de France’s first big mountain stage to retain the race leader’s yellow jersey, before asking “what more can I do?” when the subject of doping was again broached.

Irish cycling legend Stephen Roche predicts Alpine fireworks over the coming days as Bradley Wiggins’ Tour de France lead is set to come under attack — and anticipates the race leader’s Team Sky colleague and fellow Briton Chris Froome could be the major beneficiary.

Tour de France leader Bradley Wiggins insisted the race for the yellow jersey is far from over despite taking a commanding lead with victory on stage nine.

Bill Gates paid tribute today to the developer of an early personal computer which inspired him to found Microsoft.

A deadly storm system rumbled across the southern US over the weekend where tornadoes and severe weather killed at least 20 people in three states.

Lucie Aubrac, a hero of the French Resistance whose dramatic life story became a hit film, has died aged 94.

THE American dominance of the Tour de France looks set to continue as Floyd Landis remained in pole position to win this year’s title going into the final weekend of action.

The American dominance of the Tour de France looks set to continue as Floyd Landis remained in pole position to win this year’s title going into the final weekend of action.

A 27-year-old woman was today convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison for leaving her new-born daughter in a Wal-Mart toilet in the United States last year.

The remnants of the first named storm of the hurricane season churned through the south-eastern US early today, bringing much-needed rain and offering officials a chance to practice their storm preparations.

Wine is less a beverage than an elixir of life in France, but the country’s vintners say they’re confounded by a problem that threatens their livelihood - too much of a good thing and not enough people drinking it.

THREE weeks after his kidnapping, US hostage Thomas Hamill was yesterday free.