Someone just posted a tweet about Keith Floyd… And it got me thinking…

Do you remember the first time you saw Keith Floyd on TV? I remember seeing him when I was at school and just thought, what a mad bastard! A the time I had no interest in food whatsoever, probably too busy working out whether Biactol or Clearasil was he best cure for acne.

It wasn’t until I got to university and started watching Ready, Steady, Cook every day that I got into food. Now I know how ridiculous that sounds, but I was red tomatoes and my flatmate Rob was green peppers. Best of 5 every week, loser bought the first pint… It got very competitive. Anyway I started watching any food programme as I got the bug and saw a programme called Floyd on France. The mad fool was cooking a piperade, being watched by a disgusted looking French lady… And I was hooked.

I’ve seen most of his shows now, although most, sadly, still aren’t available of DVD. When I got into wine I started watching Floyd Uncorked on UK Travel and I fell in love with the man again. What a great introduction to a great subject and what a guy to front it. He and Jonathan Pedley MW in a different wine region of France every week, discussing, arguing, drinking, but more importantly, making wine accessible to us naive mortals.

Floyd Uncorked became a great go-to Xmas present. Buy the book, the DVD and a few bottles to drink along with Floyd! Savigny Le Baune and Chablis in episode 1, Vouvray and Pouilly Fume episode 2. Give it a try… Your friends and family will love you forever and also start to share your interest in wine.

On our recent trip to France we spent the morning in Avignon before heading out to Chateuneuf. I wasn’t that taken by the place but was like a giddy child when we found the Hotel D’Europe… The bar where Keith spent so many of his days entertaining the locals and tourists alike.

Anyway, I want to remember the real Floyd, not the one we saw in that tragic Channel 4 documentary which aired the day after he died. So I recently re-read his autobiography, Shaken not Stirred, as well as the wonderful book by his long time suffering director David Pritchard, Shooting the Cook. Please do the same and remember what a true entertainer the great man was.

Drink along with Floyd… The greatest Xmas present of all time!

Hotel D’Europe in Avignon. Where the king held court.

Full episode guide:

1. Burgundy – Chablis & Savigny les Beane
2. Loire – Pouilly Fume & Vouvray
3. Rhone – Cotes du Rhone Villages & Crozes Hermitage
4. Bordeaux – Medoc & Sauternes
5. Alsace – Riesling & Gewürztraminer
6. Languedoc – Viognier & Minervois
7. Provence – Coteaux d’Aix-en-Provence rose & Luberon
8. Champagne – Champagne!