2012 was a magnificent wine year for me, the highlight being our 2 week voyage through the Rhone, Burgundy and Champagne. I tried some brilliant wines, attended some great events and, most important of all, started writing my blog. 2013 has a lot to live up to…

The summer trip for 2013 is already in the planning and will be two weeks in western France. The principle stop off points will be Bordeaux and The Loire valley so plenty to look forward to there.

I am also going to give a lot more thought to Italy. In the past I’ve flirted with the country and may have been scared off by the many wine regions and unusual sounding grapes, but I’m going for it in 2013 and am particularly excited by the reds of Piedmont and the whites of Friuli. Other countries I plan on giving more of my attention to are Australia and USA. I’ve tried some excellent wines from both countries in 2012 but plan to go deeper in 2013.

As for grape varieties, exploring the virtues of Chardonnay across growing regions fills me with excitement, as does investigating the Cabernet Sauvignon options out there. Luckily I can combine this with the Australia/USA research assignment!

What I do promise is to write about it all and offer some advice as a result. I’m putting my money on 2013 being a fine vintage for drinking and writing!