photo gallery

With the "wedding of the century" taking place this week, London is invaded by all sorts of visitors. Some have spent a fortune on looking good on tv, others will have spent their money on getting here to watch them. That much I expected, and also that I would encounter more than the odd random stranger in town - but not that one of them would come into my house uninvited. Luckily, my guest needs no money to look good, does not behave disorderly after a few drinks and is perfectly capable of enjoying a glass of Riesling in silence.

So it was not quite the tiger who came for tea, but still a colourful guest - the ladybird who came for Riesling.

Time for another drive-by-shooting of the Lake Constance vineyard that just happens to be the old stopping-place between home and the grandparents' place. So same place, same photographer. This time with a bit more of a wintry feeling, but also scattered signs of approaching spring.

It is wine tasting season here in London. Events fight for a time slot in the busy schedules of sommeliers, wine writers and other trade folk, and even the humble Wine Rambler had to turn down several invitations. Among the events I decided I had to attend was Bibendum's Burgundy 2009 En Primeur tasting, held 11 January in the impressive rooms of RIBA, the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Burgundy produces some of the world's finest wines, and as they do come at a price a tasting is a fantastic way of learning more about them. Learning about Burgundy is in fact one of our new year's resolutions, so the Bibendum tasting was a great and timely opportunity for me to have a peek into the world of Burgundy.

Here are some pictures taken during a recent vineyard stroll between Meersburg and Hagnau on the Lake Constance shore, revisiting old Wine Rambler territory along the way. It was as serene as you can see, except for eerie fake bird-of-prey calls and canon shot that went off every couple of minutes to scare away any birds interested in sampling Spätlese grapes - it was either that, or a bit of private artillery practice.

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