Demystifying the world of wine
(Another) new beginning
Getting on for 20 years ago (yikes!), I started writing about my musings on food and wine for my blog, Amsterdam Foodie. The subject matter morphed over the years, becoming less personal and more restaurant guide focused, but amazingly (and perhaps ill-advisedly) it still exists. In the meantime, along came Facebook, Instagram and the rest, with their demands for photo and video and the dreaded “content” every which way. And now, it seems we’ve come full circle: back to the roots. To the writing. To the reason I started all of this in the first place.
Only now with a different focus. As I step deeper and deeper into the wine world, I realise how confusing it all is. How confusing it STILL is, even after all the time I’ve spent studying it (and I mean academically, not just practically). Most of my friends love a glass of wine, but barely know where to start when it comes to picking one from a shelf or a wine list.
And so, just like with Amsterdam Foodie all those years ago, I’m writing this Substack for my friends. And for all the people like my friends, who aren’t quite sure where to begin.
What I’ll be writing about
I have all sorts of ideas for wine articles I’d like to share. Articles that try to answer some of the questions that I had about wine myself a few years ago. Articles that look at emerging trends or overlooked gems. Articles that bring you to affordable, accessible wines - not big names in fancy regions that 99% of us can’t afford.
I want to take the mystery out of buying wine in a shop or ordering from a wine list, so that people can find something they’ll actually like. I want to remind people that there are no stupid questions or wrong answers. And above all, I want people to have fun with wine. After all, cracking open a bottle of vino to share between friends is just about one of the nicest ways you can spend an evening.
Substack subscription
I’m keeping this Substack free for the time being, and at least until I’ve found my feet with this new medium. However, you’re welcome to pledge your support financially, so that I’m ready to “go paid” (as Substack puts it) once I reach that point.
A bit about me
I went on my first wine tasting trip to Burgundy with my parents in my early teens (it was the '90s - apparently no one cared about underage drinking). Over the years that followed, my fascination with wine grew and my student jobs were all some kind of combination of food and wine - whether it was cooking for private dinner parties, working catering gigs or serving in bars.
When I left university I went into the writing field (my degree was in English Literature so it's not as strange as it sounds). I've always written about food and wine, but I’ve added a lot of corporate copywriting to my portfolio over the last 20 years as well. It not only paid the rent; it also gave me experience working with different clients in a huge range of sectors and running my own business.
Fast forward to 2022, post-covid and post-40, I decided to return to my early passion for wine. To cement my technical knowledge, I took the WSET wine certifications for levels 2 and 3, passing both with distinction. Today, I write for a variety of food & wine publications and drinks businesses, I run private tastings and events, and I offer my consulting services to restaurants, bars and hotels. (Get in touch with me about any of those things if you’re interested.)