Posted by John Tomasso: Nicely done, Ken. Your travelogues are becoming the "must reads" of the net...

Calling yourself the Port Capital of SA might help with ratings in sighted-tasting-wine-guides and the travelogues of business class visitations from foreign gurus, but when writers not on a lucrative producer retainer hail you as the Pretoria of Port, then chances are your quality is more than marketing spin or wishful thinking...

From the over-touristed heights of Montserrat to the mountain-shrouded strip mall that is Andorra , we chase (and are chased by) the rain, all the way into the Pyrenées. Thankfully, there's a carnivorous reward at the end of it all. Although, given subsequent events, I wonder about the value of ...

Bikers sweat, struggle, and bleed their way up…then down…this shockingly precipitous, beautifully desolate mountain climb. They can have it. In a car, driving inches from an unguarded plunge into cartwheeling death, it’s…less fun. Considering how long it takes to get here, it’s all more than a bit frustrating, but after ...

Lac de Gaube walk – Up early, we return to Cauterets (our second attempt). It’s a beautiful day, and the prefect temperature for a little hike. We trek upwards, past the Pont d’Espagne to beautiful, isolated Lac de Gaube, and then back again to complete an eminently satisfying morning. And ...

The Nelson area has a lot of eateries, including one frequently-lauded establishment a few steps from our front door. But the locals I’d consulted had arrived at near-universal agreement: Flax (Mapua Wharf, Mapua) is the best of the bunch. And so, we choose it for our final restaurant meal in ...

I don’t know if it’s just another facet of this geographically and historically youthful country, but while grizzled veterans certainly exist, New Zealand’s winemaking scene sometimes seems to be one huge youth movement. Not everyone hosts weekly raves , perhaps, but this youthfulness does contribute to the pervasive energy and ...

North of Bize-Minervois, the rocks scattered throughout the seemingly endless vineyards that carpet this region turn white, glinting in the relentless downpour of the southern French sun. This, according to oenophile cartography, is where Minervois turns into St-Jean-de-Minervois, and the deep, powerful reds of the former become the perfumed, rich, ...

20 October 2006 – Saint-Savin, France Cirque de Gavarnie (1st attempt) – We’re surrounded by brilliant sun when we wake, but by the time we get ready and navigate the twisty, tiny, and unbelievably beautiful drive to this World Heritage Site, rain is coming down in sodden sheets. The Cirque ...

With a heavenly slab of foie gras poached in Banyuls (thankfully free of any suspiciously white sauces), I ask our somewhat munchable sommelière if there’s a glass of Banyuls that might go better with it than our Condrieu. I don’t get one. Instead, she launches into a mini-soliloquy, explaining that ...