NB: This is archive material first released January 2022 and re-published here as a teaser for Wine Blast Season Three, which is available in full to Wine Blast PLUS subscribers. To find out more or sign up to enjoy the full range of member benefits, including archive access, follow this link to Wine Blast PLUS. Cheers!

They're hotbeds of innovation, experimentation, affordability and sustainability. For as much as they fly under the radar, the Côtes de Bordeaux are instigating and leading a dynamic kind of change in the world's largest fine wine region.

So what are the Côtes de Bordeaux? Where are they? And who are all these mostly family-run, smaller-scale producers who together produce 1 in 10 bottles of Bordeaux?

In this, the concluding instalment of our three-part sponsored mini-series on Bordeaux, we dive in to find out more about the intriguing world of the Côtes de Bordeaux. We hear from Bordeaux expert Jane Anson and chat to Pauline Lapierre of Château Haut-Rian, plus we recommend some great value wines along the way.

Wine Blast Season 3 Episode 13 (originally published 28 Jan 2022)

NB: This is archive material first released October 2021 and re-published here as a teaser for Wine Blast Season Three, which is available in full to Wine Blast PLUS subscribers. To find out more or sign up to enjoy the full range of member benefits, including archive access, follow this link to Wine Blast PLUS. Cheers!

Did you know Bordeaux used to be mainly white, not red wine? 

And that there's a universe of delicious diversity (and great value) to be discovered among the dry and sweet whites of Bordeaux (not forgetting the fizz)?

This is the second part in our mini-series in association with the Bordeaux Wine Council (CIVB) and we dive headlong into the fascinating world of white Bordeaux. We talk to the brilliant Laure de Lambert Compeyrot of Chateau Sigalas Rabaud as well as 'renegade' winemaker Olivier Cazenave of Chateau de Bel. Bordeaux expert Jane Anson also makes a cameo appearance.

The episode also features the ULTIMATE breakfast cocktail (involving Sauternes and blood orange), masochism, robots, 'heavy metal' orange wine, the 2021 vintage, earthworms the size of snakes, rescuing Muscadelle, loving 'the game' and some amazing value wine tips. 

By way of bonus, both Susie and Peter break into what might be loosely described as 'song' at different moments.

Wine Blast Season 3 Episode 4 (originally published 22 Oct 2021)

NB: This is archive material first released July 2021 and re-published here as a teaser for Wine Blast Season Two, which is available in full to Wine Blast PLUS subscribers. To find out more or sign up to enjoy the full range of member benefits, including archive access, follow this link to Wine Blast PLUS. Cheers!

Goats, amphorae, Whatsapp, wine aged in space, terroir, bats, non-fungible tokens and sexual confusion all crop up as we look beyond the Bordeaux stereotypes in a sponsored episode with the Bordeaux Wine Council (CIVB). 

Sharing their expert views with us on the latest goings-on in the region are Bordeaux-based writer and critic Jane Anson (author of Inside Bordeaux) and Yann Todeschini of Château Mangot in St Emilion. 

We discuss everything from sales to sustainability via soils, biodynamics, biodiversity (including why Châteaux Cheval Blanc and Lafite are ripping up vines to plant trees), orange wine, en primeur, the 2019 vs the 2020 vintage and experimental new grape varieties. 

And there are plenty of top tips along the way for wines and producers that challenge preconceptions. 

Wine Blast Season 2 Episode 19 (originally published 2 July 2021)

Bordeaux is a famous wine region currently beset by woes. The question is: where does it go from here? How can it harness its historic legacy and fighting spirit to get beyond the current crisis?!

One man who has answers is Laurent David of Château Edmus. A former Apple chief (who launched the iphone into Europe), he's not afraid to ruffle feathers in the ultra-traditional Saint-Emilion neighbourhood, making de-alcoholised 'Grand Cru' (and gin with the offcuts), chillable 'claret' red and a wine 'for geeks'.

Laurent declares the en primeur system 'dead meat', and has adopted a wine club/direct sales model, inspired by Napa and Burgundy. He says Bordeaux producers need to be 'obsessive' about not only the product but also their customers. 

'Wine has a mission in 2026/7', he declares: 'to reconnect people in real life.'

This is the second and concluding episode in our Bordeaux mini-series, in which we say what we think Bordeaux needs to do to reinvent itself (Susie even comes up with an alternative name suggestion for the contentious new 'claret' category...) 

To support the show, enjoy subscriber-only bonus content and discount benefits, access our full archive and get every episode before it goes on free release, subscribe to Wine Blast PLUS at wineblast.co.uk

Instagram: @susieandpeter

NB: this episode contains sensitive material, given we discuss suicide - see the links on our website show notes for help and more.

Bordeaux is one of the most famous names in wine. Yet this jewel in the French wine crown has been having a wretched time of late, afflicted by a whole bunch of problems, from rampaging wildfires to plummeting consumption, land prices tanking, production plunging and general climate change chaos.

It's being described as the worst crisis for Bordeaux since phylloxera and the Great Depression - so no wonder producers are feeling the pressure, in some cases with tragic outcomes.

Bordeaux's proud vineyard is being severely pruned - down from 109,000 hectares in 2023 to 86,000 hectares in 2026, a severe contraction of more than 20% in just three frantic years. Olives, goji berries and apples are replacing vines.

'The landscape of Bordeaux is changing,' notes respected Bordeaux-based writer Chloé Cazaux Grandpierre, who has some eye-opening details to share in this episode about all these issues and more.

We also discuss how Bordeaux is responding to this crisis, including topics like the controversial new 'Bordeaux Claret' category, surprising innovations on the production front and wine tourism, in a concerted effort to craft a brighter future.

To support the show, enjoy subscriber-only bonus content and discount benefits, access our full archive and get every episode before it goes on free release, subscribe to Wine Blast PLUS at wineblast.co.uk

Instagram: @susieandpeter

Welcome back to Wine Blast! This short trailer ahead of Season 8 is a recap on what's been going on lately, and also what's coming up. It even features Dolly Parton and an apology - so well worth a few minutes of your time.

We touch on our brand refresh (hope you like it!), archive tasters, our back catalogue (187 episodes to date, with 76 now subscriber-only), and plans to enhance the Wine Blast PLUS subscription club. 

Coming up in Season 8 we're exploring Bordeaux, the importance of your palate, the invention of champagne, NOLO wine, the future of classic grape varieties, chillable reds and Britain’s Best Wine Visits. And that’s just for starters! It’s going to be an absolute blast and we can't wait to share all the fun with you.

Thanks for spending time with us, we really appreciate your time and support. Here's to you - and to wine. Cheers!

To support the show, enjoy subscriber-only bonus content and discount benefits, access our full archive and get every episode before it goes on free release, subscribe to Wine Blast PLUS at wineblast.co.uk

Instagram: @susieandpeter

NB: This is archive material first released September 2020 and re-published here as a teaser for Wine Blast Season One, which is available in full to Wine Blast PLUS subscribers. To find out more or sign up to enjoy the full range of member benefits, including archive access, follow this link to Wine Blast PLUS. Cheers!

There is FREE medal-winning wine to be won for UK-based wine lovers in this episode, which ties in with the virtual ceremony for the Wine GB Awards 2020.

Tune in for more details! Also to hear Susie’s views, in the wake of the trophy announcements for these awards, on what, where and who are providing the real excitement in English and Welsh wine right now. There are also some up-to-date stats on English and Welsh wines to share. 

The concluding part to Judging Britain’s Best Wines Part I.

Wine Blast Season 1 Episode 24 (originally published 9 Sept 2020)

NB: This is archive material first released September 2020 and re-published here as a teaser for Wine Blast Season One, which is available in full to Wine Blast PLUS subscribers. To find out more or sign up to enjoy the full range of member benefits, including archive access, follow this link to Wine Blast PLUS. Cheers!

Chile is a wine scene stuck on fast forward. Many of the most exciting projects lately have been developed in the country's deep south, where the cooler conditions mean more elegant, refreshing wines (and respite from a decade-long drought). 

And these aren't projects for the faint-hearted: we visit a new vineyard on a remote island 1,200km south of Santiago - and another on the side of a smoking volcano. 

It's not just about terroir, either - southern Chile is home to indigenous Mapuche communities, where poverty and disputed land rights (among other issues) have long been bones of contention with the Chilean state and industry. But now, alongside pioneering vineyards aiming to champion the south's remarkable terroirs, wine is providing new hope of social unity as a new project is launched by Viña San Pedro Tarapacá in association with the local Mapuche community in Buchahueico. 

It all makes for a compelling and intriguing future - one we explore in this episode. (We also announce the winners of our WineGB giveaway!)

Wine Blast Season 1 Episode 25 (originally published 22 Sept 2020)

NB: This is archive material first released October 2020 and re-published here as a teaser for Wine Blast Season One, which is available in full to Wine Blast PLUS subscribers. To find out more or sign up to enjoy the full range of member benefits, including archive access, follow this link to Wine Blast PLUS. Cheers!

So what's been happening to wine during lockdown? It's the BIG question on everyone's lips - and the answer is not what you might expect. We dive right into the debate, throwing about facts, figures and opinions as we go. It does seem as if people revert to the familiar in times of crisis - and we're not afraid to treat ourselves a bit either. 

With this in mind, we launch a Twitter hullabaloo then taste test the biggest of all wine brands (car crash? Maybe...) After all that excitement, we go to the other end of the spectrum and get views from historic club The Wine Society and 'counter-cultural' wine bar and shop Diogenes the Dog. 

It's another wine rollercoaster of an episode - hop on, and don't look down.

Wine Blast Season 1 Episode 26 (originally published 8 Oct 2020)

NB: This is archive material first released October 2020 and re-published here as a teaser for Wine Blast Season One, which is available in full to Wine Blast PLUS subscribers. To find out more or sign up to enjoy the full range of member benefits, including archive access, follow this link to Wine Blast PLUS. Cheers!

We've reached a tipping point in environmental terms. Not just in terms of biodiversity, climate change, pandemics and the like - but also in the media. Recent releases showcase this trend - from Kiss the Ground (Netflix) to Extinction: The Facts (BBC/David Attenborough) and The Food Programme's English Pastoral episode. 

All are powerful, terrifying, inspiring calls to action - and made us think about wine's place in all of this. 

Given we all share personal responsibility for this crisis, should we only buy sustainable wine? Should we both, as professional wine communicators, only recommend sustainable wines? What even is sustainable when it comes to wine? Can (or is) wine taking a lead in this regard - or not? 

We all need to be asking questions - of ourselves, the products we consume, the lifestyles we lead. And we can be positive, and much good can come of this. Including delicious, sustainably produced wine in a biodiverse, stable, healthy planet.

Wine Blast Season 1 Episode 27 (originally published 16 Oct 2020)

NB: This is archive material first released October 2020 and re-published here as a teaser for Wine Blast Season One, which is available in full to Wine Blast PLUS subscribers. To find out more or sign up to enjoy the full range of member benefits, including archive access, follow this link to Wine Blast PLUS. Cheers!

So what's the BEST red wine grape variety? Ever? 

We asked you - and you replied in your droves, more than a thousand of you sending in weird and wonderful suggestions from all over the world. Thank you!

We've compiled the results, and the funny comments and goings-on, and you can hear the results in this fun episode. We name names so see if you get a mention! (Sorry if not...) 

We also find time to talk to legendary Yarra Valley producer Timo Mayer (who's clearly obsessed with Trollinger - listen to find out why). We throw numbers and stats about like, well, confetti. And we name check a few good bottles by way of recommendations too (can't have you going thirsty). 

Wine Blast Season 1 Episode 28 (originally published 30 Oct 2020)