David Round MW

Although to be fair I don’t know how they ranked in 1939.

Pas merdre, mais pas top. Not even as good as the top German university!

Europe’s top universities are only found in countries not invaded by fascist Germany: the UK and Switzerland. There’s a warning from history for the United States.

It might have one scraping into the top 25. Behind multiple universities in the US, the UK, Switzerland, Singapore, China, Australia and Hong Kong. Not great for a country that had some of the best before fascism. The US is now going the same way.

Yes, they are quite round and very dark blue. I planted it because the gage needed a pollination partner from the right group.

I have a Czar plum tree (and a greengage) in my small London garden, but my mum made her chutney from Victoria plums, so I'm not sure if that will affect things.

My mum used to make a Delia Smith spiced plum chutney recipe when I was much younger and I always loved it. This is the first year the tree I planted in my garden has had a good crop, so this is a bit of a nostalgia trip!

That's really helpful, Jamie - thanks. And I love the idea of cardamon, which I have found to be very successful in marmalade.

Thanks for the advice. I may give this a go.

Thanks! So do you think I can just substitute plums and keep the same proportions? (Sorry - I get very nervous about going off-piste on this sort of thing!)

I think we agree more often than you realise!

We had an enormous plum harvest this year. I have made a big batch of plum chutney and now I need to decide on a plum jam recipe.

Yes, spray-painting “no genocide” on a synagogue is clearly an anti-semitic act and the fact that people are unsure on this question just highlights how endemic anti-semitism is.

Bad apples in England’s cider industry.

Texas Republicans vote to arrest Democrats stalling redistricting vote The Democrats facing arrest have fled to block a vote that could sway the balance of power in Washington.

There aren't many checks and balances available when a nation votes democratically for fascism. There are none at all if that nation already has a highly-politicised judiciary and a deferential press. I wonder when the US will next have a free and fair election.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Undoubtedly.

Really interesting article. Maybe he's right - terroir is arguably the interaction of the place with the people, so new arrivals could struggle to capture that sense of place while still making great quality. He seems a little eccentric and magnificently uncommercial, which makes a great story.

I just came back from Venice and I didn’t think it was too bad if you avoid San Marco and anywhere too close to the Rialto Bridge. But then I live in London.

In the UK at the low end, restaurants obscure their margins with private labels or on trade-only labels, but they are really obvious at higher price points.

So with your markups, that Musar at Gravetye Manor might be just under £100 (rather than £165), which seems very reasonable.

When you say 3x markup, you mean a $50 wine would be $200? In other words, add three times the cost price? Or just triple the cost price to $150?

I'm not suggesting restaurants are profiteering - quite the opposite as they are generally not profitable. But compared to food markups once kitchen staff and front of house staff costs have been applied, it seems to be a big disparity and a fracturing business model.

Musar's widely available for under £40 retail, so a restaurant would be paying £32 - £35 per bottle inc VAT maximum. So selling at 5x the price, a 400% markup or an 80% margin, depending on how you like to look at these things. And that's for the current vintage, so they aren't having to store it.

"Super chummy" 😂. Yes, I get that it's their job to give attentive service, but it's just not a very relaxing experience, especially for a scrupulously polite diner who wants to acknowledge everyone's efforts!

Having said this, I think fine dining's long-term reliance on wine more than food to deliver margin is no longer a viable business model, given today's price transparency, how the wine trade itself is finding it so tough to make a profit on wine and the signs of declining consumption.

Met a bit of a legend at Uptown Festival yesterday evening.

It’s the 16 courses that would put me off. When I eat out, I want to be able to talk with the people at my table rather than thanking or making appreciative comments to the staff at least 32 times during the meal!

Great perspective on London corkage rates. I hadn’t thought of this (although I never think to take my own wine to a restaurant anyway).

Living the dream!

You certainly have learned better. And earned better!