Wine Club 1 August

It was when the old lady passing the bottle bank lobbed me two quid and told me to get myself a nice cup of tea that I realised my lockdown face fungus had to go. I hadn’t shaved for months and as I battled with the empties that spewed noisily from my split carrier bag, I realised I was far from kempt.

I wanted to explain to her that it wasn’t empty bottles of cider I was getting shot of but top class cru Beaujolais that I’d tasted on behalf of no less a journal than The Spectator, but a crowd was already beginning to gather and rather than humiliate myself further, I touched my forelock, muttered a humble ‘Thank you, lady’, and slunk home.

I don’t know about you, but I let myself go during lockdown and, despite jibes from my boys about Stig of the Dump, I hadn’t quite appreciated how unsavoury my wild, grey crumb-catcher and dishevelled balding pate had become and how much extra timber I was carrying around my middle. Next day it was straight to the barber for a severe trim and spruce up. The fightback has begun and I’m back on my infallible, patented diet which requires me not to eat anything white. I’ll keep you posted.

I’m still drinking vino of course and trust you’ll join me this week in getting stuck into the said cru Beaujolais, which I’m delighted to offer here at very keen prices thanks to our chums at Mr Wheeler.

All are from the much-lauded Maison Jean Loron, one of the largest and longest-standing vineyards in Beaujolais, family-owned since 1711 and currently in the hands of the eighth generation.