Londoners! I'm doing the Chelsea History Festival on Wednesday 24 September at 6pm. Please come! chelseaheritagequarter.co.uk/chf/how-booz...

With death and scandals in Champagne and immigration raids in California, is there a global grape picking crisis? www.internationalwinechallenge.com/Canopy-Artic...

"It's like pinot noir but with more alcohol" is a really useful observation. I'm a fully signed-up grenache-lover.

Wrote a thing on International Grenache Day and especially this incredible Tavel I had recently. henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/in-praise-...

Wrote a thing about Sideways which turns 21 this year. How does it hold up? henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/sideways-a...

This was a great trip down memory lane, pints of Dogbolter at the Feast & Firkin (we called it the Beast of Burden) in Leeds.

Google sends users to irrelevant adverts and utterly pointless AI which means that really good old-fashioned books are more useful than ever. henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/hugh-johns...

"On the slopes of Kenwood House, like a routed medieval army at rest, were scores of wealthy pensioners in colourful attire, snoozing off a German wine tasting session." thecritic.co.uk/britains-eli...

"Come along with me, then, as I delve into this archaeology and history – and lift the veil on secrets that have been hidden in plain sight.” There’s some wonderfully hackneyed old tripe in Alice Roberts’ new book Domination. thecritic.co.uk/getting-chri...

“These are bold, full-flavoured wines that partner deliciously with rich dishes of the region not for the Ozempic type.” Wrote a thing on the magic of Rhone whites thecritic.co.uk/issues/augus...

I wrote a thing on how the Italians were into single malt Scotch whisky before anyone (apart from the Scots) It's a fascinating and largely unsung slice of whisky history. Plus some great old adverts henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/the-italia...

'Mad Men through an alcoholic haze' | @henrygjeffreys.bsky.social henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/mad-men-th...

just wrote the definitive article on drink in Mad Men henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/mad-men-th...

I have a chat message but I can't be bothered to go through all the ID stuff to read it (thank you political masters!) So if you want to get in touch privately, let me know and you can send a fax or something

Really enjoyed this. Lots of great quotes. (My own favourites include Burgess’ ‘this is clearly from the north face of the vineyard, where the diabetic tom cat goes for a pee’ and Hemingway’s ‘this wine makes your eyeballs feel rusty’.)

Wine people having the same convo us beer writers have periodically—didn't we decide it's because the internet (despite being a cruel place) looks at genuine critique as an ad hominem attack?

Why aren't wine writers as rude as book reviewers? henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/if-nobody-...

This week's New Yorker has the most New Yorker article ever: a 7 page feature about fact checkers at the New Yorker.

I'm in Telegraph having a good old harrumph about 'water sommeliers' www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08...

Great book, perhaps the best on Paris since 'A Waiter in Paris'.

Chris Newens has captured the French capital in all its bewildering variety. A culinary quest through Paris | @henrygjeffreys.bsky.social engelsbergideas.com/reviews/a-cu...

The Guardian’s whole ‘please fund us because this is a fight against evil’ shtick would be more persuasive if they didn’t run endless pieces about e.g. why everyone is talking about avocado talc, written by someone called Avocado Talcum-Powder.

this is great! 'in fiction, alcohol can help. It can move the plot forward, it provides comedy, tragedy, explication—it's a window into a character's soul and a signifier of turmoil and mental illness.'

wrote a thing about alcohol and fiction henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/drink-and-...

"What is surprising is that, despite all the sales, the acclaim, the award shortlists and the column inches, The Salt Path is almost unreadable. " thelionandunicorn.wordpress.com/2025/08/23/d...

England’s 500 Best Pubs now exists in print form, courtesy of today’s Telegraph Magazine. It’s an edited version, chopped up into sections (best beer, most historic etc) and nicely illustrated.

Sad to see this local business close but they didn't stand a chance against the Nimbys. No service after 9pm, no hot food and no chairs & tables outside. In a village with two pubs which did all of the above. www.kentonline.co.uk/ashford/news...

Watch out when you go to the pub as you might find an 'optional' 4% has been added to your bill. Stealth tipping is coming to Britain unherd.com/newsroom/tip...

This story is *wild*. Wonder how long the hoaxer/scammer would have got away with it if they hadn’t pitched a story so good that it did need checking. (And credit to the editor who checked). pressgazette.co.uk/publishers/d...

I am so enjoying this multi-part appreciation of Wetherspoons from a German writer. substack.com/home/post/p-... Part 2 here.

'The myths and reality of Irish pot still whiskey' | @henrygjeffreys.bsky.social henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/the-myths-...

Wrote a thing about the myths behind Irish pot still whiskey. henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/the-myths-...

Today is the 47th anniversary of this clearly unimprovable photo, from a story so absurd that it shouldn’t be true, but is: the day a team of workers from British Waterways pulled the plug out of the Chesterfield Canal, and all the water emptied out

I was also separated from large amounts of dough by one of these CEOs. Can confirm I would not trust any statement from him. And I'm very sad about everyone who was ripped off - and about innocent people at places like the (wonderful) Backlisted podcast who have been made victims by association.

'Ultimately, there weren’t unlimited potential authors. And not all who had initial crowdfunding success had wide enough appeal to then be sold in shops. “We were telling authors that they’d have a traditional publishing journey, but that wasn’t always possible,”'

The Observer takes on the collapse of Unbound - some truly shocking allegations, almost all of which I have seen compelling evidence of as a member of the Unbound author WhatsApp group and through my own experience of being published by them observer.co.uk/news/busines...

I wrote a thing about the, ahem, characters I met living in local authority flats including the paedophile artist & attempted axe murderer who we befriended by mistake. thecritic.co.uk/a-walk-on-th...

This is how to do a wine label.

"Call me old-fashioned. No wait – call me progressive. Actually call me a goddamn hero"

Normal practice at a large English cider firm in the 90's/00s. henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/rise-and-f...

"MacGowan’s advantage over Eric Bogle being that he sounds like he is the mutilated infantryman singing the song cap in hand on the pavement, and not the folk singer who wrote it." Rum, sodomy & the lash at 40. thequietus.com/opinion-and-...

Which of England's counties has the best pubs? I have taken it upon myself to decide, and written it up as my latest '500 Best Pubs in England' story. 🧐https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/united-kingdom/england/staffordshire/english-county-with-the-best-pubs/

This is really good. I never joined any London clubs (although I went to Gerry’s and the Colony Room a fair bit with members) because the pubs and bars were decent. Here, I tend to use the clubs more than the pubs.

Drinking in London's clubs from the very grandest to Soho dives. henryjeffreys.substack.com/p/drinking-i...

Just heard that Boundless, Unbound's phoenix company has just gone under leaving authors and readers (and staff, I presume) screwed. Here's something I wrote on the debacle. thecritic.co.uk/balancing-th...

incredible thread(s)