What a surprise!

Thursday last week was a superb day - Hubby and I travelled to Cambridge to meet friends whom we last saw 15 years ago when we visited them in Norway. It was as if time stood still, we all looked the same and chatted away like our last meeting was only yesterday.

Cambridge is a beautiful city, stunning architecture, beautiful college grounds but for once I only have the obligatory selfie photo to share as we were so busy chatting with our friends.

We did find Cambridge Wine Merchants ... not really a surprise there ... it was nice to sit in the cool in their Wine Bar. I had a really refreshing, if hard to say when ordering, Sipsmith Sloe gin with Fevertree tonic.

I'm sure Hubby and I will visit Cambridge again soon when we can take it all in a little more and enjoy the beautiful places.

Whilst enjoying lunch my email notification sounded, so after we'd eaten I checked my phone .... what a surprise! It was from People's Choice Wine Awards to say I had been chosen as one of their Round 1 judges. Over 200 people had applied and they chose me !

Extract from PWCA website:

The People's Choice Wine Awards is run by Janet Harrison, founder of Cracking Wine and The Fizz Festival.  Both companies organise fun and informal wine tasting events and wine festivals which always involve an audience vote.  Her experience has shown that wine lovers know a good wine when they taste it - whether they have a formal wine education or not.

In 2017 the inaugural PCWA was launched. Wines were submitted from a wide range of supermarkets, importers, producers and retailers. It is expected that the competition will attract even more wines this year.

The ethos behind the PCWA is simple - giving the consumer the opportunity to vote for the wines they love means that they are at the heart of the process, rather than being disengaged from it. The terminology and categories have been made easy to understand and meaningful to the average wine drinker. This helps them make better buying decisions and helps retailers understand what their customer wants.

Above all, wine is a joyful thing and should be fun - PCWA reflects that spirit.

Wine is certainly fun for me; it's not about quantity or alcohol consumption, it's so much more:

🍇which grapes 

🌍 how and where they are grown

🤗 who has the amazing skill to produce it

🍷 it's colour, aroma, flavour

🍽 what food it pairs with

🎉 what occassion or setting is best to enjoy it 

Wine is a big part of our lives and I feel honoured and privileged to have been chosen as a Round 1 Judge - thank you PCWA for chosing me.

But in the meantime I need to think about packing as it's not long until our Champagne holiday with friends, I'm so looking forward to revisiting this amazing part of France 🍾