Besançon was perfect. The capital city of Franche Comté had everything: wine, cheese, art, history and location. I was staying on a barge moored on the Doubs river which was high, fast and closed to all boat traffic until further notice.

Yes, it’s certainly more our fault than yours, as you are sufficiently inundated with labels and recommendations here to let these gems slip through the cracks. But here are 10 wines that you shouldn’t be oblivious to!

Visiting Barcelona for the first time in 1988 was like entering another world that was both foreign and familiar.  Our wooden train, straight out of a Spaghetti Western, crept into the city, stopping sporadically to allow the conductor to slowly walk up and down the tracks.