The Observer

In an Observer Food Monthly feature entitled '50 foodie things to do before you die', TIM ATKIN MW's contribution is 'make love in a vineyard' but not just any vineyard, all five of the Bordeaux first growth vineyards 'at night', he adds. He also recommends treading grapes in a lagar, 'having consumed a bottle of vintage Port before you start'. When he's finished fantasising, Atkin tries his hand at being a sommelier at Gordon Ramsay restaurant in London. 'For the first hour or so, I poured mineral water rather than wine.' And then, when a diner asks for something 'crisp and refreshing', Atkin suggests a 2001 Chablis Grand Cru, which is rejected for being 'far too oaky'. 'We'll serve it by the glass, so don't feel too bad,' says the restaurant's head sommelier Ronan Sayburn.