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Slideshow
Top 10 most read stories of 2015
10. ‘Bizarre’ Glenfiddich sculpture to be scrapped
“‘Ford Escort with lamp post through bonnet’, a surreal artwork in the car park of the Glenfiddich distillery is destined for the scrap heap after eight years,” – so reads our introduction to this story on Scotch brand Glenfiddich’s strange car park installation.
The handiwork of Spanish artist and “spatial sculptor” Luis Bisbe and using a Ford Escort once belonging to the distillery’s art programme co-ordinator Andy Fairgrieve, the piece has been sitting in the car park since 2007, but has fell victim to plans to resurface the area in May of this year.
9. Robert Parker says ‘sorry’ to Burgundy
Next is this story, the result of an exclusive interview between the world-famous wine critic Robert Parker and our editor-in-chief Patrick Schmitt MW back in June.
The standout quote from Parker came when he was asked if he had any regrets over his long career in wine: “Sure there are always regrets, and I think the biggest mistake was when I was younger and doing Burgundy that I was too belligerent and aggressive with the Burgundians; I stepped on too many toes”.
8. ‘Britain’s best pubs’ 2015 announced
If Britain is famous for one type of building, its a pub. It is therefore of little surprise that the Campaign for Real Ale’s announcement of the best pubs in each of the country’s regions attracted a healthy readership this year.
Camra’s Good Beer Guide Editor, Roger Protz, commended the top 16 pubs set to feature in the guide, saying:
“Being named in the Top 16 in Britain is something these pubs should be hugely proud of and is testament to how hard each of the pubs work to get this far, winning their local and now regional pub award.”
7. Study suggests you are ‘drunk’ when you are in love
Beyoncé in her music video for ‘Drunk Love’
This has all the hallmarks of a story that is bound to get people talking: drunkenness, the feelings of true love, and even a cameo from a pop star.
It begins: “The effects of the “love hormone” oxytocin bear striking similarities to those of alcohol, a study has claimed, suggesting that Beyoncé really did know what she was talking about”.
6. Record number of new MWs announced
September saw the largest number of new MWs being announced in one go, as changes to the Research Paper section of the assessment resulted in 19 people being awarded the esteemed Master of Wine title.
John Hoskins MW, chief examiner of the Institute of the Masters of Wine, said at the time: “Not only do we have a record number of new MWs, but we can report that the general standard of the Research Papers was considerably higher than equivalent papers submitted in previous years.”
5. Napa’s best Cabs revealed in tasting
Vineyards in the Napa Valley
It is little surprise that this story attracted so much attention, as examples of Napa’s flagship grape were pitted against each other in a blind tasting that resulted in the best of the best being picked out.
It is actually quite an old story, being first published in January last year. It just goes to show the enduring attraction of the Californian county’s favourite variety.
4. Champagne ‘improves memory’, says study
“New research has suggested that three glasses of Champagne a week can help to improve your memory”; well, at least this intro would be true if the word “new” was removed, as this story actually hails from 2013!
However, despite its age, this report on a study by Reading University is still getting people popping their corks, as it were…
3. You are either ‘Mary Poppins or Hemingway’ when drinking, says study
It seems that having the word “study” in a headline can excuse the most farfetched sentences, but it’s true!
Research carried out in the US categorised people’s drunken personalities as one of the following: “Mary Poppins”, “Hemingway”, “Nutty Professor” or “Mr Hyde”.
Men dominated the “Nutty Professor” category, which was for introverts who become more extroverted when drunk and experience a decline in conscientiousness. One in five participants fell into this category.
Women dominated the “Mary Poppins” personality, which is where drinkers remain friendly, cooperative, compassionate and agreeable. Around 15% of drinkers overall fall into this category.
See the rest of the findings and read the full story here
2. Global Prosecco shortage could hit this summer
This story took the world by storm when we broke it in May.
An exclusive interview with Prosecco producer Bisol’s Roberto Cremonese led to his stark warning being repeated worldwide, with reports appearing on the BBC, in The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Mail, and even as far away as the US, Nigeria and Australia.
1. Star Wars-themed bar opens
And finally, the power of Star Wars fans seems to know no bounds, as this story totally eclipsed all other reports this year, despite only being published in November.
In the four weeks since publication, the news that a Star Wars convention was to be graced with its very own themed bar attracted nearly half a million readers from all over the world, many of whom wanted to know “which Manchester” the bar would be appearing in (an oversight on our part not to specify that it was the biggest and most famous Manchester, in England).