On 19 Jan 2010 in the south London flat of Neil Beckett, the editor of The World of Fine Wine, sherry guru Jesús Barquín tasted his entire current range of sherries together for the first time. His explanation – 'I normally drink them, not taste them' – seems fair enough. He had persuaded his students of criminology at the university of Granada, where he is professor, that he could postpone his Monday afternoon lecture in order to fit this trip to London into his schedule.
Fortunately for me and a group of British wine professionals, including Margaret Rand and...