A longer piece to follow but in the meantime…
In the Far East last week I learned:
1) That I have a long way to go in terms of blind tasting
2) That an awful lot of Chinese people know an awful lot about wine
3) That I should have gone to Hong Kong ten years ago
4) That Rolex must sell an awful lot of watches
5) That I really can’t eat seafood
6) That something needs to be done about pollution (I mean globally, not just in Surrey)
7) That flying Club is the only way to fly. Never again in the back of the plane
8) That British Airways, and Heathrow Airport, are an embarrassment to our nation
9) That a sense of humour is a useful bridge across racial and linguistic divides
10) …
Number ten is the best one. Number ten I shall use for the rest of my life. Number ten is simple. Life-changing is a little bit strong but it’s not far off. Hours of googling leave me no wiser as to the “why?” or the “how?” but the simple fact is that next time you have a vodka and tonic ask for a slice of orange as opposed to one of lime or lemon. It transforms the drink. Forget the fifty quid vodka, forget the ten quid tonic: just add the slice of orange. At 41 years of age, and with no shortage of practice at drinking, a very tall man and a small slice of orange have given me an epiphany. Try it. Do it today.
