Spring makes me think of England, of tulips succeeding daffodils on the sun-dappled banks of the Thames. It could be time for a return trip, not least because I hear that Cliveden, the grand country house hotel in Berkshire, has hired a remarkable new chef following a complete renovation of its dining room. Andre Garrett won a Michelin star at Galvin at Windows atop the Hilton on Park Lane. Apparently, his new menu will run to dishes such as mackerel tartare with smoked eel beignets; roasted pigeon with glazed salsify; and rice pudding soufflé with prunes. “Oh, to be in England …”
I am fond of small cruise ships, particularly those that take you to places that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to reach. Silversea’s newest expedition vessel, the 120-passenger Silver Discoverer, entered service on March 1 and is primarily designed to explore the archipelagos of the Pacific. Her upcoming nine- to 18-day itineraries will include Indonesia, Borneo, Japan, Kamchatka and Micronesia. I can already picture myself standing at the deck rail, gazing at the microdots of Oceania.
Many wines from Bordeaux’s 2011 vintage are now being released, and most critics agree that it was a mixed year for reds. But the whites from Pessac-Léognan and Graves fared much better, and for Sauternes, it proved to be a stellar vintage. I recently sampled a number of Sauternes from 2011, and the best dazzled with their pristine clarity and balance, the acids and minerals ringing like bells amid the sumptuous, honeyed fruit. The Château Bastor-Lamontagne alone got me dreaming of southwest France.
Recently, the Asian luxury hotel brands have taken Europe by storm, severely discomfiting the existing hierarchy. In Paris, Mandarin Oriental opened on the Rue Saint-Honoré, while Shangri-La (with its superb L’Abeille restaurant) debuted on the Avenue d’Iéna. Now it is the turn of Peninsula, whose property on the Avenue Kléber, steps from the Arc de Triomphe, will be unveiled August 1. Fall trips to Paris are seldom hard to justify, so as the plane trees begin to yellow on the Champs-Elysées, I have a hunch that I’ll find myself en route to the City of Light.
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