Wiltshire Roads, Cold Mornings & Electric Surprises

Images by Hayden Povey

On the whole, cars have an extraordinary habit of encouraging somewhat unrealistic behaviour. The marketeers will almost certainly suggest that ownership could, at any moment, lead to paragliding, wakeboarding or something faintly instructional involving ropes, karabiners and a face mounted GoPro.

Rosé has long since shrugged off its poolside stereotype, and nowhere was that more evident than at a Château d’Esclans lunch at The Fat Badger, Notting Hill — a setting that felt deliberately understated, allowing both food and wine to speak with clarity.

The lineup told a precise story of ambition and evolution: Les Clans 2022, Garrus 2022, and Château d’Esclans 2022 — three expressions that firmly position Provençal rosé in the world of serious, gastronomic wine.

Château d’Esclans: redefining rosé’s ceiling

Some cars reward discretion. Others demand to be seen, preferably somewhere scenic, with good tarmac and an audience that understands what they are looking at. The Porsche Macan 4S Electric falls very firmly into the latter category. It is far too resolved, far too handsome, and frankly far too confident to be hidden away. So a few colleagues and I took it exactly where it belonged, across the Sussex Downs, through the Surrey Hills, and eventually into central London, where elegance is judged ruthlessly and patience is optional.

After months of cold air, central heating and low humidity, winter skin often starts to feel tight, dull and less resilient. Hydration drops, circulation slows, and that fresh summer glow can quietly fade. Winter is the ideal time to optimise the skin, strengthening it from within while sun exposure is low and healing conditions are at their best.

A pine-scented Italian mountain refuge beneath Monte Bianco where folklore, food, skiing, and serious pleasure converge, and where leaving feels faintly disloyal

Courmayeur sits at the foot of Mont Blanc with the quiet confidence of a place that knows exactly who it is. It has no need to shout. Unlike many Alpine resorts engineered for throughput and spectacle, this is a real town with a proper centre, cobbled streets, stone houses, and a rhythm dictated as much by weather and tradition as by ski lifts and restaurant bookings.

Christmas. Snowdonia. Mud. Ice. Mountains. Yr Wyddfa. Logic suggested I should be flinging a rally-spec electric Mustang up the side of Eryri National Park like some sort of eco-conscious mountain goat. Reality, however, intervened. I took the Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally to The Ritz instead. Champagne. White tablecloths. Soft lighting. Our own table, suspiciously close to David and Victoria Beckham.

In the high-octane world of motorcycling, few brands have mastered the art of "the look" quite like Ruroc. Yet, with the Atlas 4.0 Track, the British marque has finally bridged the gap between aesthetic bravado and genuine, podium-ready performance.

Ruroc is a British brand, founded in 2007 and headquartered in Gloucester, England. I’ve been wearing the AT4.0 Track through 2025. It’s designed for the track and road, and mine is in the neon-drenched Nitro colour scheme. 

January is often a month of reset — lighter meals, fewer indulgences and, for many, a pause on alcohol. But Try January doesn’t have to mean missing out altogether. It can also be about being more thoughtful: drinking less, but better. And what better moment to raise a considered glass than Australia Day?

There are destinations we choose, and destinations that choose us. The last time I was in the Maldives was on my honeymoon, just over 25 years ago. I remember two things from that trip. Firstly, we slept for 33 hours straight after we landed (God’s honest truth) and that trip ruined all other holidays for me for the next two decades of my life. The Maldives, with its impossible palette of blues, is a place so ethereal it seems less like a holiday and more like a deliberate seduction.

And also: an eagle ray, but we’ll get to that.