Something very exciting is on the horizon - an exceptionally rare bottle of whisky being released by The House of Hazelwood. I’ll be publishing more about it soon, but first, I wanted to provide some background to show just how important the Girvan distillery is to the brand. Girvan is not just a grain distillery - it’s the silent powerhouse behind the remarkable whiskies in the House of Hazelwood collection. As you’ll see in my next article, their latest expression reaches deep into Girvan's past and looks far into the future.

The Destination: French Alps

Rather than flying to the Alps for our annual ski trip, my father and I decided to test drive the most recent Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio - with its upgraded 2.9-litre bi-turbo 513bhp V6.

It all started at 10 AM on a Friday morning. The car - our "beautifully bright red beast" for the journey - was delivered, gleaming and rumbling with promise.

As the world awakens with the vibrant hues of spring, so too does the realm of high jewellery. This season, prepare to be mesmerised by a symphony of colours, exquisite craftsmanship, and breathtaking designs from the world's most coveted luxury jewellery houses. From dazzling diamonds to vibrant gemstones, these exceptional pieces are more than just adornments; they are wearable works of art, each telling its own unique story. Let us explore some of the most coveted jewels for Spring 2025.

There are moments in the motoring calendar that feel less like a product launch and more like a change in the weather. Not a dramatic thunderclap, but something more subtle, a shift in the atmosphere that hints at what’s coming. Such was the feeling earlier this week, when Ferrari quietly, but with the kind of quiet only Ferrari can muster, revealed the 296 Speciale.

At her discreet Soho clinic, Advanced Nurse Practitioner Teresa Tan is quietly championing a more regenerative, skin-first approach to ageing. With over a decade of experience spanning dermatology, cardiology, and women’s health, Teresa’s philosophy is rooted in long-term skin vitality rather than short-term smoothing.

“As we age, the skin’s needs become more layered. It’s not just about freezing movement or filling lines - it’s about supporting the skin to function well from within,” she explains.

Halfway inland in the very heart of Italy is the provincial city of Bologna, the capital of Emilia-Romagna region. Here it’s possible to experience the real Italian art of living well. For Bologna is called three things: la Dotta (the Learned), for the oldest university in the Western world founded in 1088, transferred from Ravenna’s ancient school of Roman law; la Grassa (the Fat), considered the home of Italian gastronomy with its cuisine of tortellini, lasagne and tagliatelle al ragù and thirdly la Rossa (the Red), for its exquisite terracotta-tiled roofs.

If you was thinking of going electric ten or even 5 years ago, the EV car market was a bit of a closed shop when it came to options. But that was then and this is now, and the savvy consumer gets a choice of pretty much everything from nippy city superminis to versatile 7-Seat SUVs (and everything in between).

In this roundup, we'll explore some of the standout electric cars making waves this year, as well as a few alternative selections that might not quite live up to the hype. So, let's dive into the electrifying world of 2025's EVs and see which ones spark joy.

There’s a silence in the mountains that feels fuller than anything you’ll find in the city. Not emptier, not lonelier—just fuller. The kind of silence that contains things: possibility, peace, the crunch of snow under your boots, the clink of a glass just before you take a sip. It’s the kind of silence that makes you slow down, look up, and feel like you’re exactly where you’re meant to be. For me, that was drinking a glass of High West whiskey surrounded by the mountains. 

Few distilleries divide opinion quite like Loch Lomond. Often underestimated, sometimes misunderstood, it doesn’t trade on bucolic charm or romantic tales of illicit stills. Instead, it is rooted in industrial ambition and technical ingenuity - qualities that, ironically, have led to some of the most distinct single malts coming out of Scotland today.

Annandale Distillery has a history that stretches back more than a century, marked by ambition, innovation, and revival. Once a vital part of the Scotch whisky industry, it fell silent for decades before its meticulous restoration. I learned about the distillery's revival recently at a wonderful dinner hosted by Professor David Thomson and his wife Teresa at Fortnum & Mason.