Author Archives: Stuart

    Part One of this series about the roots of my Berlin thriller Hauenstein I described how, aged 24 in the winter of 1984-85 I first encountered Peter Bruegel the Elder’s painting The Triumph of Death (1562) in the … Continue reading →

WARNING:  Below is the terrifying image that drove me to write the Berlin thriller Hauenstein. Do NOT scroll down is you wish to avoid seeing it! Every story has a backstory. Therefore, where a story begins might be considered to … Continue reading →

As I stepped into the elevator and I was surprised when somebody I didn’t know asked me who Hauenstein is. „Tony Hauenstein is very old, but he looks like he’s 45. He lives in Berlin where he’s hiding in plain … Continue reading →

Some strange noises – at first barely audible and impossible to identify – came from behind the heavy curtains. For some time I was frozen to the spot, unsure not only what to do, but if I should do anything. … Continue reading →

There were a number of requests for me to publish the text of my speech at Weingut Flick in Wicker/Rheingau on the occasion of the unveiling of the restored Königin-Victoriaberg monument by Jill Gallard, the British Ambassador to Germany. I … Continue reading →

Today is my 61st birthday and anniversaries are useful moments to look back. Recently I’ve been thinking a lot about the 1921 vintage for German wines, which is celebrating its centenary. It was not only a great vintage, but was … Continue reading →

This is my maternal grandmother Annie Pratt who died ten years ago today on her 101st birthday, and this is one of the last photograph I took of her just a couple of months earlier. She’s sitting in her favourite … Continue reading →

In exactly one month it will be the 45th anniversary of the so-called Judgment of Paris tasting at which a French jury placed red and white wines from Napa Valley/California first ahead of the most famous wines of France. It … Continue reading →

Für den deutschsprachigen Text bitte nach unten scrollen! I went to Gut Hermannsberg (GHB), the ex-State Domain of the Nahe region of Germany, from JamesSuckling.com in March 2019 to be Riesling Ambassador for their 10th anniversary year under the ownership … Continue reading →

Welcome to the deep end of 2020, the shortest and darkest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and the original mid-winter festival. However, for the United Kingdom this is the Darkest Hour in my lifetime, and I am … Continue reading →