After a couple days judging at the International Wine Challenge, I wound down by linking up with South Africa’s Two Oceans Wines roving ambassador Liam Kelly, at London’s Frontline Club for journalists. Liam’s is a Cape Town native, about halfway through a year-long backpacking world tour which includes working in the US, teaching in Thailand, and adventure-touring through South America and Europe.
Two Oceans tries to have their Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon wines delivered to various stops along the way. He didn’t have any with him, but after spending an hour over coffee, I am curious to try the wines – probably because we did not really talk about them. All I know is they’re sold in about 50 countries, and they’re made at the point where the Atlantic and the Indian Oceans meet.
Veteran photo-journalist Vaugan Smith created the Frontline Club, some years ago. The ground floor is a lovely, open restaurant with fresh produce brought in from his farm. Upstairs is a haven for journalists, where members can sit and write in the casual coffee/bar area – with some rooms for overnight stays on the next floor up. It’s minutes from Paddington Station.
Frontline also has amazing line-up of events, with people from every corner of the globe coming in to share stories about the truth of political and human rights events unfolding around them.
Later, we went on to two more London clubs, these two more conventional, the type you might read about in literature about London in the last century. We had a drink at the Naval Club, where men sat in the bar in quiet, earnest conversations. Then on to the National Liberal Club, an extremely grand atmosphere where the food tends toward comfort-food (school food, to the Brits).
