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New Statesman
17 hours ago
- Entertainment
- New Statesman
Rosés to share in the sun, CabFranc on the go, and a Malbec not to be wasted on a stag do
Illustration by Charlotte Trounce I f you walk down Hatton Garden in central London, you will encounter a slew of jewellery shops, a Pret, one Dickensian pub down an alleyway. You might also witness the occasional brawl, the semi-regular police horse appearance, and the offshoots of the hectic food market one road over. If you are lucky you will also spot some bookish types scuttling along the pavement, almost certainly on their way to work in the NS offices. It was a rare treat, in recent weeks, to have some great wine to share with the aforementioned bookish types. First, thank you to the jauntily named Yapp Brothers for sending over six bottles for us to try. In a feat of modesty and temperance, the case sustained the NS for the best part of two weeks. One languid Friday and the atmosphere on Hatton Garden was like a Tennyson play – stifling, on edge, soporific. It felt only right to decant the 2024 house rosé into tumblers and hand them out in the office. It had been chilling since the morning and was a nice colour, not exactly pale but thankfully not lurid Ribena either – a fairly standard Grenache and Merlot blend. Rosé, more than its red and white counterparts, is a context-dependent beast. Just how fish and chips are best enjoyed in view of the sea (rather than under a bridge on the M25, say), rosé should be enjoyed as an aperitif sur la terrasse along the Mediterranean. Well, how about in a fluorescently lit office in Farringdon with an NS associate editor, commissioning editor and business editor? No match for the romance afforded by the vesperal light of the French Riviera… but we thought it worked great: light, unobtrusive, red fruits with an ever-so-barely-there touch of minerality. Keeping rosé on ice on a sunny Friday isn't standard procedure here. But maybe it should be. Later, we found ourselves on the Central Line on our way to east London for drinks in a colleague's garden (how collegiate!). Stuffed in one bag was the Domaine des Oullières 'Harmonie' Blanc 2024, a Provence white enjoyed as we perched on garden furniture in the sun (a fate unfortunately denied to the rosé). This is a Vermentino heavy blend (Sauvignon Blanc makes up the rest). It's good, not particularly light but fragrant and… was that fennel? The real heads will tell you something like this is best served with seafood. I found it just as successful with takeaway pizza. High, low, and all that. Also stowed in our bags was the 2021 Château Fouquet from Saumur, pure Cabernet Franc and – as the merchants recommend – better enjoyed CHARLOTTE TROUNCE with a bit of age. Cab Franc has a tendency towards the vegetal. But no such problems here. Meanwhile, we had packed another NS staffer off to a stag do in Brighton that evening, screw-top Malbec in hand (touch of class…). It came with good reviews, in the only way a Malbec like that can come with good reviews: jammy, uncomplicated, probably good for a stag do. Fast-forward a few days and I received a wonderful text from the arts desk at 7pm on a Tuesday. 'Is there wine here and can we have it,' they wrote to me, before promptly following up with a simple: 'It's urgent.' I have good news for you, arts desk: yes… and yes! They picked out a 2021 Côtes du Rhône and sent me the tasting notes over WhatsApp: peppery, woody, spicy. This is just as you might expect from a wine with this spec. And they told me it was delicious, just as you might expect from a wine with this spec. Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe At some point in 2023 – bear with me – something strange happened: a sweet, pale green leafy vegetable by the name of hispi cabbage took over every menu in town. And almost out of nowhere, hispi was general all over London. I contend that viniculture's hispi counterpart is Picpoul de Pinet: it burst on the scene and asserted itself on the wine lists of London's middlebrow restaurants with great, almost admirable, force. It's ubiquitous: few can explain why. But what I can tell you is that the Picpoul in this case is a very good example of the form: citrussy, saline, easy going. And so, there is the New Statesman's editorial staff's whistlestop tour through this selection. Good for parties in the garden, urgent office emergencies, slow and hot Fridays on Hatton Garden, stag dos in Brighton. I think the word for that is versatile. By Finn McRedmond Take advantage of offers on these wines and more, exclusively available to New Statesman readers, by ordering online today. Related
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Nova Scotia farms were in the red last year — again
Nova Scotia's farming industry hasn't turned a profit in nearly a decade, and last year lost more than $41 million — a reflection of the economic challenges that are concerning industry leaders in the province. The numbers aren't shocking to farmer Amy Hill, whose farm came out of the red in 2024 for the first time in 15 years. "I'm not making a living wage…. My husband has to work off-farm in order for this to work," she said. Hill runs Snowy River Farm, a small operation in Cooks Brook, N.S., with broiler and layer chickens, pigs, a variety of vegetable crops and one beloved cow and its calf. Hill started the farm with her husband, and for many years they were trying to grow the operation. With every major investment — such as new barns and greenhouses — she said there was always hope it would pay off in the future. But they could never make the numbers work. She said the difference last year that allowed for a small profit was a decision to scale back. Her husband restarted an off-farm career as a carpenter in 2023. Hill netted $6,000 in 2024. "It means we grow less for our community, and I'm really disappointed in that," she said. "But if we wanted the farm to survive itself, then we had to make some changes." Farm profits or losses in each province are calculated annually by Statistics Canada. The agency released 2024 figures at the end of May. Nova Scotia is not the only province where farms suffered losses last year, but it is the only province where this has been an ongoing problem for so long. Nova Scotia farms, overall, haven't been profitable since 2016. Alicia King, president of the Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture, said there is no clear answer for why Nova Scotia farms have been consistently struggling, while farms in other parts of Canada have not. "That's one of the questions that we do have, and that we want to dig into a little bit," King said. She said extreme weather and harsh growing seasons in recent years have contributed, although they don't explain the trend completely. King said there is some good news. Nova Scotia farms are growing, in some ways. Statistics Canada figures show farm sales rising over the past five years — a total of 35 per cent from 2020 to 2024. However, that growth has not kept pace with the rising cost of operations. "We are feeling a pressure, there's no question about that," said King. The Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture hosted a meeting last month with leaders from more than a dozen groups representing different types of farming, and a handful of provincial cabinet ministers. King said the economic strain on Nova Scotia farmers was one of the main topics. The others were bringing more local food into the province's new school lunch program and protecting agricultural land, King said. King said the federation is working on a long-term strategy that she hopes will guide farmers into better finances. She said the strategy should be complete in the next year to 18 months. In the meantime, she's encouraging farmers to turn more attention to their bottom lines. "We're business owners and we have to make decisions with that lens all the time," she said. "And sometimes that's a little bit more difficult because … there's a passion to it as well. And sometimes we let our passion override a business decision." Greg Morrow, Nova Scotia's minister of agriculture, declined an interview request. His department sent a statement that acknowledged "some challenging times for farmers." The statement said Nova Scotia is working with federal and provincial colleagues and the industry to find solutions. It pointed to a recent top-up of $7 million to a program that helps fruit and vegetable growers buy season-extending equipment — things such as greenhouses, irrigation, lighting and cold storage. Hill said targeted, temporary-assistance programs can be helpful, but thinks money should go to labour if any level of government subsidizes farming in any way. Hill has two part-time employees this year, whose wages are partially covered through a federal employment program. If she could hire more people, she said, she could grow more food. "We need bodies helping with this production," Hill said. The number of farm workers in Nova Scotia has been shrinking, and the federation projects a shortage of 2,600 farm workers by the end of the decade. MORE TOP STORIES
CBC
19 hours ago
- Business
- CBC
Nova Scotia farms were in the red last year — again
Nova Scotia's farming industry hasn't turned a profit in nearly a decade, and last year lost more than $41 million — a reflection of the economic challenges that are concerning industry leaders in the province. The numbers aren't shocking to farmer Amy Hill, whose farm came out of the red in 2024 for the first time in 15 years. "I'm not making a living wage…. My husband has to work off-farm in order for this to work," she said. Hill runs Snowy River Farm, a small operation in Cooks Brook, N.S., with broiler and layer chickens, pigs, a variety of vegetable crops and one beloved cow and its calf. Hill started the farm with her husband, and for many years they were trying to grow the operation. With every major investment — such as new barns and greenhouses — she said there was always hope it would pay off in the future. But they could never make the numbers work. She said the difference last year that allowed for a small profit was a decision to scale back. Her husband restarted an off-farm career as a carpenter in 2023. Hill netted $6,000 in 2024. "It means we grow less for our community, and I'm really disappointed in that," she said. "But if we wanted the farm to survive itself, then we had to make some changes." Nova Scotia an outlier Farm profits or losses in each province are calculated annually by Statistics Canada. The agency released 2024 figures at the end of May. Nova Scotia is not the only province where farms suffered losses last year, but it is the only province where this has been an ongoing problem for so long. Nova Scotia farms, overall, haven't been profitable since 2016. Alicia King, president of the Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture, said there is no clear answer for why Nova Scotia farms have been consistently struggling, while farms in other parts of Canada have not. "That's one of the questions that we do have, and that we want to dig into a little bit," King said. She said extreme weather and harsh growing seasons in recent years have contributed, although they don't explain the trend completely. King said there is some good news. Nova Scotia farms are growing, in some ways. Statistics Canada figures show farm sales rising over the past five years — a total of 35 per cent from 2020 to 2024. However, that growth has not kept pace with the rising cost of operations. "We are feeling a pressure, there's no question about that," said King. The Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture hosted a meeting last month with leaders from more than a dozen groups representing different types of farming, and a handful of provincial cabinet ministers. King said the economic strain on Nova Scotia farmers was one of the main topics. The others were bringing more local food into the province's new school lunch program and protecting agricultural land, King said. Strategy in the works King said the federation is working on a long-term strategy that she hopes will guide farmers into better finances. She said the strategy should be complete in the next year to 18 months. In the meantime, she's encouraging farmers to turn more attention to their bottom lines. "We're business owners and we have to make decisions with that lens all the time," she said. "And sometimes that's a little bit more difficult because … there's a passion to it as well. And sometimes we let our passion override a business decision." Greg Morrow, Nova Scotia's minister of agriculture, declined an interview request. His department sent a statement that acknowledged "some challenging times for farmers." The statement said Nova Scotia is working with federal and provincial colleagues and the industry to find solutions. It pointed to a recent top-up of $7 million to a program that helps fruit and vegetable growers buy season-extending equipment — things such as greenhouses, irrigation, lighting and cold storage. Hill said targeted, temporary-assistance programs can be helpful, but thinks money should go to labour if any level of government subsidizes farming in any way. Hill has two part-time employees this year, whose wages are partially covered through a federal employment program. If she could hire more people, she said, she could grow more food. "We need bodies helping with this production," Hill said. .
Malaysiakini
a day ago
- Business
- Malaysiakini
Fahmi to sue govt
Good morning. Here's what you should know today. Key Highlights Fahmi to sue govt 37pct of May NS trainees absent Lynas expands to Kelantan Fahmi to sue govt Artist-activist Fahmi Reza will sue the government. This is after Fahmi was barred from leaving the country on Saturday. The prime minister sought answers, and police explained that the artist is not on a travel ban list, just a list of individuals who are under investigation. Top cop Razarudin Husain chalked the travel restriction down to "confusion" at the airport. Fahmi, however, is not satisfied with the explanations, saying they were merely passing blame instead of taking responsibility. HIGHLIGHTS 37pct of May NS trainees absent There were supposed to be 550 trainees partaking in the May-June session of the National Service (NS) 3.0 programme. However, a whopping 37 percent did not report for duty, citing health reasons and job commitments. The Defence Ministry said it will do a probe before resorting to disciplinary action. HIGHLIGHTS Lynas expands to Kelantan Lynas has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Kelantan government. Last week, the Kelantan government asked the state to supply mixed rare earth carbonates as feedstock for Lynas' refinery in Gebeng, Pahang. This could mark the beginning of a shift in the Kelantan government's natural resource extraction policy, from timber to rare earth. This, in a state where ecological shifts have had a major impact on annual floods. HIGHLIGHTS Views that matter In case you missed it Other news that matter
USA Today
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
13 Nintendo GameCube games we want to see on the Switch 2
13 Nintendo GameCube games we want to see on the Switch 2 The Nintendo Switch 2 landed in stores across the world on Thursday, and while millions of gamers are busy playing the new Mario Kart World or upgraded versions of Switch classics like Breath of the Wild, there's something new for fans of retro games as well. New to the Switch 2 is a small library of playable Nintendo GameCube titles, including The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. Adding GameCube games to the Nintendo online library always seemed like a good idea, but it's taken until 2025 for Nintendo to make it happen. While it's unclear how large the Switch 2 GameCube will eventually be - the Nintendo 64 library is still missing quite a few gems - there are plenty of all-time great games from the GameCube era that deserve a wider audience. What GameCube games will be available on Switch 2? The GameCube library launched Thursday with three titles (The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, F-Zero GX and Soul Calibur 2), and Nintendo has already confirmed a few future releases in the GameCube on Switch 2 announce video. Those titles include: Super Mario Strikers Super Mario Sunshine Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness Pokemon Colosseum Luigi's Mansion Chibi-Robo 13 GameCube classics we want to see on Switch 2 Resident Evil: A jaw-dropping graphical showcase back in 2002, Resident Evil perfected the old-style formula the series had before Resident Evil 4 went the more action-oriented route. - Nick Schwartz Sonic Adventure 2: Sonic Adventure 2 is simply one of the greatest games ever. There's no reason not to include this. - Mike Sykes The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess: How Twilight Princess didn't make the jump to the original Switch from the Wii U is beyond me. Nintendo, it's time. Fans have been asking for years. There's no excuse anymore. - Mary Clarke Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader: The reason many people bought a GameCube at launch back in 2001. Zipping down the Death Star trench was an unbelievable experience. - NS Star Fox Assault: It's been too long since we've had a Star Fox game, first of all. Second, the Call of Duty/Fortnite formula could work so well here. It'd be a great opportunity for Nintendo to kickstart one of its old IPs. - MS Star Fox Adventure: Same thing as above, except for we need more adventure games in our lives these days. Star Fox Adventure was vastly underrated. Would love a reboot here. - MS Super Smash Bros. Melee: Who knows how long the wait will be for a Switch 2 version of Smash, especially as the Switch 1's ultimate is still a very popular game. But Melee has stood the test of time, and is beloved by so many that there's still an active competitive fighting game scene around a game released in 2001. - NS Super Monkey Ball 2: Super Monkey Ball minigames were the pinnacle of couch party gaming in 2002, and the series has only gone downhill from here. - NS Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes: You'd be right to associate Metal Gear Solid with the PlayStation far more than with any Nintendo console, but GameCube owners got a special treat in 2004 with this exclusive remake of the classic Metal Gear Solid. Plenty of fans of the franchise never got to experience this game. - NS Viewtiful Joe: I've played a lot of games in my life. Some, I've long forgotten by now. They've faded into the ether of my memory. I'll probably never think of them again. Viewtiful Joe is NOT one of those games. I think about this game a lot. The more I think about it, the more I feel like it was groundbreaking. The art style and animation were replicated for years. This game deserves to be remade. It earned that. - MS NBA Street: Vol. 2: I'll take the entirety of the EA BIG catalogue, thank you very much, but NBA Street was a perfect streetball formula and would be otherworldly if ever re-released with online multiplayer. - NS SSX Tricky: We took for granted all the incredible extreme sports games in the mid-2000s, not knowing we'd be in an interminable drought two decades later. From Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX 2 to Aggressive Inline, there were a lot of GameCube gems in the genre, but SSX Tricky was pure fun in a stylish package. - NS Animal Crossing: Yes, you could just play New Horizons on Switch 2, and yes that's a deeper game with a lot more to do. But the original Animal Crossing has a ton of charm. It'd be a great game to check in on for 15 minutes a day. - NS How can you play GameCube games on Switch 2? If you want access to the GameCube library (as well as some of the other classic console libraries, such as the N64 or Game Boy Advance), you'll need to subscribe to the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion pass, which costs $49.99 per year.
