Xylella Another virulent infection with no cure striking fear across the world: Xylella. Has dessicated 23,000 hectares of olive groves in S. Italy. Now in France, Germany & Spain. R rate of 19. Spread by insects & infected plant imports. 520 UK species at risk, especially olive, coffee plants, lavender, grapevines, cherry, almond, oak. Early…
Category: X
Xenophobe The foreign & strange Covid-19 can turn us into xenophobes. Trade suspended. Borders closed. Families locked inside homes with a red cross daubed on their doors. Theatres & courts shut. Sport stopped. Streets empty. Bubonic plague was deadlier than Covid-19, but mark the parallels between London 1665 and 2020! Stranger danger, but life (and…
XO brandy The finest spirit distilled from grapes, XO Extra Old cognac is aged in oak casks for >6 years; longer than VS and VSOP. 16thC Dutch shipmaster created brandy when he concentrated wine by burning off most of the water to save valuable cargo space (brandwijn = burnt wine). Prices rises likely, as 3 major disasters in…
Merry Christmas! Guess the Word and Contact Us for prizes! Series 16 starts soon….. 1st letter of each post Title (in a Series) spells a business word (spelt correctly, backwards, jumbled up or as an anagram). Previous answers: Series 15 spelt W-E-N (NEW) Series 14 spelt X-A-M-S (XMAS) Series 13 spelt V-E-L-U-A (VALUE) Series 12 spelt T-O-Q-U-E (QUOTE) Series 11…
Xmas Hijacking Christmas for commerce is not new. Christmas itself piggy-backed on earlier midwinter festivals. In 1867, Macy’s in New York stayed open until midnight on Christmas Eve Guessed the Word? Series 14 (1/4) [photo: Pamjpat]