How can you not love a chef who says one of the reasons they gave up architecture was that they “didn’t like sitting in an office eating sandwiches and drinking coffee at a desk”? Talk about priorities. Because there’ll always be some Gaudí or other designing fabulous apartments, but nothing should stand in the way of a good lunch. Besides, it’s not as if Fergus Henderson – the chef in question, and also this issue’s special guest – hasn’t had a similarly outsized influence on food, restaurants and culture. Whether reintroducing ‘nose-to-tail eating’, influencing fashion, or training a generation of chefs who’ve since gone on to captain their own kitchens – thank goodness that al desko butties got the boot. On the cusp of his 60th birthday, Noble Rot profiles Henderson as you’ve never seen him before.

Also in this issue we…

…teach ex-England super striker, and budding wino, Peter Crouch to spot corked, oxidised, and all-round bogging wines.

…travel to Saint-Emilion and Graves to ask what the future holds for Bordeaux, and profile The World Sommelier Championships, Hokkaido’s emerging winemaking scene, English still wine and the trend for producers’ work becoming more important than appellations’ historic reputations.

Elsewhere, DBC Pierre tells us how he found a real ‘unicorn’ wine, Henry Harris evangelises about his love of tripe, Marina O’Loughlin defines ‘Dadcore’ restaurants, anti- social agony uncle John Niven looks back on a decade and a half touring top European dining rooms, Dan Keeling writes about the alcoholic effects of different styles of wine, and Keira Knightley reviews Madrid’s Sacha.

Noble Rot magazine is the home of exciting wine and food writing. Since 2013 Noble Rot has seen cooks like Angela Hartnett and Yotam Ottolenghi rubbing shoulders with Grayson and Philippa Perry, Kano, Irvine Welsh and The Chemical Brothers, blurring the boundaries between gastronomy and the creative arts. “The Noble Rot guys have the ability to describe wines as if they’re either future friends, or rock-stars coming to blow your mind.” Caitlin Moran