From the very first sip, dinner with this issue’s special guest, Ridley Scott, was another trademark Noble Rot interview that ran to more than several glasses and some unearthed little-known insights. Responsible for some of the greatest movies of all time – from Blade Runner and Thelma & Louise to Alien and Gladiator (the latter two of which we pay tribute to with this issue’s special dual covers by Gary Taxoli), Scott is also a wine lover who owns vineyards in Provence, and has a maverick perspective on everything from cooking the perfect scrambled eggs to how AI is changing the world. On the run up to the release of Gladiator II, with many new projects backed up, Noble Rot discovers what drives the 86 year old’s relentless work ethic in ‘Director’s Cup’. And while we’re on the subject of AI, sommeliers may like to hear that they’ve got little to fear from it stealing their jobs – at least if Hannah Crosbie’s conversation with ChatGPT after asking it to mimic a quick-witted Noble Rot Lamb’s Conduit St somm is anything to go by (‘I Drink, Therefore I Am’).

Also in this issue…

…Marina O’Loughlin comes out of the shadows and reveals her identity after years as an anonymous restaurant critic for The Times and The Guardian, and also reviews Bray’s The Waterside Inn.

…we welcome back Britain’s doyenne of home cooking Delia Smith, who tries to choose between a visit to Auberge de la Môle and a Simon Hopkinson truffle extravaganza as her ‘Greatest Meal’.

…our roving wine critic Keira Knightley gives her verdict on another eclectic selection of wines.

…Alice Feiring speaks to The Four Horsemen’s James Murphy and Justin Chearno about a decade of their adored Brooklyn restaurant and wine bar. Tragically, since the interview, the much-loved Justin has passed away and will be hugely missed by everybody who knew him.

Plus: We profile chefs Kwame Onwuachi of New York’s Tatiana and Merlin Labron-Johnson of Somerset’s Osip; Kermit Lynch tells us about an eye-opening encounter in a Paris wine shop; we visit the late, legendary Italian wine and food writer Luigi Veronelli’s mythical Bergamo cellar; and offer stories about Chartreuse, great Languedoc growers, BYO in restaurants, and much more.