A wine from one of France's classic areas this week. It has a straw yellow colour and a bouquet of citrus fruit and peaches. On the palate there's a minerally background to the fruit and a definite oaky taste. It's 12 alcohol,perfectly balanced with
A new world merlot/ cabernet blend this week with a deep garnet red colour and a bouquet of red berry fruit particularly blackcurrants. On the palate it's fruity with good acidity and the oaky background integrates well. The alcohol content is 13%,
Los cardos means the thistle a flower known in Argentina for its intense and vivid colour, a fitting name for this week's wine. There are aromas of grapefruit and limes and a taste which also includes green apples and passion fruit plus a slightly mineral
A FORTIFIED wine this week - sherry at a bargain price. It's dark brown in colour with a raisiny bouquet. There's a nutty taste of almonds and dried fruit. This is a rich dry sherry, two on the sweetness scale. At 18 per cent alcohol it's full-bodied
A CHILEAN wine this week which has a deep ruby red colour and a bouquet of cassis fruit. On the palate it's mostly blackcurrant and blackberry. It's been made for young drinking so there's no evidence of oak ageing. It's medium-bodied with 131/2
A CLASSIC old world wine this week showing a light lemon yellow colour with a bouquet that, although not pronounced, is a little floral in nature. There's a slightly oaky background to the ripe rounded fruit flavours on the palate. It's 13 per cent alcohol
THIS Spanish wine has a lemon colour with a bouquet which is quite scented and floral. It has a pleasant taste of tropical fruit. At 13-and-a-half per cent, it's a full-bodied wine with crisp acidity and no sign of oak, although there is an underlying
THIS week's wine has a light golden colour and a pronounced perfumed bouquet of ripe fruit and flowers. On the palate there's a generous feel and tincture coming from the semillon, a flavour of lemon/peach and a note of honey in the background from the
THIS week's wine is a prize winner and a fine expression of the merlot grape. It's a deep ruby-red colour with a bouquet of ripe red berry fruit. It tastes of blackberries and blackcurrants and at 14 per cent alcohol is a really full-bodied wine. It has
Harry Clarke, probably the most prolific goals to games scorer in Darlington FC's history, celebrated his 85th birthday yesterday with a first visit to the echoing new stadium. His other claims to fame include a distinguished career with Durham County
ALAN Kernaghan, a Yorkshireman who gave stalwart service to Middlesbrough and won 26 caps for the Republic of Ireland, is these days manager of Dundee. Gretna, Northern League members until 1992 and now financed and inspired by Sunderland-born former
Former North-East boxing champion Gary Hodgson married Karen Seedhouse in Spennymoor on Saturday. The bride looked delightful, the gentlemen of the party looked (as someone observed) as if they'd escaped from Doggart's window. Gary's father is,
AFTER launching his own successful Army career, a young soldier has returned to his Durham recruitment office to help persuade others to join the service. Former New College student, Trooper Andrew Bowden, has spent several days at the Durham Army Office
PUPILS in Darlington have persuaded one of the nation's leading youth experts to visit their school. Students from Longfield School approached the Children's Commissioner, Professor Al Aynsley-Green, at a conference at The Sage, in Gateshead. School council
A PHOTOGRAPHIC exhibition inspired by French wine-making has opened in Darlington. In Vino Veritas, which means in wine we trust, by Lucy Carolan, opened last night at the Decisive Moment Gallery, in the Blanche Pease Annexe, in Vane Terrace. The exhibition
BISHOP Auckland MP Helen Goodman has spoken up for the region's manufacturing businesses and workforce in a Commons debate on the Budget. Ms Goodman said she believes the Government needs to invest in the skills of local people, free businesses from red
FROM the moment that Middlesbrough were drawn in the Swiss city of Basle earlier this month, it became clear that something strange was going on. Fans attempting to book hotel rooms for the first leg of the UEFA Cup quarter-final tie were met with a succession
THE Government last night gave its full backing to a major new port complex in the south of England, giving another blow to North-East job hopes. Despite overwhelming opposition from residents and environmental campaigners, the Office for the Deputy Prime
THERE has been a run on stalls for this summer's Guisborough town fair. Almost half of the display spaces have been taken up and organisers of the June event believe demand will exceed supply within weeks. Now in its third year, the fair provides free
A POLICE officer is to appear in court next week for alleged sexual contact with a girl during an arranged liaison in the North-East. Christopher Billinge, a 25-year-old constable with the Lancashire force, is alleged to have taken part in sexual activity
A CORONER yesterday said he hoped the tragic death of Toni Hannant on a railway line would be the last of its kind he would have to deal with - but added: "I very much suspect it will not be." Andrew Tweddle was speaking after instructing a jury to rule
A GROUP that organises leisure activities for young people with learning disabilities had been awarded a grant of more than £43,000. The money from the Northern Rock Foundation will help Durham Area Disability Leisure Group operate for the next three
A MOTHER'S Day picture competition proved a big hit with youngsters in the Durham area. Pupils were invited by the Prince Bishops Shopping Centre to draw pictures of their mother for its annual Put Mum in the Picture competition that marks Mother's Day
A BISHOP Auckland school has celebrated an £8m redevelopment which has transformed its outdated 1960s building into a 21st Century learning centre. Parents of the 1,200 pupils at St John's Roman Catholic Comprehensive School and Sixth Form Centre joined
A DASH for cash is being organised to raise funds for a charity working with problem youngsters. The police, probation service and local education authorities referred almost 200 young people, aged from 13 to 25, to the charity Fairbridge Teesside, in
TWO friends who had never before been in trouble went on a shoplifting spree after watching a documentary about which stores were the easiest to steal from. Michaela Duncan, 39, and Christine Harding, 41, were caught with more than £1,200 worth of clothes
MANY of the region's upland farmers face ruin because of long delays in handing out the new Single Farm Payment. Many have had no payment under the support schemes since October 2004, and hopes of payment by the end of this month have long faded. Some
Teenage sensation Michelle Wie will not be taking up the opportunity to try to qualify for this year's Open Championship at Royal Liverpool. It was last October that the event's organisers, the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, changed the
A FRESH inquiry into the death of a North-East Army recruit at Deepcut barracks concluded he almost certainly shot himself because of his "morbid state of mind". The report by Nicholas Blake QC concluded on the balance of probabilities that three of the
THE man responsible for one of the region's worst animal cruelty cases was yesterday jailed for six months and banned from keeping animals for life. Lee Howard was sentenced to custody for four charges of animal cruelty and neglect relating to the deaths
WOMEN are being urged to get fit while having fun by joining this year's Race for Life. The 5km event is held at venues throughout the region, and organisers are hoping this year will be another record-breaker. Last year, 13,854 women took part in five
Eating With Cilla Black (BBC2) Alive: Back To The Andes (five) WHEN Cilla Black had a number one hit with Anyone Who Had A Heart, little did we know she was singing about one of her favourite foods. Growing up in Liverpool during rationing, her mother
FOR Bruce Ross, using the Internet was something he discovered late in life, but he found he was a dab hand at it. Mr Ross's website, for Darlington and Spennymoor Budgerigar Society, has been named Pick of the Month for March by The Northern Echo's web
BUNGLING highways chiefs have apologised after wrongly diverting traffic from a busy dual carriageway through a town's high street. The Highways Agency had to quickly remove the signs from the A1 at Scotch Corner last Friday after complaints about congestion
TWO teenagers are facing lengthy prison sentences after today admitting putting a frail pensioner through a terrifying rape ordeal in her home. David Humphrey, of Deepdale Avenue, Middlesbrough, and Lee Beazley, of Dalcross Court, Hemlington, will be
A CARE worker has been jailed for four years for having sex with a 14-year-old disabled girl he was supposed to be looking after. Jamie Craggs, 23, was told he had abused the trust placed in him when he worked at the North-East residential home. At Teesside
ALAN Milburn has made a surprise attack on Chancellor Gordon Brown's flagship policy for helping the worst-off - warning that it risked creating a new poverty trap. The Darlington MP and former Cabinet minister said the tax credits system, which boosts
COLD weather kept customers away from the shops this month, leading to a fall in sales. The retail sales survey from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) improved to -16 points in March from -18 in February. "The colder weather during March has
FILM makers are being given a chance to promote their work at the world's most prestigious film festival. UK Trade & Investment has joined forces with Northern Film and Media to organise a visit to the 59th Cannes Film Festival in May. Jeff Sanders
SENIOR executives from the company that owns a Teesside chemical complex visited the region to view progress on a £60m renewable energy development. Tang Kin Fei, president and chief executive of SembCorp Industries, the Singapore parent company of Teesside-based
They've been described as 'self indulgent do-gooders'. But as one member of Norman Kember's peacemaking organisation tells Lindsay Jennings, the risk of death is an small price to pay for peace. IN THE somewhat clinical surroundings of Heathrow Airport's
TWO Darlington schools were last night named as among the worst performing in England. Eastbourne Comprehensive and Haughton Community School both appeared on a list of the bottom five per cent of schools in England, as the Government published its league
A DARLINGTON soldier has returned from a freezing exercise more than 100 miles in to the Arctic circle. Gunner Steven Hughes, along with 300 men from the 29 Commando Regiment of the Royal Artillery, endured temperatures down to minus 26 Centigrade in
A SIX-YEAR partnership between arts and businesses in Darlington has helped to invest more than £900,000 into projects in the two sectors. The Sponsors Club for Arts and Business has celebrated the success at an awards ceremony for its New Partners Scheme
DEVELOPERS hoping to build 36 apartments on waste ground in Darlington town centre are to meet local residents to discuss the plans. Representatives of Durham-based Dunelm Castle Homes will hold a consultation session about proposals to build the development
TWO grateful elderly patients of Kirkbymoorside's medical practice are to repay the kindness they were given by staging a fundraising event to buy equipment for the surgery. Gwen Holmes and Mary Sellars, who live in Marton, are holding a coffee and tea
A PLANNING committee is being advised not to oppose proposals to create a controversial wind farm. Npower Renewables wants to install six 100-metre high electricity-generating turbines at Shotleyfield, in Northumberland, just over the border from Shotley
POLICE are appealing for witnesses to an accident in Trimdon Village which left a man injured. At about 5.35pm on Monday, a metallic blue saloon car was travelling out of the village towards Hurworth Burn when it was in collision with a Vauxhall Combi
RESIDENTS of two villages and the farming area in between are being asked to give their ideas on what is needed to enhance their lives. A survey is to be carried out by the parish council which covers Middleton-in-Teesdale and Newbiggin, near Barnard
A GOVERNMENT watchdog has issued a stinging criticism of a North-East council over the way it investigates benefit fraud. A report published by the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate yesterday highlighted a series of failings exposed during a six-week investigation
A RUN on stalls at this summer's Guisborough annual town fair has started. Almost half the display spaces have been taken up and organisers of the June event are confident demand will exceed supply within weeks. Now in its third year, the town fair provides
A DARLINGTON soldier has returned from a freezing exercise more than 100 miles in to the Arctic circle. Gunner Steven Hughes, along with 300 men from the 29 Commando Regiment of the Royal Artillery, endured temperatures down to minus 26 Centigrade in
GARDENERS who once faced being turfed off their allotments are now running courses to find the next generation of growers. Users of Preston Lane allotments, in Eaglescliffe, spent years fighting Stockton Borough Council to stay put and run their own plots
HIGH-FLYING lifesavers have taken on a new weapon to improve the care of heart-attack patients. Paramedics with the Yorkshire Air Ambulance are now trained to use drugs that can dissolve a clot in a blocked artery if applied quickly enough, and improve
EMPLOYERS across Teesside are being encouraged to give offenders the chance to prove themselves in the workplace. The initiative will be launched today during a conference organised by the National Probation Service Teesside to convince companies of the
AN agreement has been signed to establish a Neighbourhood Regeneration Partnership (NRP) for a north Durham community. It will play a crucial role in driving forward the regeneration of Pelton Fell village, near Chester-le-Street. Chester-le-Street District
DURHAM University opened its laboratory yesterday to almost 1,000 young scientists. Pupils from secondary schools across the region attended the annual Durham Science Festival to get a taste of what it would be like to have a career in the world of engineers
A NEW fundraising boss has been appointed to help a hospice. Jenny Green has taken up the job of director of funding at St Catherine's Hospice, in Scarborough, following the retirement of Mandy Mellers after 20 years in the post. Ms Green, 30, will be
ORGANISERS of an annual North Yorkshire festival have appealed for people to get involved. Plans for Richmond Meet, from May 26 to 29, are well under way. The festival starts with the president's dinner at the Kings Head Hotel on the Friday. Cycle rides
A BUSINESSMAN has been left heartbroken after his shop was looted by thieves who stole more than £15,000 worth of stock. D&M hardware store was raided at the weekend, sometime between 5pm on Friday and 8.45am on Monday. The burglars forced their way
A BRIGHT-EYED and bushy-tailed friend has been giving hundreds of children tips on road safety. Safety Squirrel has been heading up the Middlesbrough Council road safety team mission to tell children how to take care when crossing roads. The squad is
A SELL-OUT concert given by a military band in Northallerton has raised more than £2,000 for charity. The concert, at Hambleton Forum, by the Band of the Royal Air Force Regiment, was jointly organised by RAF Leeming and Hambleton District Council. It
COUNTY councillors have backed plans for a major reform of the way adult education and youth work is delivered. The council's executive voted unanimously in favour of the proposals, which aim to cut spending on management and administration, and put more
THE crew of an RAF jet saved three people in a crippled civilian aircraft in a nail-biting rescue thousands of feet in the air. A Beechcraft Super King Air 200 lost its management and communication systems as it flew over Scotland on Tuesday - leaving
A HEADTEACHER has hit back at critics who attacked facilities used by the local community at his school. It was claimed earlier this month that a £600,000 dance and drama studio at Richmond School had been built without disabled access. Community leaders
FAIR TRADE: CONSIDERING that Northallerton is now a Fairtrade Town I thought there was a poor show of fairly traded products in the shops during the recent Fairtrade Fortnight. When I spoke to the manager of Tesco, he told me that the displays were not
IN all this fuss about loans for peerages, there's one thing I can't understand. Why should anyone want to be made a peer? Is it because they want to be called Lord (or Lady) so-and-so? Do they like the idea of being addressed like characters in a Shakespeare
Kevin Pietersen yesterday shouldered the blame for England's horrific collapse which swept them to defeat in the opening match of the one-day series with India. England were cruising towards their victory target of 204 on Tuesday at the Feroz Shah Kotla
WHEN Charlie fell and gashed his head, I quickly bundled the boys into the car and rushed to the doctors' surgery. It wasn't until we all trooped in and I heard the familiar "clip-clop, clickety-clack" noise behind me that I realised Roscoe was still
A NORTH-EAST MP was at the centre of a political row last night after he wrote exclusively in The Northern Echo that it might be time for Prime Minister Tony Blair to step aside rapidly. Ashok Kumar was hauled in to explain his article to Chief Whip Hilary
SWITZERLAND might be famed for its neutrality but, with Aiyegbeni Yakubu having described Middlesbrough's strikeforce as the envy of the rest of the Premiership, Steve McClaren's men will travel to Basle this evening with the intention of going on the
TWENTY years after he helped rescue Middlesbrough from oblivion, chairman Steve Gibson is hoping to celebrate the anniversary of the club's rebirth with a unique cup double. Two decades ago, Boro stood on the brink of a financial disaster that would eventually
MIDDLESBROUGH star George Boateng told a court he was driving at 40mph over the speed limit because he was being chased by Arsenal fans and feared for his family's safety. Boateng was fined for speeding after being caught doing 90mph in a 50mph zone behind
SOHO SQUARE (4.45) should appreciate his first try over a mile-and-a-half at Lingfield today. Mark Johnston's raider scored on his only other visit to the course when posting a ten-furlong triumph, a victory made all the more creditable since he swerved
HOUSEBUILDER Barratt Developments warned it was too early to predict a pick-up in the property market, despite posting strong half-year profits. The Newcastle company said there were signs that buyer confidence was on the increase following a lift in
The long-awaited independent report into the deaths at Deepcut concluded yesterday that at least three of the four recruits who died probably killed themselves. It went on tosay that none of the squaddies had been 'bullied to death'. Liz Lamb answers
POLICE evacuated 82 homes in Hartlepool this morning after the discovery of a German grenade in a back garden. Bomb disposal experts were called to Ashgrove Avenue in the town and recovered the weapon, which could date back to the Second World War or
DESPITE the trauma of his previous flirtation with Tottenham Hotspur, perhaps Alan Sugar should turn to football in the search for his next apprentice. The Amstrad chief loves a hard bargain and, at the moment, no-one is bargaining harder than the G14
JUSTIN Hoyte insists he has no regrets about swapping life at the top end of the Premier League table for a struggle at the bottom. Had Hoyte remained at Arsenal, rather than make a move on loan to Sunderland last summer, there was every possibility he
Overshot in the dark, a news item a couple of weeks back told of a crippled light aircraft being guided onto Eshott Airfield in Northumberland by the headlights from the manager's car. As the story took off, so did Ray Sparks' interest. Ray, from Newton
THE Government last night gave its full backing to a major new port complex in the south of England, giving another blow to North-East job hopes. Despite overwhelming opposition from residents and environmental campaigners, the Office for the Deputy Prime
MATTY APPLEBY believes Darlington's strikers must take responsibility for the recent slump, which has all but ended any hopes of securing a play-off place. Appleby feels Quakers would have earned at least a point at Barnet on Saturday, but for some poor
SOHO SQUARE (4.45) should appreciate his first try over a mile-and-a-half at Lingfield today. Mark Johnston's raider scored on his only other visit to the course when posting a ten-furlong triumph, a victory made all the more creditable since he swerved
RESCUERS became the rescued in a dramatic coastal search for a missing man yesterday. The drama unfolded when police officers called on the help of coastguard teams to search for a 59-year-old man, believed to be suicidal, along the North-East coast,
ASHOK Kumar is a diligent and respected MP who works hard on behalf of his North-East constituents. But, in the context of national politics, he is not a household name. It is, therefore, with a degree of surprise that we find an article written by Dr
WOOLWORTHS last night warned of weak consumer spending as it posted a fall in profits of 15 per cent. The retailer said the Christmas spending spree had not continued into the New Year and warned of tough high street conditions ahead. It expected consumer
WHEN Charlie fell and gashed his head, I quickly bundled the boys into the car and rushed to the doctors' surgery. It wasn't until we all trooped in and I heard the familiar "clip-clop, clickety-clack" noise behind me that I realised Roscoe was still
THE recovery of supermarket chain Sainsbury's exceeded expectations yesterday after the group posted its fifth quarter of sales growth in a row. The retailer, buoyed by the success of its Try Something New campaign, had a like-for-like sales rise of 5.3
THE ruling Labour Party on the region's biggest council was rocked last night by two resignations amid a continuing row over care home closures. Councillors Norman Wade and Albert Nugent quit as chairman and secretary, respectively, of Durham County Council's
