The London Lounge

In the USA, I have ordered from plymouthtea.com, and I find their teas to be quite good and reasonably priced. I am a fan of Assam teas, and they have an extensive selection. In the past, I have also order from Old Town Tea & Spice in Alexandria, Virginia, and they have good prices and will ship, th...

The regular Polo Ralph Lauren shoes, "Benchmade in England," are made by Crockett & Jones. It seems that the quality is somewhere between C&J's regular Benchmade line and their Handgrade line, although this is somewhat speculative -- e.g. some of the shoes have a hidden channel on the outsole (akin ...

As an owner of simple styles of both manufacturers (PP and Breguet), I would say that PP is a far better investment. While both of my watches work well, my wife's Breguet has literally spent 1/2 of its life at Breguet being repaired (4 separate visits over 5 years), and I am appalled that Breguet ha...

Guanaco is an expensive and rare fabric -- considerably more expensive than cashmere, but less than Vicuna, as far as I can tell. I have seen Guanaco from Oxxford, one piece (a sample) from Hickey Freeman, and I would assume Brioni and Kiton also use it. I don't know what companies weave the fabric,...

I would suggest you inquire of your shoemaker how much he would like. The answer to this question is not so straightforward, aside from a literal answer determined by the style of the shoe and your shoe size -- the latter you could answer taping over a shoe tree, cutting the resulting 'shell' into t...

The oak-bark solution IS the tanning agent. The word 'tanning' comes from the word tannin, which is contained in oak bark (as well as many other materials, including red wine). Tannins cause the fibers in the hide to inter-lock and to tighten, which is what gives leather its durability, strength, an...

I have never believed the assertions that a Topy would in any way harm a shoe. They are very thin, and I just don't believe that their presence would in any way affect the wear of the shoe (aside, of course, from extending the life of the sole). Remember, for example, that many shoemakers offer diff...

Yes they are still around. They are known as Vestimenta in the USA, perhaps because of the Norman Hilton brand that was well known in the US in the past.

Vestimenta also make the Giorgio Armani Blue and Black label tailored clothing (of course grossly overpriced at full retail).

There is another major factor driving the homogenization of wine around the world: consumers' reliance on the wine ratings of a few wine critics, most notably Robert Parker and, to a lesser degree, the Wine Spectator. If a wine gets a high Parker rating, it is sure to be a best seller and will suppo...

As noted, the term Monopole IS used in Burgundy -- the reason it is rarely seen is that there are relatively few vineyards owned exclusively by one owner, due to the inheritance laws which operate in Burgundy. Some even relatively small vineyards may have literally dozens of owners, some of whom may...

I guess I shall be a bit of an iconoclast here, in that I like Brioni and don't find it ridiculous when taken in the right context. Brioni fits me very well (their standard 40R), and I like the way they feel on my body -- very light on the shoulders, yet well fitting. Of course, Brioni have a partic...

I have several Huntsman RTW that were sold via Barneys and were made by Chester Barrie. I'm not certain that these correspond to those you reference and, unfortunately, C. Barrie I believe has breathed its proverbial last breath, so I'm not certain who is making them for Huntsman today. The garments...

This sounds like the leather that E Green uses for many/most of its shoes, perhaps excepting the black ones -- EG calls it 'crust' leather, as it has been tanned but not dyed, so it is in a crust state -- this is a term used in the leather industry. EG can then apply polish and dyes to yield the exa...

I believe what we are seeing is a consequence of the increasing relative cost of hand-made goods. Unfortunately, the (ever) increasing cost of bespoke is the logical and natural result of the laws of economics (see Baumol's Cost Disease). Because of the increasing prices of bespoke, these goods have...