The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

There are some decent wine substitutes out there that are worth trying – but it’s always worth remembering that they aren’t actually ‘wine’ Are you a lover of oaky rioja, or maybe zingy Kiwi sauvignon blanc, and looking to find a non-alcoholic lookalike? To put it bluntly, I’m afraid you’re out of luck.

Alcohol does much more than make you tipsy; it is the magic ingredient that gives so much of wine’s wondrous complexity, character and charm. Not only does it carry volatile compounds that make up wine’s endlessly fascinating combinations of scents and tastes, along with a sensation of warmth, it also creates that viscous body and texture – what’s rather grossly known in the trade as “mouthfeel” – of the liquid in your mouth, and the overall balance of all these factors in the wine.

When the base wine is dealcoholised, however, all that character goes with it.

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

Moreish teatime treats that melt in the mouth… go on, you deserve it If I were to rank my top biscuits of all time, Viennese fingers would sit firmly in my top three. There’s not too much going on: just a good, buttery crumb, melt-in-the-mouth texture and chocolate-dipped ends, which are a must.

While they’re pretty straightforward to make, issues often arise when it’s time to pipe the dough, and it can be tricky to strike a balance between a consistency that has enough butter but still holds its shape once baked. I find that the addition of a little milk helps make it more pipeable, as does using a large, open-star nozzle to avoid cramped hands and burst piping bags.

Continue reading...

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

Pandan leaf brings fragrant southern Asian sweetness to a mix of rice gin, white vermouth and green chartreuse At Bun House Disco , we’re all about bringing the vibrancy of late-night 1980s Hong Kong to Shoreditch, east London, and paying homage to a time when the island came alive after dark. In that same spirit, our cocktail list nods to the classics, but also features all sorts of Chinese and Asian ingredients and spices.

Serves 1 Linus Leung, Bun House Disco , London E2 Continue reading...

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

A warming, scoop-it-up tomato and egg dish a bit like shakshuka, but the zippy lemony yoghurt and harissa give away its Turkish roots I am not the type of person to say, “These eggs will change your life”, but these eggs changed my life, so they may also make a sizeable dent in yours. The recipe is based on (but not authentic to) the Turkish dish menemen .

There is much to love about these eggs, not least how magnificently delicious they are and how fun it is to scoop them up with hot flatbread. On a practical note, meanwhile, they can be eaten at any mealtime and, if not finished, reheated later.

Which, if you love eggs and leftovers as much as I do, is a (small) dream come true. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

A Michelin-adjacent bistro with white tablecloths, red-trousered guests and a chunky wine list In a room packed with fancy types just off Sloane Square in London, I am eating a £52 plate of dover sole and chips while Status Quo’s Rockin’ All Over the World blasts cheerfully through the room. The chips are very nice, all crunchingly crisp and yieldingly fluffy in all the right places.

All 12 of them were perfect, in fact, stood aloft in their silver serving vessel. “A-giddy-up and giddy-up and get awaaaay,” sings Francis Rossi as I perch on a velvet, pale mustard banquette that’s clearly so very expensive that I shudder every time my greasy paws so much as skim close to touching it.

Clare Smyth , of three Michelin-starred Core fame, is letting her hair down with this new project, Corenucopia , where she’s cooking a less pricey, more comfort food-focused menu.

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

Discover the joys of creamy soy bean curd in this spicy Sichuan dish that comes together in minutes Mapo tofu is a Chengdu favourite typical of the “spicy generosity” of Sichuan food, Fuchsia Dunlop explains, though it’s perhaps better not translated as “pock-marked old woman’s tofu”. It may even convert you to the joys of tofu itself, should you still be on the fence about the stuff, because its creamy softness is the perfect foil for the intensely savoury, tingly seasoning involved here.

It’s also ready in mere minutes. Prep 10 min Cook 7 min Serves 2 Continue reading...

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

This week, we got crunching on a batch of widely available granolas, tasting for flavour, ingredient quality and provenance • The best supermarket runny honey Granola is similar to muesli, but baked with a sugar syrup (maple syrup, honey or golden syrup, say). It’s by definition sweet, and I find sugar addictive, so I enjoy it only rarely as a treat.

The best ones come in golden clusters; sweet, but not too sweet (under 10% is low, over 15% high), with a touch of salt and a range of whole grains, dried fruit, nuts and seeds. I also love ones that include toasted coconut, because it adds complexity and flavour at not too much extra cost.

The quality of this test group was pretty high across the board, with nutty bargains, luxuriously indulgent, sugar-packed treats and, to my surprise, some really healthy, low-sugar wholefood options. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

Our reviewer loved this wake-up light more than any other he’s tested – it’s even knocked his previous best sunrise alarm off the top spot • Read the full ranking in our sunrise alarm clock test Since I first tested sunrise alarm clocks last winter, I’ve come to suspect that there’s no such thing as getting up on the wrong side of bed. What we ought to be worried about is waking up on the wrong side of dawn.

During summer (and other times of the year, for late risers), the sunrise begins to rouse us before we wake up. The brain kicks into gear and sends signals to initiate all sorts of bodily processes, from metabolism to hormone release, which helps us to feel ready for the day.

It’s a fundament of our circadian rhythm – and we miss out on it whenever we wake before it gets light. Continue reading...

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

From luxury Simba and Otty mattresses to brilliant budget buys, here’s what we recommend – and how to know if you’ve found a good deal • The best mattresses for back pain • The best mattress toppers, tested A good mattress improves your sleep, say mattress makers – and they would, wouldn’t they? But they’re right.

The older I get, the more I know it. When I was 20, I could sleep anywhere: a friend’s floor, a filthy sofa – even a phone box one night.

These days, I won’t get a single one of 40 winks if I’m not lying on a decent mattress. Comfy but firm, cosy but breathable, and with loads of cool spots for my feet.

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 18, 2026, 5:36 p.m.

Beth’s liberated and open-minded attitude to sex has helped Alex reignite his passion after his former wife came out as a lesbian • How do you do it? Share the story of your sex life, anonymously We’re always letting our hands wander under restaurant tables, or on the escalator in the Tube Continue reading...

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