Awkward barrel samples. Weary vignerons. Fully booked hotels. Missed tables. The wine traveller’s path is rarely lined with sunshine and perfectly chilled glasses. Which is why Issue 40 of Noble Rot is devoted to good timing—and giving yourself a fighting chance. In The Wine Traveller’s Guide to Getting It Right, Levi Dalton explains when not to visit wine regions, revealing how arriving at the wrong moment can distort your experience of young wines and quietly sabotage tastings before you even realise what’s happening. Along the way, top winemakers, restaurateurs and critics share their favourite local places to eat and drink—essential intelligence for anyone planning a European wine pilgrimage this summer. Elsewhere in Issue 40: Jesse Armstrong, creator of Succession, writes about the cheese sandwich he considers his Greatest Meal. Marina O'Loughlin meets the chefs behind Fallow, who have built one of the UK's most successful hospitality operations—and 1.4 million Instagram followers—from scratch. Dan Keeling attends a tasting of Burgundy's Clos de Tart spanning 136 years (!!!) The Vine Twicher reviews what “may be the greatest-value red appellation in the world”: Langhe Nebbiolo. Simon J Woolf offers survival strategies for the awful wines served on long-haul flights, white. Alice Feiring reveals the lengths she'd go to secure a decent glass in a restaurant cursed with a truly terrible wine list. Plus stories and recipes celebrating Autogrill, breakfast drinking, chocuterie garnie à l'Alsacienne, and how authentic Indian food is finally having its moment in New York City—among much more.