What I make this with.

Cursor

Primary editor for anything non-trivial. The AI-native workflow has genuinely changed how I write code.

VS Code

Still reaches for it for quick edits, config files, and anything Cursor feels like overkill for.

Android Studio

Mobile development — used for the EduCoach and other Android projects.

Claude / Copilot

AI pair programming — the second author on most of my code.

Git + GitHub

Always. Branch-per-feature, squash on merge.

Azure DevOps

Used in anger at AMCS for CI/CD pipelines.

Cypress + Fiddler

End-to-end test automation against WPF apps.

Windows 11

Primary OS on both machines. No WSL, no Linux dual-boot — just Windows.

Intel Core i7-6700K

4.0 GHz, quad-core Skylake. Still running strong nearly a decade on.

EVGA GTX 1070 SC ACX 3.0

8GB GDDR5. Handles anything I throw at it at 1080p 144Hz.

HyperX Savage DDR4 16 GB

2×8 GB at 2666 MHz CL13. Enough headroom for dev + browser + game simultaneously.

Gigabyte Z170X Gaming 3

Skylake ATX board with solid VRM and the LED strip I regret turning on.

Samsung 850 PRO 512 GB

Boot drive. Fastest consumer SATA SSD of its era — still beating newer SATA drives.

Samsung 950 PRO NVMe 256 GB

M.2 slot for the OS pagefile and swap-heavy workloads.

Corsair H80i GT

120mm AIO liquid cooler keeping the 6700K quiet under load.

Cooler Master V750 Gold

Fully modular 750W 80 Plus Gold PSU. Clean cable runs, five-year warranty.

Zalman Z11 Plus

Mid-tower case. Good airflow, side window, nothing fancy.

ASUS VG248QE

24", 1920×1080, 144 Hz, 1ms. The monitor that made 60Hz feel broken.

HP Laptop 15s (11th Gen)

Intel i5-1135G7, 8 GB RAM, Intel Iris Xe, 256 GB NVMe Samsung. Goes everywhere — lectures, cafe, cellar.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

Main phone. The camera is unreasonably good for photographing wine labels and whiteboards.

Samsung Galaxy Watch 7

Tracks sleep, workouts, and keeps notifications off the phone during service.

Corsair K95 RGB Platinum

Cherry MX Speed switches on aircraft-grade anodised aluminium. Fast actuation for coding sprints, questionable at 2am in a shared house.

Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum

12,000 DPI, 11 programmable buttons, adjustable weights. Configured light for day-to-day, heavy for precise CAD work.

HyperX Cloud II

Red. Closed-back, good isolation — useful when the house is loud or the server room is louder.

Gunnar Vayper Onyx

Amber-tint blue-light glasses. Worn during long sessions — noticeably less eye strain at midnight.

Coravin

When pouring a single glass from a bottle that needs to live another day.

Le Verre de Vin

Vacuum preservation system for open bottles — keeps service wines in shape across multiple nights.

The Durand

Two-piece opener for old corks — the ah-so prong stabilises while the helix pulls. Essential for anything with 20+ years on it.

Riedel decanters

Adare Manor cellar standard.

WSET tasting notes booklet

Carried for grape exams and CMS practice.

PHECC FAR pocket guide

Lifeguard kit essential — fits in the back pocket.

2017 Bodegas Riojanas Gran Reserva

Rioja Gran Reserva in magnum. Extended oak ageing — magnum format means slower evolution, more to look forward to.

1996 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Vintage Brut

Nearly thirty years on the cork. Toasty, oxidative, complex — a benchmark for what aged Champagne becomes.

2014 Bollinger La Grande Année

One of Bollinger's finest vintages in recent memory. Pinot Noir-dominant, structured, built for the long haul.

1999 Kopke Vintage Port

A quarter-century of bottle age. Douro at its richest — dark fruit giving way to dried fig and walnut.

Bushmills 21 Year Old

Triple-distilled Irish single malt finished in Oloroso, Bourbon and Madeira casks. The longest-aged standard expression in the range.

Midleton Very Rare 200th Anniversary 28 Year Old

Special edition single pot still celebrating Midleton Distillery's bicentenary (est. 1825). 28 years old — one of the most significant Irish whiskey releases in memory.

2020 Zantho Eiswein

Austrian Eiswein from Burgenland — grapes harvested frozen, producing intensely concentrated natural sweetness with firm acidity to balance.

Taittinger Rosé NV

Pale salmon, delicate red fruit. Chardonnay-dominant with a proportion of still Pinot Noir vinified as red — lighter and more elegant than most Champagne rosés.

Taittinger Demi-Sec NV

Off-dry Champagne with noticeable dosage. An underrated style — far better with a fruit tart or a soft cheese than a dry Brut would be.

Vecchia Romagna Etichetta Nera

Italy's most iconic brandy, from Emilia-Romagna, aged in Slovenian oak. The Black Label — richer and more structured than the standard range, and thoroughly underrated outside Italy.

Alta Alella Laieta Rosé Gran Reserva Brut Nature

DO Alella, Catalonia. Made from Pansa Rosada, a local pink-skinned grape, with extended lees ageing and zero dosage. Bone dry, complex, and completely under the radar.

Designing Data-Intensive Applications

Kleppmann — the engineering bible.

Wine Folly: The Master Guide

Quick reference when memory fails on regions.

The World Atlas of Wine

Johnson & Robinson — the big one.