Fellow Wine Lovers,
Before we get started, an important piece of admin:
Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond our control, next Monday, 11th May, the shop will be closed all day. Hopefully this will not disrupt your week too much and we will be sure to be open as usual Tuesday onwards. Thank you for your understanding.
I wonder, can you remember what you were doing on this day, 100 years ago? I acknowledge that it’s a little while ago and many Hepple & Tonic’s have passed your lips since then, so here’s a few memory joggers: swashbuckling United Artists founder, Douglas Fairbank, was appearing in the premier of the first colour feature film, The Black Pirate; the Belgians amongst you will also recall that Prosper Poullet, your Prime Minister, announced his resignation; meanwhile, the mighty Wigan defeated Warrington 22–10 to win the Northern Rugby Football League championship and, in the midst of all this excitement, somewhere beneath the as yet undiscovered Heathrow flightpath, a truly remarkable event was taking place: a baby David Frederick Attenborough was being born, only the second of three male Attenborough to be born in captivity in this area!
There are many great quotes attributed to the century old Sir but one favourite is:
“Do we really require so many gardening programmes, makeover programmes or celebrity chefs?” – having said this in May 2008, I suspect his mood hasn’t improved.
And one for Wayne: “If I can bicycle, I bicycle.” – chapeau, 100 times over!
Other world news seems to be following its familiar Groundhog Day pattern, so we’ll swerve that as a topic of conversation. The local elections have also taken place but I’m fairly sure there is enough analysis going on already in articles written by people more qualified and more well-paid for their opinions… however, we would like to offer congratulations one of our customers who was successfully elected to the council, drinks all round!
In real sports, the Giro d’Italia starts today and for the first 3 days will be travelling around Bulgaria, of course. In ball sports, Arsenal are in the Champions League Final, Aston Villa are in the Europa League Final and Crystal Palace are in the Conference League Final, which is an extraordinary achievement. Meanwhile, in running sports, over 1.3 million runners applied for the London Marathon Ballot, a new record. If you consider that, in 2014, 169,000 people applied and in 2003, 111,000 people then really it seems we’re turning into a nation of athletes!?
In wine news, we have a new celebrity rosé launch to celebrate… Jessica Ennis-Hill has launched a premium de-alcoholised Provence rosé, weighing in at mid-weight 7% ABV. It’s called Seven Summers, a reference to the alcohol level and also supposedly to the fact that Jess competed in 7 events in the Heptathlon. Feels a bit tenuous, it could just as easily relate to there being 7 days in a week, 7 seas, 7 deadly sins, 7 continents, 7 dwarves, 7 colours in the rainbow, 7 hills of Rome, 7 wonders of the world and Seven Samurai – whatever you fancy, it’s bound to be in a supermarket near you soon but not in Park Vintners, sorry.
Speaking of Rosé, the responsibility for the change to cooler weather can be blamed entirely on us, since one of our shipments of the pink wine landed in the shop this week. We’ve listed two new wines from Château Saint-Pierre in Provence, so hopefully the sun returns soon.
The Saint-Pierre 50 hectare domaine is a family-owned estate near the village of Les Arcs, in the heart of Provence. The château dates back to the 11th century but the current winemaking family, the Dou family, have built a reputation for crafting beautifully precise rosés with a focus on freshness, balance and expression of the Provençal terroir. Key to the excellence of their wines is the respect they have for the land they are cultivating and as a consequence they have transitioned to organic farming, promoting a sustainable and soil-friendly approach with no use of chemical herbicides, carefully managed cover crops and selective harvesting.
Château Saint-Pierre Marie Rosé 2025 – £16.99
Cuvée Marie is named after the family matriarch and is made from a classic blend of Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah, grown on limestone and clay soils that help retain freshness and aromatic lift. Floral and fruity, it’s packed with aromas of white peach, melon and blossom. Quite full in the mouth, with delicate raspberry notes and crisp minerality on the finish.
Château Saint-Pierre Eden Rosé 2025 – £18.99
This one comes in a very distinctive ribbed bottle that certainly looks the part! Pale peach in colour, the nose is perfumed and lively, showing distinctive aromas of marshmallow alongside bright, tangy fruit. The palate is subtle and harmonious, with a clean, fruity attack and a fresh, balanced finish. Fuller bodied and serious than the Marie, this is definitely competition for Château de L’Aumerade!
In fact, we’ll put the Eden on tasting this weekend, so you can see for yourselves and for the red we’ll open the recently returned Bodegas Resalte de Penafiel Lecco Crianza 2021 – £22.99. This disappeared from our shelves almost two years ago when our supplier stopped importing it – so, as you can imagine, we were very excited when it turned up with another of our accounts! Still 100% Tempranillo, still from 30-year-old vines, still aged for 14 months in a mix of 70% French and 30% American oak. A complex and rich wine with a medium body, dark red fruit character, a touch of coffee and touches of spice into the long, lingering finish – welcome back, old friend!
And with that, we’ll leave you, with just one last update: for those who have been asking, the Hochar wine from Château Musar is now back in stock, form an orderly queue!