Fellow Wine Lovers,
Everyone recovered from the craziness that is April 23rd? I don’t know what those Irish think they’re up to, we’re definitely the ones who know how to throw a party, and how!
First up, I saw at least two cars sporting the St George’s Cross; a couple of scaffolders sang Jerusalem, and then I saw him.
Hair dyed bright red, red and white grease paint on his face, gambolling up and down Arthur Road tilting at invisible dragons with a plastic lance he had brought from home. Three times the police had to remove him from the tube station as he tried to lure the aforementioned dragons from the tunnel with Yorkshire Pudding and Apple Crumble. He was last seen cycling off into the sunset, pannier filled with a takeaway from the local Chinese (Dragon King FYI) muttering loudly about conspiracy theories and the Knights Templar.
So today he has the day off, bless him.
Me, I dressed up like Shakespeare, copied this blog from one Wayne had written earlier, and spent the day talking to a skull – no madness in this King George!
What else has happened this week? Tesco hit the headlines hard, so hard in fact that the news that Sainsbury’s is looking to shed around 800 jobs by stripping out a seam of middle management almost slipped under the radar. And at the start of the week Which? launched something called a ‘super-complaint’ to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), calling for an end to misleading and unclear pricing/sharp practices that serve to create a false illusion of savings. The culprits? Asda, Tesco, Ocado and Waitrose. Trust in the supermarkets must be at an all-time low.
But now it’s Friday and we can think about far more exciting things than supermarkets and Wayne with red hair…
Wine & Cheese Tasting – last two before summer
This is where we get four cheeses in from our chums at Norbiton Fine Cheese, partner them with six wines we think will do the business and then have a round table discussion on the merits of our choices.
We have two more slotted in before the summer Thursday 14th May, and Thursday 11th June. Both start at 8pm, will cost £20 for your place so if you’d like to come along give us a call as soon as possible on 020 8944 5224 to book yourself in.
Think Pink – A tour of Rosé
So there we were, standing in the shop, watching the world go by in the sunshine when before we knew it a plan had formulated for a tasting across a range of Rosé. Some still, some sparkling, and certainly all very tasty.
Thursday 11th July at 8pm and £20 per place, so if you want to feel in the pink give us a call on 020 8944 5224 to book yourself in – we think this will sell out fast!
Wine School
Wednesday 3rd June sees us start the new term for wine school. You’ll be signing up for six Wednesday evenings where you’ll taste 60 wines, get to know your claret from your Beaujolais and possibly even discover a new favourite.
3rd June – 8th July inclusive, cost is £150 per person and we kick off each evening at 8pm.
This will be the last course before summer so if you want to have more of a clue when confronted by the winelist in that lovely bistro in the South of France, now’s your chance!
Fizz-tastic
Last week we mentioned a couple of deals on the old bubbly stuff, both have been going well, so we thought we’d mention them again.
That way you don’t miss out and Alex may get a chance to wear his ‘Salesman of the Month’ tie-pin again. Leveret IQ Brut (£14.99) or 20% off 6 till the end of May. Bollinger Special Cuvée (£45) or £200 for 6 whilst stock last!
Tasting this Weekend
Many of you know (and indeed buy) our monthly mixed cases and we thought we’d show you a couple of the wines in this month’s box. We’ll start off with Vinhos de Altitude Beyra Branco 2013 (£10.99). The previous vintage was winner of the ‘Northern Portuguese White Under £15 Trophy’ and ‘Best in Show Trophy’ at the Decanter World Wine Awards, and we think this one is no less delicious.
In the red corner we’ll have Estate Manolesakis Exis red 2014 (£12.99) from Drama in northern Greece. A blend of Moschomavro and Limnio, it’s a lovely, juicy red that really captivated us when we tasted it.
So swing by for a gargle today or tomorrow – we’re here waiting!
Wayne & Alex