Fellow Wine Lovers,
This week we learnt the draw for the 2019 Rugby World Cup. A lovely strong and stable sport, rugby. Looks like a tough pool for England, both Ireland and Scotland were drawn together and seem to think they’ll make it through the pool stage, we think underestimating Japan may well be a folly, ask any South African!
In slightly less strong and stable sports, it looks like Six-Hole golf could be the new thing. The inaugural event at the Centurion Club in Hemel Hempstead last weekend saw pyrotechnics, banging music, and Denmark crowned champions. If there is one takeaway we liked, it was the shot clocks. Nice one Centurion!
In even less strong, and probably need stabil-izers sport, the Giro d’Italia is wending its wonderful way round Italy, hitting the mainland yesterday after a spin round Sardegna and Sicilia.
As usual, it’s having its share of controversies. Stage 4 saw Javier Moreno disqualified for pushing another rider off his bike, and stage 5 saw his team-mate Luka Pibernik celebrate his win by raising his arms in the traditional manner. Sadly, it was a lap early and the stage was won by Fernando Gaviria. A tough couple of days in the saddle for Team Bahrain-Merida.
Electioneering continues with all the usual nonsense and gusto. Many promises that will never be delivered, tax cuts, tax rises, more referendums, less referendums and a million new homes in the next five years. All are strong, stable, fully costed and for the many, not the few, of course!
On the wine front, news reaches us that an Italian fashion entrepreneur has managed to make a leather substitute from grape skin and seed fibres. Full story on Decanter, link below
http://www.decanter.com/wine-news/wine-leather-fashion-milan-368840/
| Wine leather: What you could be wearing next season – Decanter
An Italian entrepreneur has created wine leather by using leftover grape skin fibres and plans to launch his new materials in Milan… |
Park Vintners Wine Club
A number of you have asked lately if we do a regular monthly wine box. Absolutely we do, we have chosen a mixed selection every month since April 2011. In fact, we’ve spent a bit of time just this week knocking on member’s doors, dropping off the latest mix!
Each month we choose a couple of mixed cases at different prices. There is the £60 box and the £100 box. It’s a box of six and generally the mix is 3 red and 3 white but we have been known to put a rosé in, or even a bottle of bubbly. We’ll email you the month’s selection, along with a couple of delivery slot suggestions and you let us know if you’d like to take the box or not. Then we’ll deliver your case with tasting notes. In return for your loyalty we always have greater than 10% discount on the selection.
Simple and straightforward with no bother. We have customers that take 1 of each selection, some take a double box and some alternate backwards and forward between the two.
If you think this sounds like fun then drop us a line and we’ll start emailing you each month with details.
Tasting This Weekend
This week we’re visiting the Loire valley for the white. Not far from the city of Nantes is Domaine des Herbauges. We’ll taste their Moulin d’Argent Chardonnay (£10.99) which is from vines around the lake of Grand-Lieu in Muscadet country. Crisp, dry, and completely done in stainless steel, the wine gets a little lees contact for complexity. It reminded us of a Chablis when we tried it, just without the price tag.
Red wise we’re a long way from home. Wairarapa, at the south end of New Zealand’s North Island is home to Borthwick Vineyards, where Paddy Borthwick makes this delicious Paper Road Pinot Noir 2015 (£15.99). A lovely example of red fruited Pinot Noir, with velvety tannins and just a touch of savoury edge.
That’ll be us then.
Have a great weekend everyone.