The Weekly Wine

Fellow Wine Lovers,

I need to start thinking about something else because it’s making me angry.  (Wayne, Park Vintners, 29/09/22 – referencing the current political/economic situation)

Alright boss, let’s see if I can distract you…

Did you know that Marc Bolan and Rula Lenska we’re both born on this day in 1947?   And that Max Verstappen is exactly 50 years younger than them?  Or that James Dean died 67 years ago? 

Perhaps most interestingly though, did you know that today is International Blasphemy Day, something I had been sadly ignorant of until now?  The purpose of the day, as stated by the Center for Inquiry, is “to show solidarity with those who challenge oppressive laws and social prohibitions against free expression, to support the right to challenge prevailing religious beliefs without fear of violence, arrest, or persecution.”

They continue: “While many perceive “blasphemy” as offensive, this event is not intended to ridicule and insult others. Rather, it was created as a reaction against those who would seek to take away the right to satirize and criticize a particular set of beliefs given a privileged status over other beliefs. Observing International Blasphemy Rights Day is a way of showing opposition to any resolutions or laws, binding or otherwise, which discourage or inhibit freedom of speech of any kind.  Freedom of expression, including the right to criticize any belief, religious, political, or otherwise, is the only way in which any nation with any modicum of freedom can exist.”

All of which feels very pertinent in a country where the PCSC Act now exists and people are getting their collars felt for shouting things like ‘who elected him?’ as the then Prince Charles was on walkabout a couple of weeks back.

However, I’m not sure thinking about any of this is going to improve Wayne’s mood…

Still, at least he can still nip down the local ‘spooners and get himself a cheap pint to take his mind off things.  Although his choice of venue is about to be restricted, as everyone’s favourite landlord and self-appointed barometer of what’s good and bad in the UK, Tim Martin, chairman of Wetherspoons, has announced 32 of his pubs are up for sale.  Although, actually, it wasn’t Tim who did the announcing, it was someone called Eddie Gershon, a spokesman for the company.  Now this is very strange because usually Tim craves a bit of media attention and limelight but in this instance has avoided it – doesn’t like to deliver the bad news perhaps! 

One of the pubs on the market is The Asparagus, down on Falcon Road in Battersea, near to where the big old Oddbins shop used to be, where Wayne first cut his wine retailing teeth.  Never the nicest pub in the world, everyone who did their first ‘training day’ at the big shop would end up there after work because it was the only pub they had passed on the way down from Clapham Junction… and then they’d leave quickly and leg it up to the Falcon by the station.  More recently, the pavement outside has become an unofficial parking zone for mobility scooters as their owners tank up inside – where will all these chaps go now, we wonder?

So, no ‘spooners for Wayne, he’ll have to do his drinking at home.

To help him along, we’ve had a few deliveries in this week and a couple of old favourites have returned to the shelves.  Perhaps most significantly we see the return of Bollinger Special Cuvée NV at £55 per bottle or excitingly £270 for six (£45 per bottle!).  For the more ambitious amongst you we also have a Jeroboam of the Bollinger NV which looks darned exciting and will cost you a mere £230.  Sticking with bubbles, the temporary hiatus in supply of Domaine Landreau Cremant de Loire Rosé – £16.99 has now been resolved and we have good stocks.

From Domaine Treloar, Ciel Vide – £13.49 and Three Peaks – £14.99 are also back on the shelves, first come first served.

We’ve previously mentioned new products in the pipeline and two of them also turned up this week.  Blantons Single Barrel Gold – £100 is one of the most sought after Bourbons on the market and is a smooth as Porsche salesman’s patter.  Dark fruit and citrus notes, honey and tobacco too with an excellent long finish and a reassuring 51.5% ABV.  Also from America but there the similarities end, we have Orango Tango – £25.99.  We saw this and just had to buy it.  An orange wine, made in Paso Robles in California, from a blend of Falanghina, Arneis and Pinot Grigio, this is a wine with fabulous texture and poise.  Tropical fruits and a little bit of white pepper spice on the finish this is a wine that crosses many culinary borders – as happy with some kimchi as with a lamb tagine! 

“Yes Ralph, the big orange fella run in from the left and he gives him a good old slapping.  Super taste sensation. Smashing drink. Lovely.”  as Ray Wilkins once famously said!

So, I reckon we’ll open the Tango for tasting today and pair it up with a wine that has also been long absent from the shelves Château Vincens Origine 2018 – £17.99.  As you might expect from this neck of the woods, this is a very dark coloured Malbec – fruity, medium bodied with vivacity and freshness – frankly I’m astonished to discover that we have never put this up for tasting!  That changes today….

That’s it from us for now, hopefully this has worked as a distraction for Wayne and indeed you, at least for five minutes.

Now, go and take your meter readings…

Fellow Wine Lovers,

Wow, are we here already, I seem to be a bit discombobulated with the days this week. It feels like Wednesday but seems to be Friday! So, welcome to the weekend folks, if you’re sitting comfortably, then we’ll begin.

It looks like it could be all over for Trumpolina. Much as he might like to run again in 2024 I suspect it’ll be difficult to campaign from Rikers Island. It seems a three year long investigation by the office of New York’s Attorney General has discovered why Trumpolina was so shy in publishing his tax returns. Apparently, years of lying to tax collectors, banks and insurance companies form the basis of the charges levelled against the Don and three of his adult children. I’ll confess to rather enjoying the Attorney General’s line: ‘Less the Art of the Deal more the Art of the Steal’. Let’s not forget about the FBI raid a few weeks ago too, eh? Wasn’t it poor attention to income tax details that did for Al Capone in the end?

Whilst we’re on the subject of the USA it seems we’ve no imminent trade deal, all those apparently non-existent trade negotiations were really non-existent. I suspect it’s probably for the best really, surely it’s better to get your antibiotics in tablet form from the doctor than the chicken in your lunch! Our new PM, Pork Markets, conducted her first interview from the top of the Empire State Building before heading off to decide who was friend or foe at the UN a bit later. Never miss an Insta moment, eh?

On Wednesday, we read an article by the founder of Cuadrilla, a gas exploration company specialising in fracking. In it he stated that fracking in the UK was unlikely to reach any meaningful scale in the near term because the complex geology and the densely populated countryside make it economically unviable. On Thursday, Business Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg formally lifted the ban on drilling for shale gas in England, stating that opposition to fracking was based on ‘hysteria’. Funny, I thought it was the inability to extract it economically; it will be interesting to see who put’s the money in as I think he’s gaslighting us, if I’m honest. As an aside, sunshine and wind are providing energy at round nine times cheaper according to www.carbonbrief.org

We have been abroad in that there big smoke this week: Tuesday found us in Camden chatting with colleagues from around the country and tasting a selection of new wines and vintages; Wednesday found us in the plush surroundings of the RAF club in Piccadilly, a few more wines and lots of paintings of Spitfires. Thursday was more wine, lots of stained glass and a lovely view over the river from Glaziers Hall. We’ve hardly been slumming it I grant you, but we have been working hard to find some new wines for the longer nights that lie ahead. We’ve found a few beauties so do watch this space. I’m sure to be in trouble with the dentist on Monday though!

We’ve been chatting with a few of you about music lately. Spotify has kept us properly on our toes this week,  delivering us Frank Zappa, Paul McCartney and Horace Andy all in the space of just one playlist. We’ve also enjoyed some cracking early 1970’s laid back jazz courtesy of Azymuth radio, the new album by Kokoroko and an early Rory Gallagher album called Deuce.

On the football front, England continue their march towards the World Cup (two months away) with a visit to Milan tonight before returning and hosting Germany on Monday. Given our position in the group I think they might need to step it up a bit. I’m all for peaking come competition time but sitting at the bottom of any table is uncomfortable.

At this point we should probably suggest tasting some wine with you, after all it’s not just about us!

We’re heading for the Kamptal region of Austria to sample Martin & Anna Arndorfer’s Handcrafted Grüner Veltliner 2021 (£16.99) a delicious white lavished with care and attention, unfiltered and in a very tall bottle.

For the red we figured we’d head inland from Alicante (Hi Steve) to Jumilla. We’ll be sampling a drop Sierra De Enmedio Monastrell 2021 (£9.99). It’s from a family winery founded in 1870 and has all the richness of dark fruit you’d expect from this grape variety.

I think that’ll do from us this week, do drop in for a taster.

Fellow Wine Lovers,

We have nothing to report that you don’t already know.

We have a new King, we have a new Prince of Wales and Prince Andrew has two ‘new’ dogs.

As mentioned last week, we have a new PM but there’s not a lot new coming from her and her colleagues currently and we’re not confident of when we will next hear anything at all from our representatives in Westminster. 

We’re sure that this is entirely unrelated to the fact that Parliamentary Summer Recess was from 21^st July until 5^th September.  Oh, and then, 3 days later, Parliament rose in mourning until after the Queen’s funeral.  Oh, and then they are due to go on Conference Recess from 22^nd September until 17^th October (unless Lindsay Hoyle’s suggestions on Thursday are heeded) before they then take the well-earned November Recess from 9^th-14^th November.  So, if nothing changes what this means, by my maths, is that in the 116 days between July and mid-November, our MP’s will have been at their usual place of work for just 25 of them.  5 weeks work out of 16 – thankfully there is nothing terribly pressing for them to deal with right now…

While we’re at it, anyone remember this note being left on desks in April this year:

“Sorry you were out when I visited.  I look forward to seeing you in the office very soon.  With every good wish, Rt Hon Jacob Rees-Mogg MP.”

Back at yer.

Perhaps Jacob, in his new role as Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy could get himself into the office and give us all a clue about what he is doing to ‘ensure that the country has secure energy supplies that are reliable, affordable and clean’  (www.gov.uk/government/ministers/secretary-of-state-for-business-energy-and-industrial-strategy – RESPONSIBILITIES) and also let us know about the 6 month business energy price cap that has been suggested but not satisfactorily expanded upon.

Anyway, let’s move away from Westminster for now.  Very little seems to have happened  in Arthur Road this week, it’s been eerily quiet for large chunks of time and even the return of Wayne with his anecdotes about air travel seem to have done little to lighten the mood.  Everyone is walking around on eggshells, trying to be suitably #respectful whilst at the same time wondering when the world became so judgemental and bossy, perhaps most vividly displayed by the actions of The Sheffield and District Fair Play League – google it.

One thing we have been doing a lot of this week though is wine tasting.  Two supplier tastings, three more next week, and then hopefully a slew of new wines will soon arrive in the shop for autumnal appreciation.  Whilst we wait for these new arrivals, we’ll open a couple of bottles this weekend to allow you to join in the tasting fun:

Follas Novas Albariño 2021 – £14.49

From Val do Salnés, the oldest, coolest and wettest of the five distinct sub-regions of Rías Baixas, yet also the birth place of Albariño sometime before the 12th century.  The vines for this wine are between 20 and 40 years old and vinified in a state of the art winery, completed in 2005.  Fabulously clean and crisp with citrus and floral notes on the nose, tangy stone fruit on the palate and a lovely mineral laden finish.

Di Majo Norante Contado Aglianico Riserva 2015 – £18.69

100% Aglianico, grown in the estate vineyards in Molise.   Aglianico can produce really quite tannic styles of wine that could take up to 10 years to soften out and show their fruit balance.  However, that is certainly not the case here; the winemaker has endeavoured to make an earlier drinking style without losing any of the classic nuances.  Full, intense, dark red fruit characters dominate, some fleshiness and tannin are still evident on the palate but with a softer, velvety background.

So come and join us for a taste and raise a glass again to absent friends.

That’s it for us this week, just worth noting (and I imagine this doesn’t come as much of a surprise) that as we now have a Bank Holiday Monday coming up, we will be CLOSED, opening again on Tuesday as usual – see you then!

Fellow Wine Lovers,

As you can imagine, we’d already penned most of this week’s missive when the news came in last night.  We don’t have any pre-prepared statement for such an event; there are no precedents to go by; we don’t have any protocols in place to mark the passing of a much-loved monarch and as such, are significantly under-prepared – hence we will stick with the potent simplicity of Rest in Peace.

As mentioned, we’d already written most of the email yesterday and, having re-read it, we think it can still be sent out unchanged, however please don’t read on if today you’re not in the mood for our view of the world….

Here’s what we wrote yesterday afternoon:

The week in a nutshell:

Monday – Liz won the leadership race, although perhaps not by the huge margin we had been led to expect, whilst Rishi skedaddled to the backbenches to plot his return to the mainstage.

Tuesday – Boris, ever the narcissist, made up a farewell speech that none of us needed, before he skedaddled to the backbenches to plot his return.  Oh, and Liz became PM.

Wednesday – first proper day in the job for the second Mrs T.  PMQ’s came and went without any long words and the new cabinet was announced – you thought Boris’s last selections were the Dream Team; Liz has just gone further to the right.  Skedaddling to the backbenches and hopefully not plotting a return are Priti, Dominic, Nadine and Grant.  Oh, and Suella becomes Home Secretary – how on earth?

Thursday – fresh from receiving congratulations yesterday from Theresa May on becoming the third female PM, today Liz makes her out to be a liar.  ‘There’s no magic money tree’ is what Theresa famously said in 2017 but, apparently, there is because, despite all the billions spent during the pandemic, the tree still has more than £100 billion left to be scrumped to cover her new energy policy.  Oh, and fracking is back….

Friday – well, one can only assume she will broker peace in Ukraine, sit on inflation, stop the recession and the cost of living crisis by lunchtime, thus giving her enough time to read this email over her egg and cress before settling in for an afternoon watching La Vuelta a España with Wayne.

Meanwhile, moving north from Westminster and up to the Beavertown ‘craft’ brewery in Tottenham, we learn that founder, Logan Plant, has sensibly sold his remaining share of the company to Heineken, just before the costs of brewing go stratospheric.  In 2018 he sold them 49% of the business for £40 million so we can only guess at what he’s been given this time – a lot we imagine and not a bad turn around for a business that was only set up in 2011.

Park Vintners was founded in 2010 and will happily consider offers in excess of £50 million.

However, until someone makes us an offer, it’s business as usual.  Encouraged by the Heineken move, we decided to do some beer buying ourselves but rather than buy a brewery we just bought some cans.  Two new lines appeared this week, guests if you like, we’ll see how you enjoy them:

The Park Brewery Birthday Pale Ale 4.3% – £4.00

What they say: For our eighth birthday celebration we decided to make the style of beer we love, a hazy, session strength pale, tropical and juicy, packed full of some of our favourite hops – Huell Melon, Citra BBC, Simcoe and Cryo Sabro.

The Park Brewery 1637 Pils 4.9% – £3.50

What they say: A deep golden Bohemian-style Pilsner beer. Munich, Pils and Carahell malts provide a smooth and sweet base for the noble spiciness of the Polish Magnum and Lubelski hops.  Lagered for six weeks for a smooth and clean finish.  And the name?  Well, King Charles I enclosed the park in 1637 with an 8 mile perimeter wall forming his own deer park. This wall has helped to preserve the park until the present day.

At this point Wayne usually likes to put in a few pithy one liners about sport, particularly ‘real’ sport AKA cycling.  So, I’ve been revising and have to say that with the sad departure of Roglic on Tuesday the race now looks to be done.  That is unless something remarkable happens on Saturday according to Alberto Contador, who knows a thing or two about remarkable feats having cycled 20 km with a broken shin in the 2014 Tour de France.  In football, I spent all day looking for Arsenal’s Championship League results but couldn’t find them anywhere….  Cricket is wet, as is the Wentworth PGA and the tennis is on Amazon Prime so no one really knows what’s going on there!

I think, poignantly, that this weekend is definitely a ‘raise a glass to absent friends’ weekend – we don’t sell Dubonnet or Krug which were, by all accounts, favoured tipples so let’s focus on the raising of the glass rather than its contents.

Here, we’ll be raising glasses of Wente Morning Fog Chardonnay 2020 – £17.99 and also Chateau La Tour de By 2014 – £27.99

Based in the Livermore Valley in California, Wente’s vineyards were founded in 1883 and are still owned and managed by the same family, 4 generations later.  They were also one of the first to plant Chardonnay and one taste of this suggests they are doing a fine job.  Crisp with fine elegant apple notes and a supporting touch of oak, bang on some grilled lobster! Meanwhile, in Bordeaux the 2014 La Tour de By is a gem.  As Wine Enthusiast wrote:

“The Pagès family, which has a group of estates in the Médoc, has produced a rich, concentrated wine at this château. While packed with black currant fruit from the 60% Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend, it also has a firm layer of tannins that will allow it to age. Drink from 2021.” – 92/100

Sounds good to me.

I’ll leave you now with a quote attributed to the first Mrs T that for some reason feels appropriate: ‘Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren’t’.

Farewell to a class act.

Fellow Wine Lovers,

Welcome back everyone, welcome to September, the 9th month of 2022 and undoubtedly a month filled with potential tumult, but first, a dictionary lesson, courtesy of Bing.com:

TRUSS [trʌs]

 NOUN

• a framework, typically consisting of rafters, posts, and struts, supporting a roof, bridge, or other structure.   Synonyms: support · buttress · joist · brace · prop · strut · stay · stanchion · shore · pier
• a surgical appliance worn to support a hernia, typically a padded belt.  Synonyms:  surgical appliance · support · pad
• a bundle of old hay (56 lb), new hay (60 lb), or straw (36 lb)
• a compact cluster of flowers or fruit growing on one stalk
• a heavy metal ring securing the lower yards to a mast

VERB

• tie up the wings and legs of (a chicken or other bird) before cooking.  Synonyms: tie up · bind · chain up · pinion · fetter · tether · secure · fasten
• dress (someone) in elaborate or uncomfortable clothing
• support (a roof, bridge, or other structure) with a truss or trusses.  Synonyms: prop up · hold up · bolster up · support · brace · buttress · strengthen · fortify · reinforce · underpin · stay · underprop

Plenty of punning fun to be had here over the next few months, I’m sure.

Anyway, back to where we were.  It’s now September, the roads have suddenly filled up again and the tumbleweed that has happily swept up and down Arthur Road for the last six weeks has now re-located to Cornwall for some peace and quiet.  Both Schools and Parliament return on Monday and we shall all wait with bated breath to see how the new Head Girl is going to get on.  To be fair to the Trussock, there are not too many pressing items in her in-tray so she can take her time arranging her Cabinet and redecorating the flat at Number 10 before focusing her attention on opening up new pork markets.

All very exciting whilst also quite terrifying, so let’s move away from politics…

Whilst Wayne has gone off to further his studies of aircraft seat belts and bulkheads, I’m left holding the tiller of the Park Vintners Pedalo – hopefully, I won’t need rescuing in some Flintoff-esque late night escapade but do please check the lake in Wimbledon Park if the shop isn’t open one day.

There is of course, no good reason for the shop not being open, it’s not as if we work terribly extended hours but if there were ever to be a reason, it might result from my recent rediscovery of the joys of a Bloody Mary.

Now, back in the halcyon days, pre children, responsibility and mortgages, a Sunday Bloody Mary or two would be just the ticket after an activity filled Saturday night – vitamin C, spice, and a decent shot of vodka all stirred in together with a celery stick and a splash of Manzanilla sherry on top – was the breakfast of champions and the perfect potion to encourage a snooze in front of the 4pm football with The Sunday Times as a duvet.  However, in more recent years, Sundays have involved too many trips to previously uncharted parts of Surrey to watch disengaged 9 year olds playing rugby in the rain and the comfort of a Bloody Mary became long forgotten.

But that’s all changed now.  That disengaged 9 year old is now 18 and very excited about exploring the world of grown-ups and it was he who re-introduced me to the famous tomato cocktail – and wow, wasn’t it good!  Often, when you go back to something it’s never quite how you remember it and, in truth, this was the same for me.  However, if you go back to something and tweak it a bit, then you’re probably onto something and this is where I finally get to my point – tweak the vodka.  Previously Absolut was perfectly acceptable but now, thanks to the random experiments by Braden at Doghouse Distillery, the only vodka that will do is the Baller Chilli Bacon.

Yep, Chilli Bacon Vodka, who knew this was what the world was missing.  It does make the best Bloody Mary though and I have it open for tasting this weekend (bring your own tomato juice) – it’s £33 a bottle and it might just make you re-consider your Sunday plans…

For Louise, who on Wednesday was very keen to know what wines I would be opening this weekend, I will, as predicted, be opening a white and a red.  Both wines come from the Meerlust Estate in Stellenbosch, South Africa, and neither of them has sat on the tasting counter for a number of years:

Meerlust Chardonnay 2021 – £24.99.  Winemaker Chris Williams has been dialling back the richness of fruit and oak on this over the last four or five vintages, introducing a zippier freshness to it.  The wine is bright and vivacious in the glass, with citrus, pear, lemon cream and oatmeal aromas.  In the mouth we have a medium-bodied citrus character, with some stony minerality and a lovely fresh and lingering finish, with again a hint of that oatmeal character.

Meerlust Red 2019 – £15.99 is a classic Bordeaux style blend of 55% Cabernet Franc, 33% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Sauvignon.  Aromas of cassis and plums drag you into an immediately appealing, medium-bodied red with crushed black fruit, a touch of vanilla spice and soft silky tannins.

I think that’s more than enough from me for now, pop by and say hello if you’re out and about, I’ll be here, hand on the tiller, looking forward to Sunday lunchtime…..

Fellow Wine Lovers,

Now, here’s a question that came to me as I watched the umpteenth flight safety demonstration and we awaited take off – what’s the point of seatbelts on airplanes?  Having been flying for over four decades,  it suddenly struck me that, in all those years, the design of the seatbelt hasn’t changed one jot, which is odd considering all the other innovations that have come and gone.

So, when I got back, I asked Wayne.

He was extremely informative on the matter, with his usual salad of conspiracy theory garnished with a dollop of scepticism.  We agreed that, if one was plummeting towards the ground from 30,000 feet at more than 500 mph, the likelihood of walking away from the debris was pretty low, with or without a seatbelt.  ‘They don’t expect you to survive because if they did, they’d spend a lot more time telling you exactly how get in the brace position’ was his theory, which may or may not reek of conspiracy.  However, the main reason for no change in the belt design is simply down to the fact that there isn’t need for a change.  The current design is cheap, meets all the criteria required to pass safety regulations and is primarily designed to keep us all in one place during turbulence, which is an up/down movement rather than a forward/back movement that would require something more like a car seat belt.  We could tell you more but space sadly doesn’t allow it today but if you are keen to learn, just ask Wayne next time you’re in the shop.

Anyway, having watched the umpteenth flight safety demonstration and fastened my seatbelt unquestioningly, we proceeded northwards and landed at Heathrow at midnight.  For those of you who don’t know this, Heathrow is the principal London hub, the base of our national carrier and by all accounts the second busiest airport in the world.  So it makes sense really that the last Heathrow Express service leaves Terminal 5 at 23.57 and the last tube to Earls Court has left 15 minutes earlier.  Welcome to London everyone, your £100 taxi awaits….

Enough with the questions and enough with the moaning – I’ve had a lovely refreshing break and am now ready for the big push towards Christmas, which as I’m sure you are all aware, is less than four months away.  As you can imagine, given the heat and the fact that I was on holiday, my esteemed colleague decided, having swept the shop a gazillion times and double checked the Open sign was the right way round, that he should go shopping for some Posh Claret for Christmas.  Some of the fruits of his labours are already in the shop and I was delighted to see bottles of Chateau La Serre Saint- Émilion Grand Cru 2005, Chateau Langoa Barton Saint-Julien 2008 and Chateau Du Tertre Margaux 2010 gleaming on the shelves, eager to be opened.

But he’s not just Fine Wine Wayne, he can buy wine at all levels and has also had a bit of a penchant for wines that speak German.  As a consequence we have welcomed two wines from the young chaps at Weingut Hanewald-Schwerdt in the Pfalz region, a region in the west of the country that we have long admired, just above Alsace on the map.  Thomas Hanewald and Stephan Schwerdt are members of ‘Generation Riesling’ a body made up of the best young winemaking talent in Germany – their focus is on dry wines, primarily made from Riesling and Pinot Noir that express their vintage and vineyard.  Of course, being obtuse as we are, the white we chose to list was their Gewürztraminer…

Hanewald-Schwerdt Gewürztraminer 2020 – £13.99

A lovely off-dry, aromatic wine with delicate aromas of mango, lychee and rose.  On the palate the off-dry character comes through with that same tropical fruit in evidence but now with some spice.  There is a warm, rosewood character and importantly some fine acidity on the finish.  Chill it and enjoy it as an easy lunchtime apéritif this weekend – fab with some amuse-bouche veggie samosas!

For the red, we did follow their advice and bought their Pinot Noir…

Hanewald-Schwerdt Spätburgunder 2019 – £15.99

Bright strawberry and cherry notes lead the way with some delicious savoury character and good minerality.  Intense and medium bodied this is designed to be drunk easily (hooray) and can be enjoyed on its own (hooray again) but if you don’t subscribe to the ‘eating is cheating’ mantra, then it would be very happy with some pigeon or duck!

Happily, both wines will be on tasting today and tomorrow, so you can come and see for yourselves.

That is almost it from us this week, save for a small bit of admin – as most of you are away and as it is the late summer bank holiday this weekend we will be closing at 6pm on Saturday 27^th August and will be closed on Monday too, as is the norm for bank hols (the next bank hols being at Christmas, which as you all now know, is less than 4 months away!)

And now I’ll leave you with one last question – what’s the point of wing mirrors on Ubers?  I’ll let you ponder on that….

Fellow Wine Lovers,

As another week rolls past we note the differences. Alex very kindly sent us some rain up from Seville, it appears to have been a bit dusty but we appreciate the thought. It bought a welcome relief to the England cricket team’s steady fall of wickets and gave the concourse at Victoria a timely rinse. Sadly, for the England cricket team Lords is basking in the sunshine as I write this.

The battle to be Boris still has no conclusion, no smoke from the chimney and little in the way of new ideas since we wrote last. Tax Cut Truss has just the spaceman outfit to go before she completes an entire series of Mr Benn. She thinks we’re all lazy shirkers of course, whilst the current ‘Prime Minister’ returns from his second holiday in three weeks obviously too busy to even help his kids down the plane steps.

In the meantime, Rishi Sunak demonstrated he has finally mastered the modern world by successfully using a contactless card to pay in McDonalds. He’s convinced he’s still the man for the job despite Tax Cut Truss leading by 32 points. There are rural hustings today hosted by the National Farmers Union, Tax Cut Truss won’t be appearing despite her love of ‘Pork Markets’ and dislike of Solar Panel fields. Perhaps she’s realised that not protecting animal welfare standards in her trade deals is not such a smart move. Kiwi farmers still can’t believe their luck apparently.

Tory Peer Stuart Rose, a man who has experience of actually running a business, was rather critical this week: “We are sitting here now into the second, third, fourth month into this crisis and we’re still waiting to see what action will be taken … I would like to see us looking after those who need it most. We’ve got to have some action. The captain of the ship is on shore leave, right, nobody’s in charge at the moment.”  You could say he was stating the obvious but perhaps that’s because we absolutely agree with his “you can’t grow your way out of inflation.”

Finnish Prime Minister, Sanna Marin is in a bit of hot water after video footage emerged of her dancing at a party. We wondered if the party was to celebrate German magazine Bild naming her “coolest prime minister in the world”. Her critics claim her exuberant dancing is inappropriate. Talk that Boris, upon reading the story, handed his beer to an aid is as usual, far from the truth.

As the economic climate becomes more difficult, scams, grifts and hoaxes become more prolific and elaborate. In Spain a wine producer has been charged with selling lower quality wine as higher quality Priorat wine in a £22million fraud involving fake Denomination of Origin labels.

 A popular one for us is an unusual phone order of something relatively well known, and the caller is usually in a bit of a hurry. “I’m working away; can I pay over the phone and send my driver in?” We of course suggest the driver brings cash or you take our BACS details and pay directly.  Like you, we also get plenty of undelivered parcel links that we need to click. Like you, we don’t click!

Proper sports are entering the arena again with La Vuelta a España kicking off (rolling out?) today, with a Team Time Trial in Utrecht. The city has famous links with Spain having hosted one of the first international peace negotiations when the Treaty of Utrecht ended the War of the Spanish Succession in 1714.

Back to sport though, all of the teams look strong; Movistar, Lotto Soudal and Israel-Premier Tech are all fighting relegation from World Tour status so they all need to go all out to gain extra points. We have a long list of contenders that should keep us all glued to our screens including Richard Carapaz, Hugh Carthy, Primoz Roglic and of course Alejandro Valverde in his last race. Roglic is the favourite, but for me Carapaz or possibly Jai Hindley could be in the red jumper come the finish in Madrid. Should be a belter!

Whilst we wait for that driver with the cash shall we taste some wine?

White we will investigate Barton Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc 2020 (£13.49). We’ve been dealing with sisters Annie and Suzie for quite a few years and have several of the wines from their estate in Walker Bay. This is a medium-bodied Sauvignon Blanc and not so shouty and in your face as some the New Zealand examples.

On the red front it’d be rude not to slip something Spanish into your glass so we’ll go with Península Vinicultores Vino de Montaña 2018 (£13.69). It’s made from old vine Garnacha, Rufete and Piñuela grapes grown high in the Sierra de Gata in Extremadura. A lovely medium-bodied field blend that we rather enjoyed discovering earlier this year.

With that I think we’re done, but I’ll leave you with a question. If your dancing isn’t exuberant, is it dancing at all?

Fellow Wine Lovers,

The campaign to choose a new leader of the Conservative party is still rolling along, I’m sure we’ve had Italian governments that have lasted less time and choosing a Pope is definitely a faster process. I saw that Lord Cruddas has offered to buy a place on the ballot paper for Boris Johnson, does that sound like democracy in action to you? Seemed like trying to buy a way around the party’s own regulations to me.

As both candidates promise us tax cuts, tearing up EU laws, sending more refugees to Rwanda and increasing defence spending we found ourselves rather disappointed on a number of points.

To start with, neither candidate has promised us free ice cream. Here we are in the middle of a climate crisis, the temperature is over 30˚C and all we can talk about is tax cuts? What about a raspberry mivvi?

We also wondered what had happened to the manifesto the Government was elected upon. This is a contest to become leader of the party that has been in Government for twelve years. Surely if either of the candidates promises are a fundamental change to that 2019 manifesto we should all get to vote?

I think we’d just like somebody up to the job to get it, I’m not sure we will though. John Oxley wrote a good piece in The Spectator on the Conservative crisis if you have a spare 5 minutes.  The Metro splashed the front page today with “PM attends meeting” it was with energy companies about winter pricing. Our concern is appreciated but not to worry, he’ll be able to claim it on expenses.

I’m not sure why, but the Thick of It quote seems to be doing the rounds this week: “So dense the light bends around him”.

I’ve just seen an enterprising chap walking up the Melrose Avenue with an inflated paddling pool over his shoulder. Not sure where the water will be coming from but hey ho, Wimbledon Park in summer eh?

In 2016 Trumpolina said: “You see the mob takes the Fifth. If you’re innocent, why are you taking the Fifth Amendment?” On Wednesday Trumpolina ‘took the Fifth^’ 440 times whilst being questioned by New York’s Attorney General, it seems the only question he was prepared to answer was his name. We’re speaking, of course, about the “greatest witch hunt in the history of our country” or “the business practices of the Trump Organization” depending on who you would choose to believe. I found myself wondering if Trumpolina has ever been to Salem.

I suspect a number of his ‘associates’ on both sides of the pond are getting a little twitchy following the FBI raid on Mar-a-Lago. What did they find in the safe? Nuclear secrets perhaps, a pile of roubles, Stormy Daniels holiday snaps or just a list Twitter passwords?

Before we sent Alex off to rediscover if sherry tastes better in situ than Wimbledon Park we had a meeting with a supplier that had dropped off of the radar. The net result is that both Chateau Vincens Cahors Origine 2018(£17.99) and the Chateau Paraza Minervois 2017 (£15.99, magnums £31) are back in the building. We’ll be able to let you know about the sherry experiment in due course.

This weekend we’ll open a bottle of Cave de Turckheim Edelzwicker (£10.99) from the Alsace, a winning blend of Pinot Blanc, Sylvaner and Riesling that is dry and fresh with some lush green apple fruit and a fab aperitif whilst the coals warm up.

To remind ourselves how delicious a Minervois is, we’ll have a guzzle of the Chateau de Paraza 2017 (£15.99) and now the coals are warm we’ll pop the haloumi and lamb kofte on.

That’s it from us, use sunscreen, drink some water and don’t play with matches.

Fellow Wine Lovers,

We’re now in August, on our own, in our shop.  The whole area is wrapped in a cloak of torpor, tranquillity and peace, almost a permanent state of siesta, whilst the wind is warm and the rosé is cold.  If we’re honest, we’ve worked harder…

The Commonwealth Games has been our saviour though, giving us some structure to our days and, as ever, some glimpses into sports we wouldn’t normally come across and competitors we wouldn’t normally see.  For example, Jim Horton made his international debut at the Games yesterday, representing the Falkland Islands in the Cycling Time Trial going up against the likes of Geraint Thomas and Rohan Dennis.  What makes his story more fun is the fact that, by all accounts, the Falklands only have 35 km of tarmacked roads that he was able to train on until winter hit; he had never competed in a cycle race before yesterday and he is a mere 46 years old – chapeau!  The even better news is he didn’t come last – 46 out of 54 starters and he goes again on Sunday in the Road Race.  On hearing this, another more famous island dweller, Mark ‘Manx Missile’ Cavendish, swiftly withdrew from the Tour of Poland yesterday to focus on Sunday’s race…

Wayne has been somewhat discombobulated of late, as have I, as we edge ever closer to having Liz Truss as our PM.  We could have a rant and a rave about this but frankly don’t’ feel so inclined – it’s such nice weather, none of you are here to listen to us and frankly we blustered on about Trump and Johnson which got us precisely nowhere so won’t be fooled again!

In the world of wine, Wayne has been working wonders this week and has managed to find us a Burgundy deal.  Nowadays, the phrase ‘Burgundy deal’ is not one we often hear  – more usually the conversation revolves around allocations, out of stocks and price rises so I don’t know how he did it, I’ve been advised not to ask but nonetheless, he pulled it off.

Genetie Saint Véran La Rencontre 2019, Burgundy, France

Saint-Véran is an appellation where the best sites are situated on the foothills of two ‘rochers’ that are dominant features of the southern Mâconnais country side – La Roche de Solutré and La Roche de Vergisson.  Here the granitic sub soil has its word to say and lends an elegant flinty edge to some quite tender Chardonnay.  This is a classic of the genre with lovely fresh citrus notes of lemon peel, floral notes with interesting exotic undertones and a touch of weight from the lees ageing…. we reckon some  pan-fried scallops would be a most appropriate accompaniment!

£20.49 per bottle or upgrade to the Wayne Deal – 3 for £50 (limited time offer)

To help you make your mind up we will have this white on tasting over the weekend, alongside which we will open a bottle of Domaine Fournillon Pinot Noir 2018 – £15.99

The vines for this wine are grown on the hill of Epineuil, near Chablis, opposite Tonnerre, with soils of the same Kimmeridgean and limestone mixture as its more famous neighbour.  The fruit aromas are cherry, strawberry and liquorice focused and are followed by a lovely fruit-driven fresh palate with fine tannins and a nice freshness of finish.  We think you get a lot of wine for your buck here, in fact when I first tasted this wine my notes were: ‘soft, nice fruit, a no-brainer’.

Anyway, we’d best be off now, the Rhythmic Gymnastics final starts in a minute and the Athletics is on too, so we need as many screens as we can but just before we go, a word to the wise.  Saucer & Cup are taking a break from Monday 8^th August for a couple of weeks we’re told and Whisk are off for 3 weeks as of tomorrow, back after the Bank Holiday, so if you need quality refreshment, I’m afraid we’re your best bet!!

Over and out.

Fellow Wine Lovers,

I write this assuming that you have now successfully negotiated Dover/ Terminal Two at Heathrow/ the A303/ the M4* (*delete as appropriate) and are firmly ensconced in that cool beach bar/local pub/on a long walk up Helvellyn* (*delete as appropriate).

Just a quick line to keep you up to date on local developments, the cycle lane on Melrose is now nearly finished. Initially they took it out, but they have now put it back and moved the parking closer to the kerb. For cyclists the finish on the edge of the kerb on Arthur Road is a tad uneven if you take a tight line, but given there’s normally something parked there I doubt it will affect many.

Parking has been widely available all week and there has been little traffic despite the installation of a plunge pool and stop go traffic lights on Durnsford Road as well as a train strike. Turnover here at the shop has been a little slow as we’d expect with you all away, but we have managed to submit our VAT return and take in a couple of deliveries.

You may be wondering why this is all written in bold? The truth is we thought it’d be easier to read on the phone in the glare of sunshine that way. For those of you, like me, still at work and reading it there, you can just highlight the text and click on the fat letter B at the top left and it should return to normal.

On the political front, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak continue to take lumps out of each other in the race to be leader of the Conservative Party and successor to Boris Johnson as PM. They both promise to fix all the problems in the world, whilst being apparently ignorant of the fact they’re trying to lead the party that has been in power since 2010.

Meanwhile, with no apparent sense of ludicrousness, Labour have started up their very own brand of infighting, sacking the Shadow Transport Secretary in the process. We really do have a Palace of all the talents at Westminster don’t we?

What a splendid week for Women’s sport with the Lionesses getting through to the Euro final at Wembley on Sunday to face Germany. There have been some fantastic moments, not least the back heel goal from supersub Alessia Russo!

In real sport, the Tour de France Femmes is rolling its way through France. The racing has been rather fab, we’ve had gravel, cobbles and we’ve even seen Obelix cheering on from the side of the road. Jumbo Visma have the yellow jersey on the back of Marianne Vos but the mountains beckon, and Annemiek Van Vleuten seems to be recovering from an early bout of icky tummy.

An honourable mention is surely due to Moeen Ali, with the fastest half century in T20. That’s fifty runs off of sixteen balls, do go seek it out, it’s a real feast for the eyes.

The Commonwealth games start today in Birmingham with 72 teams competing and more medal events for women than men for the first time in a major event. Look out for three on three basketball, track cycling featuring Laura Kenny and a rather in form Geraint Thomas in his Wales shirt.

The Mercury Award Nominations for Best Album were out this week too, it’s a strong list that’s definitely worth lending your ears to so do investigate. I think I’d like Jessie Buckley & Bernard Butler: ‘For All Our Days That Tear the Heart’ or  Little Simz ‘Sometime I Might Be Inrovert’ to win but I suspect it’ll be Sam Fender or Harry Styles.

That just leaves us to talk about the wines. In the white corner we’ll be supping Mas Blanch I Jove Troballa 2020/21 (£17.99) – a great wine, 100% Garnacha Blanca with wild fermentation, aged for four months in concrete eggs.  A rich and fruity wine with a lovely mouthfeel that would be splendid with a rare tuna steak.  The wine is suitable for vegans too, so perhaps a lightly spiced vegetable and coconut curry.

Whilst over in the red corner we’ll go for Monte del Fra Bardolino 2020 (£15.49) – a winning blend of Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara from a lovely family run vineyard in the heart of the Custoza region. Light to medium-bodied with lovely cherry fruit that could even have a light chill if you’re in the mood. Should you be in the area they’re very open to visitors and offer picnics, wine tasting and even yoga!

Lastly, a fond farewell to Bernard Cribbins who gave the Womble’s voice and  told us so many stories.

Cheers!