Fellow Wine Lovers,<\/p>\n
Two monsters went to a Halloween party. Suddenly one said to the other, “A lady just rolled her eyes at me. What should I do?” The other monster replied, “Be a gentleman and roll them back to her.”<\/p>\n Do zombies eat popcorn with their fingers? No, they eat their fingers separately.<\/em><\/p>\n They don\u2019t get much better than that, I\u2019m afraid.<\/p>\n In a landscape that used to be dominated by Guy Fawkes Night (who the hell he, say the children in my house) Halloween has now become the major player.<\/p>\n Fireworks night has stood still, become a bit stuck in the Jurassic. It has failed to develop much beyond its \u2018fireworks and hot dogs\u2019 image, especially since the use of sparklers at public events was banned \u2013 a move that has resulted in serious loss of revenue and a noticeable crowd-shift away.<\/p>\n A few years ago the American conglomerate TorT Inc.<\/strong> (trading here as Trick or Treat UK Ltd<\/strong>) strode into the marketplace and through sponsorship, clever brand placement and a heavy reliance on sugar based snacking, developed into one of the biggest and most successful \u2018Cash Allowance from Parents\u2019 Removal specialists (CAPERS<\/strong>). Only Christmas PLC<\/strong>, The Easter Bunny Group<\/strong> and Coca Cola<\/strong> can claim to have better caper returns.<\/p>\n However where does TorT<\/strong> go from here. Yearly it is becoming more professional, there is more money involved now than ever before, the prizes are bigger and the rules are becoming clearer – numbers of players in team, amount of cold parents required to traipse behind, size of bag, pumpkin etiquette. Perhaps in the future we might even see competitive events staged at the old dogtrack?!<\/p>\n Finally, we hear rumours that TorT<\/strong> has been in early negotiations with The Fawkes Foundation<\/strong> proposing the creation of a supersize six day celebration culminating on 5th November with the ultimate goal being to put Christmas out of business altogether.<\/p>\n Now, wouldn\u2019t that be a fun week?<\/p>\n Away from all this though, we have a shop to run. A little while back we were chatting to a nice lady involved with The Sherry Institute. As ever they are trying very hard to get people excited about the wines from Jerez and have asked us to help. What this means is that we have got four sherries open for tasting this weekend and we expect you all to try them!<\/p>\n Bodegas Rey Fernando de Castilla Fino \u2018En Rama\u2019- \u00a39.99 <\/strong><\/p>\n This is raw Fino, no clarification just a very gentle filtering, it has spent 6 years ageing under the flor. Richer and fresher than the Manzanilla with an almost honeyed note to it, Alex suggests \u201cgambas al pil-pil\u201d but then he would, wouldn\u2019t he?<\/p>\n Bodegas Rey Fernando de Castilla Antique Amontillado – \u00a330.99 Oh my! This little number has been ageing in a barrel for 20 years, having started life under flor before additional alcohol added to kill the flor allowing oxidative ageing. Nutty, caramel notes in the nose but the palate is bone dry and deliciously complex. Jam\u00f3n Jam\u00f3n! <\/p>\n Bodegas Rey Fernando de Castilla Antique Palo Cortado – \u00a334.99 A real treat. This rarity starts life as a Fino until the flor goes wrong. Luckily for us, when the flor went wrong here it didn\u2019t turn into sherry vinegar but into this rare beast that has hung out in a barrel for 30 years just becoming awesome. It has a lovely umami character that\u2019d be mighty fine with some Foie Gras. If that\u2019s not your bag, then why not give wild boar a go!<\/p>\n Bodegas Rey Fernando de Castilla Antique Pedro Ximenez – \u00a330.99 When the grapes were on the vine for this Alex hadn\u2019t started shaving! Thirty years in barrels has made this soft, rounded and properly sweet with more sugar than is mentionable in polite company. This is unctuous and delicious and is most often enjoyed with some 70% Green & Blacks. Chocolate dodger Alex loved it with salted almonds, and there has been talk of marinating raisins in it, for a naughty apple strudel!<\/p>\n We\u2019ve got some chocolate, some almonds, some habas fritas too, so we\u2019re proper spoiling you, like \u2013 however if the whole sherry thing doesn\u2019t really float your boat we will also be tasting a few wines on Saturday that we don\u2019t sell yet but are thinking about listing \u2013 all feedback gratefully received!<\/p>\n Wine School<\/strong><\/p>\n A number of you have been asking about the dates for the 2015 wine school. After much consultation with diaries and confirmation of half term dates, we are happy to announce that the 6 week course will start on Wednesday 28th January through to Wednesday 11th March<\/strong> with a week off in the middle (Wednesday 18th February, so if you do go away at half term, you won\u2019t miss out!)<\/p>\n Cost as ever is \u00a3150 per person<\/strong> and spaces are limited. If you would like to find out more do pop in and have a chat!<\/p>\n Upcoming tastings<\/strong><\/p>\n These are pretty much sold out but if you still want to grab a seat at the table we still have good availability on our:<\/p>\n CHRISTMAS WINE & CHEESE TASTING And just a couple of spaces remaining on our last event of the year, which frankly would be worth it just for the Bollinger\u2019s and the Vin de Constance, let alone the excellent wines in the middle: <\/p>\n THE CHRISTMAS COLLECTION \u2013 FABULOUS FESTIVE FINE WINES To finish with a quote from the American comedian Rita Rudner which we feel sums it all up very well:<\/p>\n Halloween was confusing. All my life my parents said, “Never take candy from strangers.” And then they dressed me up and said, “Go beg for it.” I didn\u2019t know what to do! <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Fellow Wine Lovers, Two monsters went to a Halloween party. Suddenly one said to the other, “A lady just rolled her eyes at me. What should I do?” The other monster replied, “Be a gentleman and roll them back to her.” Do zombies eat popcorn with their fingers? No, they eat their fingers separately. 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\nSilver – Sommelier Wine Awards 2014<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nAwarded ‘Master’ title (one of just two) reserved only for outstanding wines with scores of over 95 points – The Drinks Business ‘Fortified Masters’ 2014<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nGold – Sommelier Wine Awards 2014<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nTHURSDAY 20TH NOVEMBER AT 8PM – \u00a320 EACH<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nWEDNESDAY 10TH DECEMBER AT 8PM \u2013 \u00a325 EACH
\n<\/strong>
\nSo give us a call on 020 8944 5224<\/strong> or email us on shop@parkvintners.co.uk and be one of the first to admire Wayne\u2019s new Christmas jumper\u2026<\/p>\n