Wine Tasting & Events

We were honoured last week when distinguished Rhône expert, author, journalist and creator of www.drinkrhone.com John Livingstone-Learmonth and his wife Fiona called in at our shop in Mere to pick up some Clape: Cornas (1995 and 1999 as you ask) that we have been holding for them in our customer reserves. Fortunately John had phoned […]

Each May when the majority of our newly-bottled rosé wine range has arrived here in Mere we host a tasting to assess the vintage and compare and contrast offerings from different producers. Our chosen venue for this is Medcalf bar and restaurant in Exmouth Market, London EC1 because its relaxed, urbane atmosphere seems to suit […]

I am delighted to report that the inaugural Natural Wine Fair which we co-hosted with 4 other innovative wine merchants (Les Caves de Pyrène, Aubert & Mascoli, Dynamic Vines and Wine Story, since you ask) in Borough Market from last Sunday until Tuesday was an unreserved, barn-storming success albeit one that was fairly exhausting for […]

Over the last 2 or 3 years, roughly coinciding with the onset of the Global Financial Crisis (which we used to naively call the ‘Credit Crunch’), there has been a growing ground swell of interest in ‘natural’ wines. One might assume that as wine is made from fermented grape juice it essentially a fairly natural […]

(This blog is re-published from the website of our friends Claud The Butler) There is a little corner of Wiltshire that will be forever France... Claud is beside himself with excitement at the prospect of a whole day spent in the Yapp Brother’s yard in Mere alongside his buddy, the Yapp blue Citroen H delivery […]

Being an inveterate fan of Citroën’s marvellous ‘cube utile’, or H-van, as well as a discerning coffee consumer I was chuffed to be invited to the launch of  ‘Claud the Butler’(www.claudthebutler.co.uk) in my home town of Frome last weekend. Claud is the brainchild of Lee and Helen who are the next door neighbours of my […]

The start of our trade event season for 2011 began this week with our hosting a stand at The Specialist Importers Trade Tasting event (SITT) 2011 in Manchester (Monday) and London (Wednesday). We have worked at this event for the past couple of years and watched it grow into an already much talked about interesting […]

It is interesting how authors, actors, artists and musicians can arrive on the scene by breaking barriers and pushing people out of their comfort zone one day and then, in what seems like no time at all, they are perceived as National Treasures who are fondly regarded by one and all. What challenges the established […]

We’ve been hosting Autumn wine tastings for the Oxford and Cambridge colleges for many moons. On my very first venture to Oxford 10 years ago with Robin (Yapp), no sooner had we set up the tasting in preparation for the arrival of the dons than he rushed me off to the Covered Market to seek out […]

There are few wine tasting venues that can match the regal splendour of Vintners’ Hall in the City of London and we are inordinately grateful to the Vintners’ Company for allowing us to visit periodically. Bedecked in oak panelling and dazzling with silverware amassed over 6 centuries this is a great setting for a wine […]