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Our blog is set up to give you latest news about wine offers, the wine world and industry developments as well as Wines Direct.

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Latest From Our Wine Blog
Chapoutier Wines
Chapoutier is a long-established Rhone Valley wine producer with roots going back to 1808, where it was first established as 'Calvet et Compagnie'. In 1883 it was bought by Rodolphe Delepine, and Marius Chapoutier joined the venture in 1897, where it became known as 'Delepine et Chapoutier'. Delepine retired in 1922 and Chapoutier took the reigns, creating a new winery at the foot of the famous Hermitage hill. Since then it has remained in family hands, with Michel Chapoutier at the helm who has…
Latest From Our Wine Blog
Recently, I had the good fortune to taste a case of wines made by the Laithwaites Vineyard Partners thanks to their generosity and, frankly, well-warranted desire to show off how good their partners are. Their direct relationship with these winemakers makes all the difference and has allowed Laithwaites to create phenomenal, exclusive wines that you can help support too. The Laithwaites Wine Club is your opportunity to try popular parcels from their Vineyard partners. Simply use our exclusive…
Latest From Our Wine Blog
What ever happened to Cava?
Do you remember when Cava was all the rage? The heady years before the public got a sweet tooth for cheaper, albeit less impressive Prosecco. Well, the days when it was top of the charts for bargain sparkling are long over – sales have in fact really plateaued since 2010. If you do a bit of digging beyond the few big brand labels out there (Freixenet I’m looking at you), you can get stuff that beats out the Prosecco by miles and is a much closer alternative to Champagne’s taste. But how did we…
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Sustainability focus: Naked Wines
As we are all aware, sustainability is one issue that will simply not go away. The first things that come to mind when you think sustainable range from reusing pots, recycling plastic and cutting down on car journeys, but the wine world actually plays quite a role itself. Not just in leading the way in logistics and distribution sustainability, but also farming techniques helping reduce harmful chemicals, wastewater and even using drones. Check out my article on sustainability in Bordeaux for…
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Jim Barry – An Aussie icon
When you hear about Australian wines there are a few names that should come to mind: Penfolds, Yellow Tail, Wolf Blass, Peter Lehmann and Jim Barry. Jim Barry helped shape the world-famous Clare Valley as a Riesling powerhouse and one of Australia’s greatest wine regions. He was in fact the first qualified winemaker to work in the entire region, taking a job as winemaker and chemist at Clarevale Cooperative soon after graduating in 1946. It wasn’t until 1959 that Jim and his wife bought their…
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Apothic – Wines with history
As a Classicist and wine aficionado, this brand appeals for two reasons. Firstly, the Classicist in me likes the name for its Greek origin (Everywhere I saw seems to think it's Latin, which isn't wrong, but go back further). "Apothece", meaning warehouse, harks to the origin and rustic nature of winemaking. Picture barrels upon barrels in large, dark storehouses where early winemakers began tinkering with blends and maturation. It’s also linked to apothecaries, again evoking this image of…
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Weddings & Wine: The Key Events
These days, much like everything, weddings have a habit of racking up a nasty bill. Many will be wondering how you can keep wedding costs down, but, the simple truth is that it can be tricky, particularly where food and drink are concerned. I’ve spent a bit of time discussing and leading wine tastings during my days at Majestic Wine so have a good idea of how to manage wine choices, food pairings and head count to bottle ratios on a budget (half a bottle per person is about right). Not to…
Latest From Our Wine Blog
Riding around the Hunter Valley
Keen Aussie wine drinkers might know a thing or two about (*Australian outback accent*) “The Hunter”. By which I of course mean the Hunter Valley! Just over a year ago to date I was out in Sydney, and being a wine man if I do say so myself, felt it was the ideal opportunity to go and visit one of Australia’s most renowned regions. It helped it was also the closest region of any note. The Hunter lies just North of Sydney and is Australia’s oldest wine region. It accounts for something like only…
Latest From Our Wine Blog
Grapes and libations: Bacchus
Bacchus is perhaps one of the best named grapes out there. An homage to the Greek god of wine and, for some I'm sure, the Bacchanal excess that goes with it! Although perhaps not to the same extent as some of the more lurid tales of the Greeks. Bacchus is in fact a feat of human engineering, a crossing between Muller-Thurgau and a Silvaner-Riesling crossing. These are all German wine mainstays in the grape world and explains why Bacchus has proved so effective in the UK. Our climate is not…
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Greasy Fingers - The Ultimate Food pairing
When you hear someone talk knowingly about wine, the declaration of what fine food to pair it with is never far from their lips. Enter Greasy Fingers, the brand designed to remove the pomp of wine and food matching and admit that pairing wine with burgers, pizza or any kind of takeaway is what you actually want. Sometimes something greasy is hard to resist, and you should treat yourself to a wine that deserves it too. It is true that an aged Rioja or Montrachet probably wouldn’t pair so well…
Latest From Our Wine Blog
Sustainability focus: Bordeaux
This blog might well be for the real enthusiasts as it is based off my research essay I submitted for my Diploma qualification recently. So, all I have to say is, good luck! But, in all truth, this topic is very prevalent in the wine world and gives a real insight into changing vineyard and winemaking practices. Environmental impacts are fast becoming a key concern for consumer and producer alike as the effects of climate change have increased over the past few decades, if you couldn’t tell (how…
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Balfour – An English Wine Leader
Balfour plantings began in 2002 on the Hush Heath Estate and within a few years had picked up their first award for the 2004 Vintage Balfour Brut Rosé. This was produced in just 10,000 bottles but had given Balfour all the prestige it needed to become what it is today. Not only did it strike gold at the International Wine Challenge, but it was also the first English Sparkling to be served on British Airways First Class and the only English Wine at the London Olympics 2012. As you can see it’s…
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