Category — Languedoc/Roussillon

Yapp Bros will be holding their pre-Christmas sale on 23 and 24 November 2007 (9.00am-5.00pm) in Mere, Wiltshire (the Old Brewery).
Widely recognised as serious specialists for the wines of the Rhone Valley and the Loire, their French selction also extends to some great bottles from Alsace, Provence, Savoy, Languedoc-Roussillon and Corsica.

Yapp Bros, The Old Brewery, Mere, Wiltshire BA12 6DY

FRIDAY 16 - MONDAY 19 NOVEMBER 2007 - The Annual Salon des Vignerons Independents (indpendent winemakers) holds its annual show in the Grand Palais in Lille. Over 400 winemakers from every corner of France will be offering tastings of their wines with the opportunity to buy at vineyard gate prices. Makes a great weekend in the exciting city of Lille with its medieval centre for shopping, dining and drinking!
See www.frenchduck.co.uk
London - Lille by Eurostar in 100 minutes

H and H Bancroft have updated their website.

A nice clean feel, stylishly laid out. A good search facility and basic wine information that leads on to fuller details. Purchases have to be by the unmixed case though. Registered users get a wish list facility which may be useful for some, or just wishful thinking for others.

“Our wine portfolio at H&H Bancroft changes each year but the ethos behind it remains constant. From the classic regions of France to the furthest stretches of the New World our Buying Director, David Round MW has succeeded in bringing in the well-established names and also the hottest new wineries to ensure that our customers can explore the world of wine with the greatest of ease. If re-assurance were needed that we are working closely with the best growers in the world, we need only look at the awards and critical acclaim that roll in every month as their latest vintages are reviewed.”

The range is strong on France, Italy and Spain. Argentina puts in a good range too but South Africa, New Zealand, Portugal and Chile are rather poorly represented.

Tastes in wine tend to be quite individual, and it is always pleasing to find those wines which stand out from the bland, branded crowd so often presented on supermarket shelves.

Martlet Wines seems to fit the bill , especially as their strap line is “more than just another traditional wine merchant”! They stock some interesting wines such as

DOMAINE DES HUARDS, Cour-Cheverny AC Cuvée Francois 1er 2002, Romorantin £ 8.25 The little known Romorantin grape is now exclusive to Cour-Cheverny. A favourite of Leonardo de Vinci, it produces a very individual wine. Dry with subtle fruits and a slightly “sherried” flavour.

We used to stock this at ALLEZ VINS! and I know we were at that time the only UK importer. It is also one of those wines that you have to discover and import from direct rather than through an agency.

Martlet Wines is internet-based (no shop) and provides a slightly quirky approach to their wine list – so you find wines by style (e.g. red wines are classified Light Fresh, Classical Medium-bodied, Fuller-bodied and Deep and Complex) which may be useful for many – although personally I prefer to search by region or grape variety,

I like the site overall, it feels knowledgeable and friendly, but I have two issues - there is no search facility and you cannot buy online! The essence of Martlet wines seems very much to be personal service and advice – great if you happen to live near Healthfield in Sussex, perhaps less accessible if you don’t.

So good to find another adventurous wine merchant – Martlet Wines also stocks a range of other top notch French wines – such as the wines of Mas de la Serranne in the Languedoc.

Apparently the Martlet is a mythical bird often referred to in heraldry, and is on the coat of arms of the county of Sussex!

They also hold regular tastings in East Sussex - contact them for details - 01435 866419 or E-mail sante@martletwines.eu

For more on Domaine des Huards see http://www.frenchduck.co.uk/huards.html

Sympathies to the guys at Le Bon Vin; this Sheffield based web and premises wine merchant has suffered badly during the recent floods. The warehouse and shop suffered an estimated £250,000 of damage.

Web-sales though have been unaffected.

We have just launched our all new website with new features and even more wines than before. Please take the time to have a look at www.lebonvin.co.uk We have some excellent prices for branded champagne as always and a massive selection of wines that are top quality. As our main business is to the trade we pass on big saving to retail customers who want to buy the wines without the restaurant mark-up. We specialise in French wines but we also have decent offerings from around the world.

They have created a great little website. Fully search-able they have plenty of special offers, pre-mixed cases and a wine range that encompasses the world. Champagne is a big feature with 40 wines listed but Australia, France, Spain and Italy are all well covered.

There is a reliance on stocking the full range from a single estate (New Zealand for example) and a tendency to the lower end of the price scale but you are sure to find plenty of interest. A few spirits - around 110 different products - pop up in the search results to complete the offering.

Le Bon Vin
340 Brightside Lane
Sheffield
S9 2SB

French, Italian and Spanish wines from BRW - with a distinct leaning towards the reds, as the name suggests! But just two estates are listed for Spain and four for Italy. France is obviously where the strengths of this company lie. (Oh, and sneaking in is an “Honorary French - owned by Jonathan Maltus of Château Teyssier”, an Australian wine!)

“We are direct importers of specialist, award-winning red, white and rosé wines from France, Italy and Spain with a reputation as one of the UK’s leading importers of wines from the Rhône Valley.

Looking at France Alsace, Champagne and the Loire all get a look in but it is the wonders of the Rhone that make the biggest splash. Each producer has an entry listing their wines while each specific bottle has a tasting note and recommendations from the Le Guide Hachette des Vins, Parker and other writers.

Plenty of interesting wines, backed up by a knowledgeable and passionate manager.

The Big Red Wine Company
Barton Coach House
The Street Barton Mills
Suffolk IP28 6AA

Operational since 1988 Surf4Wine was one of the pioneers of the internet-based mail order wine merchant scene in the UK.

It’s a dynamic little operation and while they admit that the website has lacked in the update department recently a chat with Andrew Chapman indicates that things are about to improve. Not only is an expansion of the Oxfordshire warehouse and offices about to begin a new ‘backend’ of the website is soon to be launched. Coupled with a new staff and a range of new wines things are going from strength to strength for Surf4Wine.

The wine range is world encompassing with a slight slant of favouritism to the new world. There are many gems on the list ranging from Brokenwood, Bremerton and Qupe through to Kim Crawford and Vergelegen. Plenty of gift packs - such as a seasonal six pack rosé case (£36) and gift packs for Father’s Day, a smattering of spirits and some unusual beers completes the range.

Delivery is £7.50 per order regardless of size (up to a case) which is pretty much standard (and at cost). Personal service is vital to the success of the company shown through Chapman’s professional staff and attention to detail. Buy with confidence.

Surf4Wine/Andrew Chapman Fine Wines
Unit T2-27 & 28,
Milton Park,
Near Abingdon,
Oxfordshire OX14 4TA
United Kingdom

Based in Matlock in Derbyshire, The French Wine People are importers of wines from across the regions of France.

What sets The French Wine People apart from the dozens of other smaller French specialists, apart from a nicely designed website?

Some of the more eclectic wines include a Savagnin from the Jura, a good range of aged Armagnac’s and Cognacs and I notice, of all things, a Cave amongst the sparkling/Champagne listings. The dessert wine section has a few non-French infiltrators - the Brown Brothers range from Australia and stickies from Germany and California.

Nice to see a pink Sancerre and unusual blends from Cabardes too.

Prices range from £4.50 right up to £100 plus for the top Clarets but generally sit below the £15 mark. The range is not huge but does appear to be very selective and personally chosen.

Postage is ‘at cost’ working out at £9.95 per parcel fro most of the UK but is free within 20 miles of Matlock.

The French Wine People
Hopton Courtyard
7 Snitterton Road
Matlock
Derbyshire DE4 3LZ

Easy Wine/Wine Of Course probably have the largest range of Bulgarian wine in the UK. A total of 18 different wines at the last count, ranging in price from £4.99 up to one at £14.99!

But there is a lot more available from the company than just Bulgarian wines. The nicely designed website holds vinous treasures from across the globe.

Strengths are in Australia (look out for Vasse Felix, Innocent Bystander and a Sangiovese from Uleybury), California (expensive but Ceago, Hirsch and Shafer are listed), Italy, New Zealand (Dog Point, Akarua and Isobel), The Rhone and Spain. Chile is a little light at just four and there are no listings for Austria or Germany.

We’re an independent wine specialists with shops in leafy north London and beautiful Ongar, Essex. Our goal is to source top quality wines from around the world from producers who are individualistic, small (but perfectly formed), and who represent the best that their respective regions have to offer. We deliver across the mainland UK at no additional delivery charge* and offer monthly wine courses and additional events to suit the casual enthusiast to the hardened connoisseur.

Free delivery across the UK.

Wine of Course (London)
216 Archway Rd
London N6 5AX
T: + 44 (0) 20 8347 9006

Wine of Course (Essex)
135 High Street
Ongar, Essex CM5 9JD
T: + 44 (0) 1277 365116

The Nicolas chain, is a French company owned by Casel, the same parent company of Oddbins. They have only recently broken out from their London heartland and now list 51 stores in the UK.

Several branches of Oddbins have or are in the process of being converted to the Nicolas brand (Henley-on-Thames, Beaconsfield for example); a shame in my opinion as the range is vastly smaller and, apart from a smattering of New World wines, is nearly exclusively France focused.

The website, has an English language version, (I dread to think what they mean by “Caution ! We do not go up the goods in the floors !” though) with prices listed in Euros.

All the French regions are covered - Champagne, Rhone, Alsace, Bordeaux etc - with good ranges across the board, although nothing from Pic St Loup is listed. Several pages of fine wines and Armagnac’s are available if you are feeling flush, while at the other end of the scale there are many special offers.

Each wine has basic details attached - a brief suggested food match, grape composition and perfunctory tasting notes (simply full bodied and the like). One indication of a wines popularity are the user votes. A pop-up box allows a grading of 1-5 grapes. I do wonder how many people can be bothered to go back and vote on a wine once consumed mind.

Many of the cheaper wines are listed with a six bottles minimum purchase, more expensive products are not restricted. Delivery to the UK costs 1 to 6 bottles : 19 EUROS TTC which I assume means multiples of 6 bottles attract the charge. No mention of free delivery with large orders.

The on-line wine list appears broader and more in-depth than the UK based stores. While not familiar with the wines listed the new store opening near me will be an excellent opportunity for exploration. Keep an eye on Spittoon for specific wine tasting notes.

Following our last visit the Vineking website has been given a bit of a spruce up (well done Eric!). We can only conclude that the Vineking is an independent not to ignore.

I have been following the developments of Eric Lann, The Vineking himself, from hesitant start-up through to fully fledged wine shop. The wine list, fully searchable online, has plenty to explore. The list has been updated with those gaps in the range - New Zealand, South Africa and America - now filled. The Australian range and France are well represented with a smattering from across the various regions and, more importantly, interesting producers.

Tasting events are an important way of discovering a merchants range. The Vineking has regular tastings with Vergelegen, the Loire, California and Champagne/Sparkling planned through the Summer. These cost £30 per person and are held in Reigate.

On all orders up to £300 delivery is charged at £10. Orders of £300 or more attract free delivery for UK mainland.

The Vineking
4 West Road
Reigate
Surrey
RH2 7JT

Retail: 01737 248 833
Wholesale: 0870 850 8997

What marks out The Winery is the individual wines listed. Each is personally sourced and imported with almost all being exclusive to the company. The wine list is packed with ‘unknowns’ - Mittnacht-Klack from Alsace, Tarlant Champagne, Wild Hog from California and Cheveau from Burgundy.

Strengths are in France - each region well represented by wines worthy of exploration, plus Spain, California and Italy. There is a superb list of dessert wines, mostly from Germany. New Zealand and South America are absent and Australia is poorly represented by just one producer though.

Unlike many London independents the wines are more than affordable with most coming in at under £20 a bottle. Delivery, if you can’t make it to either of the stores, costs £10 per case of 12, or free with 3 or more cases. Sadly no online ordering.

(pull)The Winery At Liberty 2nd Floor Liberty
Regent Street
London(/pull)

From the moment the site pops up in your browser you can feel the class and quality of WineDirect. The site is the on-line arm of Hailsham Cellars, an UK Wine Merchant based in Hailsham, East Sussex.

We’re passionate about wine and believe that knowing more about where the wines come from, the grape varieties and wine styles, can enhance your wine drinking experience and embolden you to experiment with the wide selection of wine styles and grape varieties on our list. That’s why we’ve added a lot of information about wine on the site in the Wine & Food and Wine Companion sections and why we are selling great wine books in our Books section.

The wine range is wide reaching - they list 35 wines from often overlooked Argentina, 100 wines from ever-popular Australia and 69 from New Zealand. But it is not just the New World at WineDirect - Spain with a list of 54 wines, Italy (187) and the regions of France (258) hold many interesting wines.

Prices are generally in the £7-£14 range although more expensive wines are of course listed. Minimum purchase is 6 bottles.

Pre-mixed cases, with prices ranging from £65 and upwards, and various regular wine club offerings complete the picture.

One thing I noticed is the embracing of customer feed-back they ask that their customers send in wine reviews and recipes for great dishes to accompany wine for publication on the site. Very Web 2.0!

A great name for a wine merchant - Philglas and Swiggot. Founded in 1991 the company is unashamedly upmarket with three stores in Richmond-upon-Thames, Marylebone and Battersea. They have been crowned London Wine Merchant of the Year in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006.

When we first started, we believed that there was the need for a good, down to earth, friendly and helpful specialist wine shop offering a range of interesting wines from mostly smaller producers. A sort of antidote to the increasing anonymity and sameness of the big chain stores.

They list a a superb range of wines “cherry-picked from well-known estates and up-and-coming producers”. Australia is their main strength with 160 wines listed. Burgundy, smaller producers only, and Italy, from the approachable to the Super-Tuscans, not far behind in terms of breadth, excitement and interest though.

The Philglas & Swiggot Subscriber Club offers a 12-bottle mixed case with tasting notes (bi-monthly or every 3 months) with prices ranging from £120 up to £250 a case. I have heard some good things about these selections that often include some of the rarer wines from the list.

A good website, although a search facility would be useful, but sadly no online ordering. You can arrange delivery but it would seem they prefer you to pop into one or other of the shops.

A selection of tasting notes on wines stocked by Philglas & Swiggot can be viewed on Spittoon.

Yapp Bros at Mere are holding a series of informal tastings on the following Saturdays in 2007 between 11.00am and 1pm - so even though they are in Mere in Wiltshire, you could make a good day out of it - and learn much from this very knowledgeable merchant. There are probably few who know the wines of the Loire and Rhône as well as Yapp!
Sat 14 April - Wines from the Loire
Sat 12 May - Rosé Wines
Sat 2 June - wines of the Languedoc-Roussillon region
Sat 22 Sept - Introduction to Food and Wine Matching
Sat 13 Oct - Reds from the Rhône
Sat 1 Dec - Wines for Christmas
£15 per person
You need to book - 01747 860423
www.yapp.co.uk