Barrels & Bottles Wine Blog

We are pleased to announce a tasting of the Grande Cuvee Collection of champagnes from Canard Duchene on 14th November 2007.

Master of Wine Mr. Andrew Barraclough will host the evening at our tasting rooms at Sheepbridge, Chesterfield. The tasting will include, amongst others their Blancs des Blancs and Charles VII Rose champagnes.

At only £22.00 per person including canapes and food matching this is a superb evening.

Labels: champagne, tasting

Located at Viré in the Saone and the Loire some 20km north of Mâcon, Cave de Viré had a formidable fight to make their AC known and finally recognised on 4th November 1999. This is the fifth communal name of the Mâconnais, alongside Pouilly-Fuissé, Pouilly-Vinzelles, Pouilly-Loché, Saint-Véran and now Viré Clessé.

The history of the cellar is that of men who believed in their terroir. Generation after generation, the vine growers at Viré knew to observe, understand and develop the inheritance which was bequeathed to them.

They work with a permanent respect for their environment and of the natural rhythm of the vine and its specificities. They invested, without regret, their energy and their knowledge to make and produce exceptional wines, with the recognised typicity of the area. Today, the vine growers of Cave de Viré can be proud, because this success is theirs. This communal name is succeeding thanks to the quality of their work and their wines.

Labels: burgundy

We have announced 4 new wine tasting events at Barrels & Bottles, Chesterfield :

Roederer Family Wines (26th September) :
A tasting of Roederer Family wines with Guy Cliffe. Starting with Champagne Brut Premier and working through the family vineyards owned by Roederer. We will taste wines from Marques de Murietta in Spain, Pio Cesari in Italy, Domaines Ott in Provence, Ramos Pinto in the Douro valley and the new vintages of Casa Lapostolle in Chile. Pates and cheeses with bread served.

Corbieres, Rousillon & Minervois (7th November) :
A fine tasting of some great wines from the Southern Gems of France, hosted by Michel Marechal, a leading expert in the region. 8 super quality wines with some rich southern french terrines and pates, french bread and a rich onion marmalade.

Christmas Dinner & Tasting (28th November) :
Our traditional end to the tasting Calendar takes a new twist this year. Sumptuous 3 course Christmas themed dinner with 5 different wines in a superb tasting of all the best wines for the Christmas period. Champagne reception, Fine claret and Burgundies, New World wines and Ports will all be served to show you the best of our range.

7.00pm Reception
7.30pm dinner
10.00pm carriages

Limited places.

Gartelmann Wines of Australia (23rd January 2008) :
A fabulous chance to try this new range of exclusive wines from the Hunter Valley. Compare wines with Stelvin Closure and Cork from the same vintage, compare light Shiraz to a more full bodied style, Semillon, Chardonnay and Barrel fermented Chardonnay and finish the tasting on late harvetsed Ambrosia with 105 degrees of sugar. Jorg Gartelman will be on hand to answer your questions.

The minibus service will be available from Sheffield for a small charge of £2.00 per person - available on a first come - first served basis.

Book our wine tasting events online or via the phone 01246 453399

Labels: tasting, wine

The Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) have announced a new bursary targeted towards disabled students and those that do not have English as their first language. This is open to UK students already studying or planning to start a new course.

WSET has some 225 centres around the UK accredited to run the WSET courses - including Barrels & Bottles, Chesterfield (NE. Derbyshire).

Labels: wset

The official opening date for the Beaujolais harvest has been set for August 25th - 11 days earlier than last year, owing to the early blooming. Around 47,000 harvesters of 117 nationalities are expected to descend on the 3,000 estates of the region, where manual harvesting is still compulsory.

Fully story by Herve Lalau here...

Labels: beaujolais, wine

Our sister company Coghlans Cookery School have today announced it's latest cookery course - in butchery!

The course is aimed at providing chefs and cooks with the long-lost essential skills in meat preparation - this is particularly of interest at the moment with the high cost of quality fresh meat.

Learn about the variety of cuts available and how to maximise your cuts of meat.

Further details about the Butchery Course...

Labels: cooking

After what seemed like an eternity on the water the Gartelmann wines from the Hunter Valley have finally arrived with us. Was the wait worth it. Unfortunately yes!

The wines, especially the Shiraz, are stunning... we wish they had been here earlier as we could have been enjoying them much sooner.

The Diedrich Shiraz is out of this world. A massive in-glass presence with a nose dominated by red cherries and spiced fruits. This will become one of our benchmark New World Shiraz wines by which all others will be judged.

Labels: australia, shiraz