We hope you had a great Bank Holiday weekend and if you’ve been away then we hope you’ve had a lovely relaxing time. It looks like Summer is staying with us for the next couple of weeks, which is very welcome!

We will be CLOSED for a few days in September

As the kids head back to school it means it’s time for us to take a break and just as we did last year we will close for a few days. Please note the shop will be CLOSED on Tuesday 10^th, Wednesday 11^th and also Tuesday 17^th & Wednesday 18^th September.

Do not fear! We will still be OPEN for a few days in-between so you can stock up for the weekend! We will be OPEN on Thursday 12^th, Friday 13^th and Saturday 14^th September. This means we can take a decent break before we come back refreshed and ready to focus on our Autumn tasting events and preparing for our Grand Christmas Tasting! We have been busy working with our suppliers over the Summer and have already identified over 40 new wines we intend to bring in in the run up to Christmas.

Our next Tasting Event

Our next event is going to be on Thursday 26^th September and is all about Autumnal wines. We have recently brought in about ten new lines (see below for our recommendations for this month) and we will show a few at this tasting. It will be our normal format, with a welcome drink, 5 wines and a cheese board. We start at 6.30pm and run through until about 8.30pm. Reluctantly, we are having to increase the price of our tickets to £17.50 per head. This is the first increase in 4 years, but as we are all experiencing everything is just that little bit more expensive! You can buy your tickets through the website: www.alteuswines.co.uk Just search ‘Tasting’ and select Click & Collect when checking out. Our events are very popular so don’t delay to secure your place. We will also be doing another tasting in October and details will follow soon.

Thought about joining our wine club?

We have been running our wine club since we opened back in April 2019 and it’s proving rather popular. We are adjusting the terms a little to make it more accessible to people. We used to charge an annual membership fee of £50 and that would give you 5% off purchases (wine only) all year round outside of your regular case and also two tickets to one of our tasting events. There is no longer a membership fee and the format of the club has been simplified. Every 2 months we will contact you to ask if you are ready to receive your case. You can choose this mix of red/white/rose each time and we ask you to select your preferred price point. Cases start at £140 and can go up as high as you like! We will ask you to complete a form when joining so we have a sense of what kind of thing you’d like and then we hand picked each case to suit you. Providing you live within 15 miles of the shop we will deliver it to your door. Your case includes a 10% discount, but discounts outside of your regular case will no longer apply. If you are interested in joining then please email teresa@alteuswines.co.uk

Wine recommendations

Al’s recommendation

One of our new lines in is the Chateau d’Agel ‘Caz Ailes’ Minervois. This fabulous red is oozing with ripe black fruits, blackberries, plums and lovely spicy notes. It is a great example of the fantastic wines you can get from the Minervois area down in the south of France. The grape varieties used in this wine are a blend of Syrah, Cinsault, Carignan and Grenache. A seriously impressive wine and remarkable value at £12.49. Whilst we’d pair this roast beef, it could also work really well with BBQ food (just in case you were thinking of taking advantage of the late Summer sunshine!)

T’s recommendation

Another new wine in and this time we are off to South Africa. The Mason Road Chenin Blanc is from the Paarl region where it can get very hot, but this has been made beautifully and from younger vines. There is only a touch of oak on this wine, with only 20% being in French barrels. It is an elegant Chenin Blanc made by a young, female winemaker, Kiara Scott who is a rising star in this part of the world. You’ll get frangipani, pineapple, melon and tropical fruits, together with a lovely freshness. It’s a great wine and £16.49