Follow us on Twitter
August 2010
just opened......fantastic events......new vintage.....fantastic with fish......on the tasting counter......last chance to buy......superb with steak......great gift.......last few tickets......
Trophymania.........
July 2010
The International Wine Challenge is one of the foremost tastings of its type in the world, but the cost of entry is high so we, as one of the little guys without a huge marketing budget, only enter a few wines.
Even more exciting then that our producers have done so well, with Heartland from Australia and Falernia in Chile picking up those all-important trophies.
In fact Heartland won no less than four for their Directors’ Cut Shiraz, while Falernia were awarded the Elqui Valley Trophy for the second year running.
Closer to home, Camel Valley won two Trophies for their Sparkling Rosé - the English Sparkling Trophy and the Sparkling Rosé Trophy, a considerable achievement when pitted against the might of Champagne.
And last but by no means least, Viña Leyda was awarded a Great Value Trophy for one of their fabulous Pinot Noir rosés.
The full list can be seen on the Awards page in the Press section.
Regional Merchant of the Year
The 2010 Awards season has thrust itself upon us with some tremendous results, including Regional Merchant of the Year from Imbibe Magazine!
Our wines were awarded a total of 9 Gold and 14 Silver medals (see the list below), which contributed significantly to the judges' decision to award us the rare and coveted title of Regional Merchant of the Year in the Sommelier Wine Awards announced this week at the London International Wine Fair.
"We have never given out a Regional Merchant award before but Great Western Wine deserves recognition. Nine Golds and 14 Silvers (half of them under £10) was a fine return, but just as noteworthy was the spread of awards: Portugal, Austria, Rueda, Champers, Barossa, Crozes....even a rare Gold for Bordeaux."
Gold
- Le Délice des Anges Viognier Roussanne 2008
- Château Vieux Robin Bois de Lunier 2002
- Pinot Grigio Manci Vineyard 2008
- Chianti Colli Senesi Riserva 2005
- Carrasviñas 2008
- Quinta do Portal Reserva 2007
- Kooyong Clonale Chardonnay 2008
- Moutardier Carte d’Or NV
- Quinta do Portal Moscatel Reserva 1996
Silver
- Mas du Soleilla Les Bartelles 2007
- Crozes Hermitage Cuvée Albéric Bouvet 2006
- Menetou Salon 2008
- Herdade dos Grous Branco 2009
- Riesling Smaragd Steinterrassen 2006
- Harewood Sauvignon Semillon 2008
- Glaetzer Wallace 2008
- Heartland Directors' Cut Shiraz 2007
- Heartland Dolcetto Lagrein 2007
- Kooyong Estate Pinot Noir 2007
- Falernia Sauvignon Blanc 2008
- Leyda Pinot Noir Las Brisas 2008
- Leyda Riesling Neblina Vineyard 2008
- Ruster Ausbruch 2004
Wine Retailer of the Year
Decanter magazine are inviting votes for Wine Retailer of the Year and we'd love it if you would vote for us !
All you need is your Decanter subscription code. Go towww.decanter.com/retailvote2010 and follow the instructions.
Thank you !
Tell us what you think...
...and enter our draw to win our Case of the Month.
We'd love to hear what you think about the wines you buy from us so please log on to your account, click on 'review' and let us know.
Ride for Precious Lives - 240 miles from St Austell to Bristol
At last I am starting to feel a bit more back to normal!
What a ride, what an experience! Our six man St Stephen's Dads Team and honorary member John Watling set off on a 240 mile bike ride starting in Cornwall, through into Devon and further north into Somerset, over three days, through some of the most beautiful countryside I have seen.
Despite an unpromising start, with torrential rain on the way down on the Thursday night, we were all full of anticipation and trepidation for the off at 8.30am on the Friday morning in St Austell.
But we needn’t have worried. The sun came out at the start and stayed with us for virtually the whole trip, and the rain cleared the humidity too, so good news all round. A poignant start point by the coast in St Austell with a visit to the construction site of the Children's Hospice South West new venture.
With 86 riders in total, the atmosphere was amazing and electric. The Mayor was there to see us all off and heading out in convoy was a wonderful experience. Within a fairly short time we were off the main roads and on to the ‘sustrans’ routes, specified bike routes that negotiate the smaller single lane roads, and take you right into the heart of the countryside.
The riders soon split up into groups, some off at lightning speed (there were a few tri-atheletes in there!) and others at a much more leisurely pace, as this was not set up as a race. I did however head off with a slightly faster group, being full of energy and had a fantastic time – that was until I managed to take us on a two mile detour, and we achieved three punctures in our group in two hours!
This was an amazingly well organised event, with pit stops every 20 miles to refuel with water, fruit and the most amazing flapjacks – I had heard stories about these from the riders on the ride last year, and they really did live up to expectation! The support crew were amazing - the volunteers and staff from CHSW who made the journey so much more enjoyable, not least by taking all our luggage ahead to our next evening stop each day.
Cornwall had its ups and downs, literally! All our training was put to good use and it was staggering how much we ate to keep the energy levels up - absolute requisite for our continual climb up to Bodmin Moor before a much needed and hugely enjoyable 7 mile descent into Bideford for the evening stop-over.
The start of Day 2 was not as bad as I had feared. The cycle shorts' padding was doing its job and the muscles were in good order, but this turned out to be the biggest climbing day overall – sea level to the top of Exmoor at 1600 feet!!
A very emotional start to the day with a visit to the Little Bridge House Hospice near Bideford, with an incredibly warm welcome, a lovely cup of tea and meeting the children, their parents and the carers really brought it home for all of us.
I soon had lesson number 1 – remember to look where you are going! I had a minor accident colliding with another bike and managed to take a tumble, but the grazes did look good.
This really was the biggest challenge so far to the top of Exmoor, continuous ups and downs, with more and longer ups than downs unfortunately! But this day was the highlight for me as our Dads Team stayed together throughout and these country roads were a joy to ride, and having our picnic lunch on the top of Exmoor in full sun felt like we were on top of the world.
Our final day took us nearer to home and over the Somerset Levels to Wells for our last lunch of the tour. There was much talk of the hill that beckoned us after our break – Priddy Hill. Unfortunately, we were all feeling a tad tired after nearly 200 miles, so this mammoth hill really drew out all the reserves that we had, and due to the steepness, there would be no chance of restarting on such an incline. However, even with a few cars making the going a bit tight we all managed to reach the top and head to the final hospice at Charlton Farm near Bristol.
A quick cup of tea and biscuits, and then the exhilarating 4 mile ride for the group finish over Clifton Bridge and up on to the Downs for a wonderful reception from family and friends plus a huge amount of relief that it was all over!
The best news is that we had hoped to raise £6,000 for this amazing Charity, and to date we have received over £6,500 - this is a big 'thank you' to you for all your help in making this possible!!
We were commended by the organisers for the fabulous amount that we raised, and team captain, Darren Pearce wore the red jersey across the line in recognition of your support.
Thanks for again all your support!
Richard
www.justgiving.com/ststephensdadsrideforpreciouslives
Great Western Wine Gift Vouchers
You can buy Great Western Wine gift vouchers for friends, relatives, colleagues and clients to spend in our Bath shop. They make great Christmas presents and are the ideal gift for anyone you know who loves wine!
Please call us for more information or to arrange for us to send vouchers with your personal message and gift card on 01225 322820.
Gifts Range
Our gifts service makes sending great-value, stylish wine gifts quick and easy and ensures happy recipients.
All gifts are offered in lovely presentation boxes,can be personalised with your messages, and can be delivered anywhere in the UK mainland. What’s more, our national multi-drop service gives you one easy-to-use spreadsheet order form.
Choose from more than 30 carefully selected gift ideas on our website, or call us if you would like advice for tailored gifts to fit your budget on 01225 322820.
