Newsletters
 November, 2009
Dear Customer,
Our newsletters are unfashionably verbose, so if you prefer to go straight to a particular topic, the main headings are below:-
Boursot’s Cross Channel Fare Deal
As a Boursot’s customer, until 30th December 2009 you can get specially priced day return trips at £23 for a car and all passengers Sundays to Fridays, and £30 for Saturdays. As always, these fares are only available by calling the Ferry Travel Club on 01304 501100 (new telephone number) and by quoting our code “Boursot”. You do not pay a membership fee and the Club also has good rates on longer trips and for accommodation in the area.
Also if you spend more than 600€ with us, we will be happy to reimburse your day return fare booked through the Ferry Travel Club, so please remember to bring along your receipt.
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Recent Boursot Events
The Boursot Anniversary Weekend on 17th – 18th October was enjoyed by many. Cheese, chocolate and wine tastings, a tour of the underground parts of Ardres and a glittering Gourmet Dinner at the Hotel Atlantic featured among the various events during the weekend.
Our dinner with wine author, presenter and co-chairman of the International Wine Challenge, Charles Metcalfe proved highly entertaining, and with a gorgeous selection of wines to go with the exquisite cuisine of Alain Delpierre, we were well and truly spoilt. Further details will be on our Past Events web page shortly along with, hopefully, video highlights of the evening.
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Forthcoming Boursot Events
Saturday 21 November: The new style wines from the south of France: Le François Premier, Ardres
The Restaurant François Premier in Ardres is one of the very best restaurants of the area, where the culinary skills of chef-owner Gérard Lewandowski assure all of a memorable gourmet experience. I will be hosting this four course, six wine dinner and talking about the latest topics and trends in the south as well as about the wines on show. The price of the evening is 68€ all-inclusive and if you know the François Premier, you will know that this offers superb value. Please e-mail or call to book your places. There are a few remaining.
There is local accommodation available at the local chambres d’hôtes (and there are also the two hotels), so do please say if you would like help in arranging something. There is also a list of local places to stay on our webpage www.boursot.co.uk/hotels.html.
Christmas Market in Ardres: Lunch Sunday 13 December: Hotel Clément, Ardres
Our Christmas Market Lunch is sold out at 60 places, but this need not stop you from visiting Ardres and its locality for some of the festivities.
That morning I’d suggest you visit the annual Fête de la Dinde (Turkey Festival) in Licques, the leading European village for rearing turkeys and chickens. This traditional occasion was established 300 years ago and this event is free of charge and is full of French pageantry with confrères, bands and majorettes. And then come to lunch in Ardres, 10 minutes away!
The Ardres Christmas market with all its stalls starts on the Sunday morning but the atmosphere really gets going in the afternoon and when darkness falls, you can see Père Noël abseiling down the church!
Next year’s Events
We are planning a number of events for 2010 which will, as normal, start with a January “blues buster” dinner. More details will follow just as soon as they have been worked out.
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News in the World of Wine
You could not have failed to notice the demise last week of the First Quench group that includes Threshers, Wine Rack, The Local and Haddows. A total of 1,300 stores and 6,500 jobs are at risk and the administrators are currently looking to sell off parts of the business. Whilst the blame has been made of the “credit crunch” (whatever that means!), as intimated in our August newsletter the fundamentals of First Quench’s business model had not been updated to the current market conditions.
Another high street group, Wine Cellar which had its heyday in the late 90s and whose portfolio of 170 stores included such names as Booze Buster and Simply Drinks, was also put into administration in early October.
The wine business in the UK seems to be polarising again into the supermarkets pushing branded “wines” and those who offer more exciting products. An observation that I hear constantly is that the styles of wine that we offer at Boursot’s Wine Collection are either not to be found in the UK or if they are, they can only be found at much higher prices.
It is for this reason, among others, that our business is continuing to develop. You have been kind enough to be loyal and to recommend us to your friends and clearly, multiplying this a few times has led to a marked improvement – but of course that does not mean for one moment that we can afford to become complacent.
As the recession (or is it a depression?) continues to affect Britain, more people are dining at home and are happier to pay for a decent bottle of wine or a decent cut of meat, rather than to give that money to a restaurant where the food and wines cannot be of such good value. Pay £18 for a bottle of cheap House wine in a restaurant, or pay £18 for a bottle of great wine for dinner at home – it’s not difficult to see how the wine retailing sector should be doing really quite well.
But then, the British government and its “advisors” mumble periodically (normally in the run-up to Budgets, so expect more noise over the coming weeks) about “alcohol problems”. Of course it’s not the average wine drinker who is the problem; rather, some of those younger people who go out specifically to get drunk, often consuming large amounts of vodka or similar before even going out. Whilst this aspect may seem to be little to do with the wine business, we are all affected indirectly. As I have opined here before (see previous newsletters), social behaviour is deep rooted and is not going to be dramatically affected by taxation. However Treasury coffers can all too simply be filled up by tapping the pockets of normally behaved and socially responsible people: they are such an easy target.
Supermarkets and multiple retailers have been passing back the costs of duty increases to their often already straitened suppliers, so that the additional duty is being paid but not in the way that any of us might have expected. Meanwhile smaller drinks retailers do not (as yet) have the muscle to pass these tax increases back to their suppliers, and so have to absorb or pass on these tax increases to their customers - which causes additional problems for the independent sector. So each duty hike inflicts more pain on the British independent drinks retailer and I would not be at all surprised to hear soon more news of casualties in the UK wine retailing sector.
A new blow for the Scottish government (and perhaps for any intentions of the English government) will have to be faced up to shortly, as the European Court has just ruled that minimum pricing is illegal! Enough said?
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Boursot’s New List and November Offer
Our November list is as usual available to view on this link or to print from this link. In the new list you will find, in particular, a Vin Jaune from Jura, an enlarged selection of red and white Burgundies from the great appellations of Bourgogne, Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet, Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet as well as the return of our Marc de Bourgogne. They are all at very reasonable prices. Also following requests from some of you, we have introduced a small selection of half bottles and this should enlarge slightly over the coming months.
During November, our Special Offer is on the following wines. I believe you should these useful for your festive celebrations
Crémant de Bourgogne, Réserve, Bailly-Lapierre, Brut 7,80€ 6,95€
Whilst Champagne may still be out of favour for some, you can still enjoy the bubbles! This wine is made by the champagne method, from two of the three champagne grapes but in the Chablis region. OK, it’s not champagne but it’s still very good - indeed.
Picpoul de Pinet, Domaine Morin Langaran (Languedoc), 2008 5,70€ 5,30€
From close to Agde comes this gorgeous dry white that is as dry as a Muscadet, but that has a softness of style and a flavour that is reminiscent of white fruits.
Château Tour Bicheau, Grand Vin de Graves (Claret), 2007 7,80€ 7,20€
I have been following this property for around 20 years and in my experience, it produces classic clarets at really sensible prices. According to Madame Daubas, the owner, this is the best vintage they have ever produced. The evidence is not hard to see with a full soft richness of style on the palate.
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Boursot’s Wine Broking Service
In case it should be of interest to you, there is an unusual collection of old champagne on offer on our Broking page.
As we rush headlong into the busy season, we hope to see you again shortly. Remember, if you have a specific event that you are planning for, to let us know in advance so that we can pull your order out of stock. In that way you will not be faced with, just as you arrive, seeing someone waltzing out with the last of the wines that you really wanted!
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We look forward to seeing you again very soon.
With all best wishes
Guy
Guy Boursot
Wine Consultants SARL
Boursot's Wine Collection
9 Rue de l'Arsenal
62610 ARDRES
+33 3 21 36 81 46
www.boursot.co.uk
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