Booths is to take Penrith and Eden’s wine lovers on a special round the world tasting experience that will showcase some of the fine wines that will be available at the company’s new store in the town, including the famous Louis Roederer Cristal champagne.
Booths has a strong reputation for the range and quality of its wines and this will be a rare opportunity to hear first hand from the family-run retailer’s wine buyer. Andy Green will host ‘A History of the World in Seven Wines’ – a tour of vintages he has specially picked for the evening – at the George Hotel, in Devonshire Road, on Tuesday, November 1, 6 - 8pm.
In the cult favourite film Withnail and I, Richard E Grant, while in a fictitious Penrith tea room, demanded the ‘finest wines available to humanity’ and fittingly headlining the tasting evening is the famous Louis Roederer Cristal – which was originally created for the Russian Tsars and sells for more than £170 a bottle.
Cristal was first created for Alexander II in 1867 and was not commercially available until 1945.
After passing on professional wine tasting tips, Andy will tell guests about the fascinating stories behind the wines he has selected, which include old and new world varieties.
Andy, 38, who has more than 14 years experience in the wine and spirit trade, said: “I want to give people a taste of the kinds of wines that they will be able to see in the new Booths store when it opens later this month. I’m fascinated by the history behind the great vintages and this is an event is an opportunity for me to share some of those stories with people in Penrith.
“As well as the spectacular Cristal Champagne, there will also be fantastic wines from Australia, Chile, and Lebanon, as well as a few more favourites from France. I’m sure this will be a great evening and I can’t wait to show off these fabulous wines in Penrith.”
One of the other wines that people will be able to try at the tasting is Chateau Musar from the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, the Biblical ‘Land of Milk and Honey’. The Romans were so impressed by the valley as wine making area that they built temples there to the God Bacchus.
Booths will also be bringing a selection of fine cheeses from around Booths Country that will compliment the flavours of the wines.
Tickets for the evening are limited to 120, cost £5 and are available directly from the George Hotel, Devonshire Road, Penrith 01768 862696.
The 20,000sq ft Booths Penrith store, which is due to open on November 15, will be the 28th store operated by the regional retailer.
It will showcase The Booths Café, a new design concept for Booths which places a strong emphasis on quality freshly prepared food made in-store on the day of purchase.
The store also includes numerous ‘green’ features within its design to minimise its impact on the environment, such as a heat recovery system, an advanced refrigeration system, glass doors on the fridges, and the stores voltage use will be monitored to ensure excessive energy is not wasted. There will also be rain harvesting to be used to flush toilets and also in washing machines.