Does the age of a wine matter as much now as it did fifty years ago? Certainly the modern winemaker has infinitely more control over the final product than his or her predecessors would ever have thought possible. A poor vintage may never be completely redeemed, but it is now rarely the potential disaster of…
Category: wine
Why should I buy my wine at auction?
I was asked this question recently and it struck me that with a plethora of alternatives available to the wine buyer it deserved some consideration. My first tip is that there is always the opportunity to pick up a bargain. Our wine auction is very much geared to the private buyer with most lots being…
Supporting Lord Mayor’s Charity & Acorns Children’s Hospice!
Biddle and Webb loves supporting local charities and last Friday was a unique night for us as a company. We were hosting two of the largest charity auctions on the same night. Jeremy was at Acorns selling lots of memorabilia from the Peaky Blinders set whilst I was supporting the team at the Lord Mayor’s…
Spring Wine Auction
The most recent wine sale took place on Thursday 7th March. With over 160 lots this was our biggest sale in over twelve months achieving a 100% sold rate and with consignments from our private vendors all exceeding their estimates. Highlights were the performance of the assorted vintage ports and the classic Bordeaux wines including…
Simplifying Wine Tasting
“Ripe and supple tannins” “Pronounced tertiary aroma’s” “Hints of farmyard with a long elegant finish” These are all examples of terminology used by the wine trade to talk to each other. Sadly it is also terminology that has no resonance at all with 90% of the wine buying public and in many cases actually alienates and intimidates many people who…
First Growth Claret
Rolls-Royce cars, Patek Philippe watches and Steinway pianos are all names that the connoisseur will recognise as the best of the best in their particular field. Of course some will dispute this and may indeed prefer a different brand of car, watch or musical instrument. What is difficult to argue however is that each of…
Wine Al Fresco!
It’s somewhat surprising that in 2017 people still worry about how the wine they choose will be perceived by their friends. Shouldn’t it simply be a matter of choosing a grape, style or region you really like and enjoying it? Introduce food into the equation and it can get even more complicated. On the continent…
What to look for when buying Champagne
It is a question I am asked on an almost daily basis. ‘What makes a good wine, or in this case Champagne?’ The answer to that very simple question is just a tad more complicated. In an effort to furnish our customers with a concise and informed answer I thought it only right and proper…