"WINE UP HERE" IDEPENDENT WINE MERCHANT
Fed up with dull supermarket wines? Seek out Wined Up Here in Norbiton Village to find great wines of character that offer superb quality and value. Artisan cheese and bread adds to the appeal to making this a one-stop shop for the perfect ingredients to make that dinner party even more special.
- Name: Wined Up Here Limited
- Contact Person: Mrs Charlotte Dean
- Adress: 30 Coombe Road, Norbiton, KT2 7AG, UK
- Phone: +44 20 8549 6622
- E-mail: charlotte@wineduphere.co.uk
- Web: www.wineduphere.co.uk
- Norbiton: Is an area within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, London. It lies approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) east of Kingston upon Thames town centre, and 11 miles (17.7 km) from Charing Cross. Its main landmarks include Kingston Hospital and Kingsmeadow football stadium, which is currently used for the home matches of both AFC Wimbledon and Chelsea Ladies. St Peter's Church is also located at the other end of the area. Wined Up Here is located from a relatively short stroll from Norbiton national rail station and is a rather small indie selling wine but also artisan cheeses, bread and charcuterie. What else do you need for a good bottle of wine.
- Independent Wine Merchant: Wined up here is an independent wine merchant established in 2007. They stock over 250 wines from around the world which have been carefully chosen to over deliver. They also stock a wonderful range of artisan cheese, craft beers, cigars, specialist spirits and fresh bread baked on a wood-fire oven. See inside their online shop (www.wineduphere.co.uk). Or come and visit them, for friendly expert advise and browse their 'Aladdin's cave' of indulgent treats. To order from their website, please choose your wines and complete the order as this automatically sends them an email. Please include your telephone number or email address so they can contact you and confirm your order, take payments details and agree a convenient delivery date. Alternatively, you can place your order by calling us on 020-8549-6622. They are open Mon-Fri 11pm - 7pm and on Saturdays 10am - 6pm.
As Christmas and New Year’s Eve holidays approach, a lot of people will embark on a once-a-year mission to buy fine wine. Today most consumers have reached a wine-loving adulthood. Meaning that not only did they begin to drink a lot more wine from countries like Spain and Italy but they also began to look beyond Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Champagne for value and quality in regions of France like the Loire Valley or the Jura, among many others.
The last fifteen years have been a true “golden age” of fine wine around the world, with more compelling wines available to us as consumers than ever before. And that’s just one of the reasons that independent wine retailers like the "Wined up here" matter more than ever. At most independent wine shops, you will find staff that is passionate about the wines they sell. Their level of devotion to the products they sell is unrivaled in the retail experience. And that is key when you are buying wine around the holidays, whether to serve at your parties feast or to give as gifts for Christmas.
But there’s another thing about the independent retailer that might not be apparent to the naked eye: Independent retailers generally take much greater care in storing the wine that they sell. What good is a magnum of Champagne that you bought at a big box store if it sat out on the loading dock next to the 3-gallon jar of pasteurized mayonnaise? It’s true that prices at independent retailers of wine can’t compete with the big box and volume-driven stores. But when it comes to service, education, and the technical aspects of storing fine wine (and even practical advice on how to match with food, store, and serve the wine at home), no one can touch the independent retailer. As "Wined up here" is leader in fine wine sales, this Independen Wine Merchant is proud to welcome you to their shop this holiday season and they wish you a happy Christmas.
Consumers have never had more choice when it comes to purchasing wine with the number of independent UK retailers increasing by 50% since 2007 to 750. The sector is now worth nearly £500 million and, according to the UK Independent Wine Retail 2015 report, is set to grow further. The report found that value for money, knowledgable staff and a good wine selection were the most important factors for consumers choosing to shop at independent wine retailers, based on a survey of 1,001 regular wine drinkers. Of those surveyed 55% said they “really like the range of wines on offer”, 39% liked being able to get recommendations from shop staff while 37% said they believed independent wine merchants offered good value for money.
However despite consumers being aware of independent merchant´s key selling points, just 13% said that they “sometimes” buy wines from independent specialists. Many reported feeling intimidated by venturing inside an independent wine retailer, 11% of women and 6% of men, preferring instead to buy from supermarkets. Other reasons given for not shopping at independent wine retailers was a perception that they were too expensive, or simply that there wasn’t an outlet nearby. The sector is still more appealing to men with 17% of male wine drinkers choosing to shop in independents compared to just 10% of women.
Independents arguably represent the most innovative and dynamic sector of the UK wine trade. There are challenges to overcome, like attracting more female customers and changing perceptions that wines are expensive are two of the most urgent priorities. But the sector has proved remarkably resilient during turbulent economic times and there is every reason to believe that more growth will occur as the economy strengthens, and imaginative independents continue to add new elements to their offer. Despite the challenges, the report, published in partnership with The Wine Merchant magazine, predicts more growth for the UK independent wine sector as retailers diversify their offer. Enomatic-style wine dispensers allowing customers to sample wine before purchasing have undoubtedly added to value to many retailers, while more than half of independents either already sell wine for consumption on the premises, or are considering doing so. Many more are introducing food to their stocks with cheese, meats and speciality breads becoming increasingly common.
- Urbina Red Wines from Rioja: Bodegas Urbina is a family winery with four generations since 1870 dedicated to grape growing and winemaking. The present winery designed, built and run by the family Urbina since 1986 has been created solely to facilitate the mission of the winemaker at the time of producing fine wines. The winemaking for commercialization dates from 1870 and performed in ancient underground Cuzcurrita drafts.
Urbina winery specializes in old vintages and rare wines, which are meticulously aged at their personal caves. Bodegas Urbina has the capacity to produce 300.000 bottles of red Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva and 50.000 bottles of White and Rose grapes from their own vineyards, which are grown under traditional practices, not using herbicides and limiting use of pesticides and fungicides. The cultivation is done in low-trained (vignes basses) and trellis, and does not force the production, not exceeding the 4,500 Kgrs. / Ha. Within the production capacity, wines are selected in order to be labeled as Urbina.
- Rioja Alta, Alavesa and Baja: The Rioja DOCa is divided into three sub-regions: Rioja Alavesa, lies north of the Ebro in the province of Alava in País Vasco. Rioja Alta is in the west and lies entirely within the province of La Rioja. Rioja Baja lies to the east of Logroño, taking in land on both sides of the Ebro, as well as the Navarra and Burgos enclaves. Logroño, Rioja's capital city with a population of 120,000, lies just west of die point where the three sub-regions meet, roughly halfway along die 1204cm (75-mile) west-to-east stretch of the Rioja DOCa.
Although Rioja is relatively close to the sea, the mountain ranges, especially the Sierra de Cantabria, protect its northern edge and shelter the vineyards from the cold Atlantic winds, and you can find yourself standing in warm sunshine among the vines, while in die distance, clouds gather threateningly over the mountain tops.
- Rijoa Alavesa and Rioja Alta: The Rioja Alavesa vineyards start at 800m (2625ft) above sea level, among the foothills of the Sierra de Cantabria and descend in terraces down to the steep north bank of the Ebro river at just below 400m (1312ft). Cross the Ebro and you are in Rioja Alta, which mostly follows its south bank - apart from the Sonsierra, an important enclave on the north bank. These two sub-regions aren’t radically different from one another, the line between them simply follows provincial boundaries rather than soil types, but the differences in soil do matter - Alavesa reds are generally a little lighter and more scented than Alta wines.
We’re still on fairly high ground, especially in the south of Rioja Aka where the land climbs to 700m (2300ft) again. Despite the mountains’ embrace, cool breezes meander in from the Atlantic, moderating summer temperatures and creating frosty winters. In general, the further east you go, the warmer and drier the climate. Haro’s average annual temperature is 12.8°C (55°F), but further eaat in Alfaro, at the extreme end of the DOCa, it is 13.9°C (57°F).
Some of the region’s most delicately young scented and elegant red wines come from the yellow calcareous clay soils of Rioja Alavesa. In Rioja Alta, we will find a more varied soils include patches of ferruginous clay and alluvial silt, and tend to produce firmer wines (though traditionally, Rioja producers have put little emphasis on soil types, the style of wine has long been more a product of aging in the winery). Both sub-regions are widely planted with Tempranillo, the great grape of red Rioja, which thrives on chalky and clay soils and in the relatively cool climate. Rioja Alta also has a little Garnacha Tinta, great for Rosado, but the principal growing area for this variety is the third sub-region, Rioja Baja.
- Rioja Baja: East of Logroño, the lower-lying Rioja Baja has a much warmer Mediterranean climate than the rest of Rioja and parts are even classified as semi-arid. Vines compete for space on the fertile, alluvial clay with red peppers, artichokes, asparagus. Garnacha Tinta does well here and in a long, hot autumn reaches high level of ripeness, making chunky, fat wines of up to 15 per cent alcohol. Tempranillo is increasingly grown in the higher, hillier areas.
- Red and White Rioja: Much Rioja red is a blend from all three sub-regions, and a blend or different grapes. Once, over 40 varieties were grown here, but today the rules allow just seven, with some experimental varieties, including Cabernet Sauvignon. Tempranillo accounts for over 70 per cent of all plantings. It is responsible tor the graceful strawberry flavour of red Rioja and is well suited to long aging. Garnacha Tinta is added to flesh out the blend, and there may he a splash of ttrtoinc and Mazuclo, too. The myriad combinations offered by the different sub-regions and varieties allow merchant bodegas to blend a unique house style. A little white Viura was traditionally added to help the acid balance and lighten the colour. This sometimes still happens in the Alavesa. White Rioja is made largely from Viura.
The vines are densely planted and pruned in bush shaped gobelet style to protect them from the elements. A few decades ago a tumble of varieties were all grown and harvested together. Now each variety is planted and picked separately, often in small plots that characterize the region. And if the patches of low-lying bush vines tell you you’re in Rioja, so will the coopers. There can be few winemaking regions in the world that use so much oak. The casks (generally 225-litre barricas) are traditionally American oak, with its butter and vanilla flavours, but French is increasingly used.
Rioja joven sees little or no wood, and some fresh, unoaked whites are made, but much of the red wine is, Crianza released in its third year having spent a year in oak, or Reserva released in its fourth year after at least a year in oak and two in bottle, or Gran Reserva, traditionally made only in exceptional years, and not released until its sixth year, after least two years in oak and three in the bottle. White Crianza must have spent six months in cask.