40% off wine...

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

I think Nicholas (?) is great. I frequently march in and ask for a robust red under a fiver and the charming French chap always obliges. Cheap doesn't necessarily mean supermarket. G&B were slightly more snooty at the same request so I tend to avoid it (this was before they branched into next door so maybe they've changed).

[mockney piers]

no london games festivals to go to?

[mockney piers]

Nicolas is a nice enough shop, but they have decided to kill Oddbins off, like blatting a defenceless chipmunk with large cudgel.

[scor46]

Now Peckhamgatecrasher that must have been tounge in cheek.. I dont rate Nicholas at all. I am surprised thay have survived for so long. The range is limited and very conformist. (now that just totally contradicts what i said in my last post)

[*Bob*]

We have had some v nice bottles from G&B.

The only issue I have is that I don't find the wines they sell at the cheaper end of the scale to be anything worth shouting about (and they don't sell many anyway).

[scor46]

Mockney, Whats a Cudgel??

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

Scor46 - I am limited and very conformist and a sucker for a french accent. PCG

[scor46]

PCG, you may by conformist and a sucker for a french accent but your definetly not limited.... just make sure you bring one of those wines with you on Monday

[downsouth]

Oddbins is still thriving in my neck of the woods despite Majestic opening up shop.

Sean - the link you sent actually has supermarket recommendations from the lovely Jancis so they can't be that bad can they (rhetorically speaking of course)

Superior retailers? own label wines

Sainsbury?s Cuv?e Prestige C?tes du Rh?ne Villages 2004 ?3.99

Sweet, spicy, full, dense southern French red from Caves St Pierre.

Sainsbury?s Classic Selection Albari?o 2004 ?5.99 larger stores

Racy, marine Galician dry white. Not the best but far from the most expensive.

Sainsbury's Coonawarra Cabernet 2002 ?6.99

Terrible label but excellent wine from Katnook.

Tesco Finest Great Southern Riesling 2003 ?7.99

Delicious Western Australian fragrant, racy white from Howard Park.

Tesco Finest Alsace Gewurztraminer 2004 ?6.99

Not blowsy yet very true, floral, opulent French white from Kuehn.

..............................

I also mentioned before I found G&B to be quite discourteous so that sort of thing tends to stick in my mind.

[mockney piers]

I had a look on google images, only to find a thousand screenshots of some World of Warcraft weapon, so I found a Goya painting instead, more culcha like innit.

Basically anything blunt meant for thwapping.

[scor46]

Thanks for that Mockney. but whats thwapping mean?

[Brendan]

That's a knobkierie that is.

Can you drink wine out of it?

[mockney piers]

"Oddbins is still thriving in my neck of the woods"

Maybe that's because of the proximity to another Nicolas. Owners may be French but that doesn't automatically make them stupid.

Most of the flagship ones have gone though, like the Battersea branch, or the Calais.

[downsouth]

Cudgel - a fave of the Bard: Cudgel thy brains no more about it; for your dull ass will not mend his pace with heating

or even better:

If I owe you any thing, I will pay you in cudgels: you shall be a woodmonger, and buy nothing of me but cudgels. God b' wi' you, and keep you, and heal your pate.

Amended to put some cudgels in.

[Brendan]

Or in a modern, adapted production of Hamelt. ?I?m gonna cudgel yo ass good!?.

[downsouth]

I'm not so sure, there's an Oddbins in the Village and one in West Dulwich. The Nicolas is the only one for miles around.

[scor46]

Now Brendan that made me laugh..:))

[mockney piers]

Well maybe they've found a strong buy-in to the Oddbins brand in the area then.

I have heard it from a good source that they plan to take the best spots and bleed it dry before offloading the husk of a company to some poor soul.

[scor46]

Good ol Mockney... back on topic

[downsouth]

Well I hope not, I'm v. fond of our local and don't think a Nicolas would quite cut the dijon.

[mockney piers]

Totally agree with you downsouth. My brother worked at Oddbins a few years back, and the passion for wine among the staff was so obvious.

It didn't matter what job you wanted, you had to serve 3 months on the shop floor to understand what it was all about.

I think that's gone now, but it's still has a great selection and an onus on staff to know what they're talking about.

It'd be a sad loss to the area, not because they're also well trained in vermin control using traditional cudgel based methods, most particularly the thwap and the spludge.

[downsouth]

The spludge has always been a favourite of mine - so graceful yet effective.

So, was there an Oddbins on LL previously as I've only known of the two in SE21?

[Brendan]

I knew a guy who worked for Oddbins and had done his degree in wine (winery? wineing? wineology?) at Stellenbosch University near Cape Town. He was indeed passionate about it.

Unfortunately we were acquainted at a time when I had a much more desperado, quantity over quality approach to alcohol than I do now so I never took much heed of his wisdom on the subject.

I do like the thwap myself but can only achieve it with a cosh which, as I?m sure you know, is cheating.

[Keef]

Just seen this thread, I'd be up for a wine tasting.

Also, if anyone is interested in learning about where the wines come from, and how they've made made through the ages, as well as tasting all sorts of wines from around the world (including a very bizarre Indian red that frankly tasted like kebab meat), then I fully recommend a visit to Vinopolis on Clink Street.

When I went (a good couple of years ago), it was ?12.50 to get in which included 5 tasting tickets, but then you could buy strips of 5 more for ?2.50. I wasn't sure about it, but really enjoyed it!