Goodbye 2017

2017 was a steady-as-she-goes year for Les Caves.

The highlight was the very well-attended Real Wine Fair which took place in May at Tobacco Dock, featuring a record number of growers from all over the world pouring their wines. There was the usual enthusiastic mixture of public and trade, some wonderful street food stalls and captivating and educational seminars. We were delighted to welcome Bar Brutal, The Four Horsemen, Le Verre Volé and Embla who cooked up a storm in our various restaurants on the two evenings of the fair. Meanwhile, The Real Wine Month promotion involved nearly three hundred restaurants, bars and retailers and was supported in Ireland and Scotland as well as natural wines were poured by the glass and highlighted on lists and also in shops across the UK.

With financial uncertainty and a falling £, we reined in the buying somewhat, however there were several intriguing new wines to welcome. We took on our first Slovenian agencies (Burja in Vipava; Nando in Goriska Brda and Zorjan from Stajerska), one estate from Hungary (Hetszolo in Tokaj), and strengthened our southern Italian selection with wines from Iole Rabasco, Marina Palusci, AA Caravaglio and Antica Enotria. And, as purveyors of extreme oddities, we also brought you non-fortified sherries, Oregon Trousseau and, of course, Savoie Chardonnay fermented in a concrete pyramid!

The 2017 vintage, being another well below average (especially in France, Italy and Spain), will see further increased pressure on prices. There is a shortage of grapes now in so many wine-producing countries for one reason or another. Which should serve to drive us all to drink, but less of it - and much better quality. That’s the idea, anyway!

In 2018 Les Caves de Pyrène will be 30! There are no doubt celebrations afoot, as well as many smaller events planned (The Real Wine Fair is putting its feet up for a year). We will continue to try to make the wine world a smaller place, bringing honestly-made, beautifully-farmed delicious wines (real wines) to our customers, telling the stories about where these wines come from and how they came to be made.

To our customers, to our friends, we wish them health and happiness and the very best for 2018.

Imagery courtesy of Hesh HIPP for The Real Wine Fair 2017.

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Retail: [email protected] / 01483 554750