Buying wine in London?

M

Michael Jennings

Michael Jennings
Any ideas beyond the obvious (Berry Bros.; department stores)? I'm especially interested in good German Riesling and Loire selections.

All advice much appreciated!

Mike
 
They don't have the best website but these folks have some interesting German wines (more than the usual Donnhoff and Loosen you find at every store in the city) and some good Loire as well:

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www.thewineryuk.com
 
For Germany look at Howard Ripley. Sebastian has been doing this for a long time. Justerinis is a newcomer with a decent selection.

For Loire try Vinetrail which gathers the widest range. This does not mean has is a large range. Try also Cave du Pyrenees for wines often mentioned on this board...

I wish I was affiliated with any of the above so I could tuck into their inventory anytime I want...
 
Filippo of course mentions great names, but one should point out that they are not retail shops and for the most part require case purchases (or perhaps half cases?)

If Michael is living in London all the better. But if it's just a few bottles for a short trip, be prepared.
 
I was going to mention them. Last I checked it often required calling up a day or two in advance for them to bring the bottles in from off-site. But obviously a keen focus on the Loire for them.
 
SFjoe that's correct. It's online as well. Vinoteca also not too bad.

Amazingly enough there no decent wine shop in retail format comes to mid. I gave up circa 8 years ago.

Quite the opposite of Paris. (We are just catching up on the wine bars front, a couple, Terroirs and 28-50, opened in the last 2 years!)
 
The Sampler came around 1/2 years ago as the retail wine shop in which you could also buy older vintages plus they have these machines in which you can taste wine down there at the shop. One of these is dedicated to so called wine icons.

The selection IMVVVHO is nothing to write home about, still miles away from what you can get in an average wine disorder retail shop in Paris. Prices, especially on Champagne, are very steep. That said it could well be the best wine shop in London.

Sad but true. Metallica.
 
Generally I agree with Filippo, though I think it's unfair to describe Justerini
as newcomers as importers of German wines, 150 years or so seeming to me quite a long time! Huntsworth in Kensington Church Street is worth a browse, as is Lea and Sandeman just up the road.Harrods have some very good wines and the prices aren't particularly out of line with retail competition,ditto Wholefoods in Kensington High Street, very expensive, and Harvey Nichols, less so, but we don't really buy by the bottle from shops , for some reason, the economic model doesn't work, hence what I agree are the rather high prices at The Sampler, whose selection I would probably rate higher than Filippo does; indeed it's probably the best possible under the circumstances.
 
Thanks, everyone, for the advice. I've checked out a number of the suggestions and the results are...disheartening. The selection is usually 70% Bordeaux; non-French wines occupy about 10% of the shelves. And there are very, very few top producers from "minor" regions like the Loire and Germany.

But I'll soldier on!
 
Another trick is to think of a Loire producer, say, that you like and to use Wine Searcher to find where in the UK you can get that producer's wines, then see if there's anything else interesting to that shop.

I do that sometimes (with different producers/regions) when I'm in a city I don't know and don't have any wine-store recommendations handy.
 
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