Earlier this year I posted a picture of our beautify bright blue dwarf irises that came out in the early spring. Now it is time for the early summer irises which I believe are Dutch irises – they grow from a bulb rather than a rhizome and are non-bearded types. We have two different colours in the garden, both of which always surprise me with their display at this time of year.

Sadly they are just going over now, making way for more summer flowers to push through. Trish has done her “Chelsea chop” to extend the flowering season of certain varietals. The much-needed wet weather of today will give all of our plants a refreshing boost for the weeks to come. No moaning about the rain.

A long-overdue photo of Amy and Moss, two wonderful working dogs. They were so polite they didn’t want to come into the shop with muddy feet. We caught them in the early morning sun in the car park, ready to round up any passing sheep.

Thank you Nigel for bringing them along – next time bring Jester too, then we can have the full set in one picture. Maybe we could borrow a wooly pig or two and do a sheepdog trial in the carpark?

Our ever-enthusiastic Amanda has written the below article on English wine in recognition of the fact that England are going to beat Scotland this evening, errr, I mean in recognition of the fact that English Wine Week starts tomorrow. When is Scottish Wine Week? In all seriousness, the quality of English wine, both still and sparkling has improved almost immeasurably over the last 10 years and the wines produced here regularly win awards against the very best from around the world. This week ahead is the perfect time to try a bottle or two.

Last week we gave you advance warning of Father’s Day. This week it is Final Warning! Father’s Day is on Sunday, if you haven’t got your beloved Dad a decent bottle of something then tomorrow is the time. We have a wide variety of goodies, from wine, through spirits to Ports and lots more besides. And if nothing catches your eye, buy a gift card and your Pop can come in and choose something for himself. Get on it.

We had the opportunity to taste something very special recently, Amanda has done a little write-up for you.

What does a 125 year old wine taste like?

Working in a wine shop is (sometimes) the best job in the world. This week we were lucky enough to experience a taste of something with 125 years on the clock – a single vintage tawny port from Taylors, from grapes harvested in 1896. We were sent enough for around a tablespoon each to try. A deep caramel colour with an olive green tint at the edge, the wine was still clear and very viscous. The aromas were amazing – so intense that you could smell them from 2 metres away, even wearing a face mask! Unlike a vintage ruby port, which matures in the bottle, tawny port is aged in large old oak casks called pipes. This wine originally started out maturing in 18 pipes and due to the gradual evaporation over the years, the remaining wine was condensed into just 2 pipes! The wine is now so concentrated that the aromas, flavours and alcohol are extremely intense.

At the time Amanda wrote the above we had yet to receive the retail price of this incredible port. Wait for it. A cool £3950 a bottle, presented in a decanter as in the picture above. We have a tiny allocation available, if any of you are interested please let me know soonest. Gary – bet you are glad you popped in that day! Extraordinary.

A few New Ins this week across the whole spectrum, so here goes:

Fizz:
Bollinger PNVZ16 (bottles £80, mags £200) – we have just about run out of the prior release (PNVZ15) of this 100% pinot noir Champagne so we are delighted to have just received new stocks of the 2016 version. We have a limited number of magnums, so if that is your thing, jump in quick.

White:
2017 Glenelly Glass Collection unoaked Chardonnay, Stellenbosch (£13.95) – to add to our SA range of quality wines, another excellent unoaked Chardonnay. Think Bon Vallon up a notch.
2017 Joseph Drouhin Meursault 1er Cru Charmes (£89) – the producer needs no introduction, the vineyard needs no introduction, the vintage needs no introduction. Enough said.
2018 Drouhin-Vaudon Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos (£85)- almost ditto. The best of the seven climats in the Grand Cru vineyard of Chablis, this wine is more reminiscent of well make Puligny than a Chablis.

Reds:
2017 Glenelly Glass Collection Cabernet Franc, Stellenbosch (£13.95) – in the right hands Cabernet Franc produces such an expressive wine and we weren’t disappointed with this example.
2016 Artazu Pasos de San Martin (£25.50) – well made Spanish red, 100% Garnacha from Navarra this is a lighter summer wine that still packs a punch flavour wise. Pre-barbecue after the rose.
2016 Artadi El Seque (£29.50) – this time 90% Monastrell, 10% Syrah from Alicante, this wine is powerful with plenty of flavour but is not overbearing on the palate. Think barbecue if/when the sun comes out.
2011 Lopez de Haro Gran Reserva Rioja (£21.50) – we have just got a handful of these bottles to see what it is like, before making a commitment to larger volumes. For this who have enjoyed the Reserva from the same producer, this is an obvious step up.
2015 Chateau Carignan, Bordeaux (£18.00) – we had this in half bottles, have sold out so have replaced with full bottles. Decent drinking Claret.
2015 Chateau Bel Air, Graves, Bordeaux (£25) – we have restocked on the popular half bottles of this wine (£15) and brought in some full sized bottles at the same time. Yummy, even at this young age.
2010 Pastourelle de Clerc Milon HALVES, Pauillac, Bordeaux (£25 per half) – the second wine of Rothschild-owned Clerc Milon, this second wine from the great 2010 vintage is perfect for drinking now in this smaller format.And finally…..
2013 Glenelly ‘Lady May’ MAGNUMS, Stellenbosch, (£70) – a wine that comes to us with the highest recommendation from a trusted trade friend of mine, I couldn’t resist getting it in in larger bottles. Top quality wine at a sensible price. Tim Atkin and Decanter have both given this wine 95 points out of 100.

This week’s Car’s the Star is a monster Range Rover Sport. It has all of the bells and whistles you could possibly want and is quite a beast. The height of luxury, you feel like you are sitting in a comfy leather settee when behind the wheel of this one. And yet it still has all of the power you could ask for from a drivers perspective. Looks black? It is actually a very, very dark pearlescent blue. Lovely.

Many thanks to George and Michelle for bringing it down to see us so soon after acquisition, a nice treat on a Saturday afternoon.

Here endeth another edition of Sheldon‘s Times. Let’s hope the weather over the next couple of days is a little better than it has been today so we can recapture the spirit of summer. Plenty to do in the garden and lots of wine to drink so let the sun shine. As ever, Amanda, Trish and I will be here tomorrow to meet your every-wine-related-need and sort your Father’s Day dilemmas out. Pop in and say hello, we’d love to see you.