With the announcement just last month that the latest cellar master for Louis XIII’s Cognac will be Pierrette Trichet, (a lady!), we thought it was about time we delved into the world of cognac with our customers, and explored how best to enjoy it. The fact that Trichet is only the 4th Cellar Master for Louis XIII shows that she … Read More
A taste of the Old Fashioned at Nickolls and Perks
We always have an enticing selection of wines and spirits on taste in store; we’ve now taken that a stage further by offering a classy cocktail, freshly made to order. For just £5, our resident expert, Jerome will mix you the perfect combination of 2 oz of Evan Williams Extra aged Bourbon Whiskey 1/4 oz Evan Williams Honey Reserve Bourbon … Read More
Vintage Champagne tasting, 8th August 2014.
This eagerly anticipated event sold out quickly, and we had a full house, welcoming visitors from as far away as Manchester. This evening offered a rare opportunity to compare back-to-back (or should that be Blanc de Blancs?) Six different vintage champagnes. We began with Champagne Palmer Blanc de Blancs 2008 priced at £38 per bottle. Champagne Palmer & Co Blanc … Read More
Tales of Derring-do…
And now for something completely different… Friends of Nickolls and Perks, Will, Jon, Mitch and Tom are driving an old Toyota Yaris 10,000 miles to Mongolia for charity: This seemingly bonkers idea is to help raise awareness and money for a condition close to our hearts, FOP or fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva. FOP is a disorder in which fibrous muscle and … Read More
El Dorado Rum Tasting – 27th June 2014
It was a real pleasure to welcome Stefanie to Nickolls and Perks once again for an enticing line-up of some of the World’s finest rums. Stefanie is the International Brand Ambassador for El Dorado Rums and she treated us to an evening of education and anecdotes regarding rum in general, and of course, El Dorado in particular. El Dorado 3 year … Read More
10% Off Cocktail Tipples
Summer is almost upon us, and with summer comes BBQ’s and garden parties – good food, great friends and superb drinks. We’re not talking the usual boring beer and wine here; we mean business, something fun and different to cool you down on a hot day – cocktails! The first recorded use of the term ‘cocktail’ dates back to 1803, … Read More
Undiscovered Gems Tasting – Friday 6th June
Finally, as we are just over a fortnight to longest day, we convene on a warm, sunny evening to taste 6 wines that are often overlooked but in our (humble) opinion punch well above their weight. Domaine Bourdon Saint Veran 2011 We started our evening with this Southern Macon Burgundy, composed of 100% Chardonnay, this is a fairly full-bodied, round … Read More
Champagne Tasting 25th April 2014
The penultimate Friday in April brought along showers worthy of the proverb; it would hopefully bode well for the appearance of the following month’s flowers… …so, safe from whatever the weather was doing outside, we assembled in our cellars to sample the delights of six different Champagnes. Our selection was designed to compare some established, well-known favourites with examples from … Read More
Vodka and Gin from Chase Distillery
The sun shone on Stourbridge (try saying that quickly after sampling the evening’s offerings) We welcomed James Chase from Chase distillery to conduct the evening’s tasting. Like N&P, Chase Distillery is an independent, 4th generation, family run business, so we were keen to share experiences. Based less than 40 miles away, in Herefordshire, they have been creating fine spirits since … Read More
It’s all about Chardonnay, 4th April 2014
The inviting sound of Champagne bottles being opened greeted our customers for this evening’s Chardonnay tasting. Champagne Palmer Blanc des Blancs 2006 provided a perfect opener – it is 100% Chardonnay, offering a gorgeous balance between toasty brioche and the zing of citrus with floral & honey notes. Displaying good acidity but with an underlying creamy smoothness, no wonder it’s … Read More