BUBBLE BROTHERS – CORK WINE MERCHANTS

wine • champagne • more

BUBBLE BROTHERS – CORK WINE MERCHANTS random header image

Cava in the Castle

August 17th, 2010 · BB tastings, Blackrock Castle Wine Club, wine

-

August Wine Club Meeting

 Friday (not Thursday!)

 27th August 2010 at 7.30 pm

 

 

Cataluña!

 

There has been a lot going on at Bubble Brothers recently. As regular readers of this column will realise, June saw the sad dpearture of Julian from the company. This was an unwelcome but necessary decision that had to be made as we, along with so many others in small business, have strived to adapt in the current economic circumstance. Furthermore, Valérie has also left to move to Limerick where she has taken on an exciting new challenge and is able to be closer to her partner. Both of our esteemed former colleagues will be dearly missed and we wish them the very best of luck in their future endeavours.  And you never know, we may yet see them again soon at one of our tastings at the Castle!

 

 

This month we are going to talk about Spain. We will start in Cataluña and celebrate the advent of the Indian summer with a glass of Toni Garriga’s delicious vintage Cava.

We’re not going to give everything away here suffice to say that we will also be exploring the magnificent wines of acústic celler in nearby Montsant.

 

 

 

The line-up is evenly mixed with four whites and an equal number of red wines covering an enticing mixture of styles.

 

 

As usual we will introduce a mystery bottle with a special prize for the most accurate identifier!

Unusually, our Club Night takes place on a Friday this month as the Castle is fully engaged with Julie Sharkey’s final performance in ‘Raccoon

(Meridian Theatre Co) on the last Thursday in August

An early bird meal deal at the Trattoria will also be available from 6pm onwards – please phone the restaurant for details on 021-435-7911.

The price for a ticket to join on the night is just €25 to include all the delicious wine in your glass, some tasty nibbles on the table (olives and good bread),

the magnificent venue and company of the Bubble Brothers team, friends and fellow club members.

Tickets can be purchased online or at either of our shops in English Market or at the Marina.

For more information please call the office at 021-431-6000.  

 

→ No CommentsTags:

Snip

June 28th, 2010 · wine

Felco secateurs
I came to the wine business from gardening, so I’m pretty sanguine about the need to prune from time to time to keep things healthy and stimulate growth.

This is my last day at Bubble Brothers, is what I’m on about.

I don’t feel that a factual or emotional summary of the six or seven years I’ve spent here serves any useful purpose, though I can’t imagine having acquired such a variety of new skills and interests in such a supportive environment anywhere else; and I do regret not having the time (or courtesy, depending on your point of view) to write to people I’ve met or otherwise dealt with and express the appropriate thanks and so on.

My colleagues at Bubble Brothers will continue to look after you with due care and attention, not to mention energy and flair, as you avail of some of the most interesting wines, and wine-related entrepreneuring, in the country.

→ 11 CommentsTags:

Tasting wines from the Hahn portfolio with Bill Leigon

June 21st, 2010 · video, wine

→ No CommentsTags: ···

Tasting some Hahn Family wines with Bill Leigon, company president

June 19th, 2010 · video, wine

→ No CommentsTags: ···

Where wine and music meet – talking synaesthesia with Bill Leigon (interview part 5)

June 19th, 2010 · video, wine

In which I ask Bill about how he ended up in the wine business, and then we discuss the influence that wine and music can have on each other.

→ No CommentsTags: ······

Bill Leigon interview – part 4

June 19th, 2010 · marketing, video, wine

In which Julian asks Bill about the Hahn family’s involvement in the company, and about the relatively modest alcohol content of the Cycles Gladiator range.

→ No CommentsTags: ······

New Italian wines

June 18th, 2010 · wine

As a change from the last few posts about my chat with Bill Leigon of Hahn Wines, and before I complete the sequence of video clips from that interview, I thought you ought to know about our new wines from Italy.

It’s been a while since we made so many additions to the list all at once, and this time there are some new styles to enjoy.

Our choices are the result of Billy’s trip to the VinItaly fair in Verona earlier in the year. As well as the lovely and different wines from Emilia-Romagna that he picked out during his visit, there was also progress with a relationship I’ve had on the back burner for a few years, which means we have some cracking Sicilian bottles too.

Here are the new arrivals, including sweet, sparkling reds, pink Pinot Grigio and grapes that may be new to you:

From Emilia-Romagna (whence cometh Parmesan cheese and Bolognese sauce, food matchers):

Lombardini, Lambrusco Emilia IGT "Lambrusco della Dama" 11% a.b.v.

Read more>>

Price: €9.95

Lombardini, Chardonnay frizzante "Il Bianco della Dama" 11% a.b.v.

Read more>>

Price: €9.95

Lombardini, Reggiano Lambrusco Amabile DOC 8.5% a.b.v.

Read more>>

Price: €11.00

Zerioli, Pinot Grigio Frizzante Tenuta Pozzolo DOC

Read more>>

Price: €12.50

Zerioli, Gutturnio Colli Piacentini DOC

Read more>>

Price: €13.50

and, from Sicily:

Feudo Montoni, "Colori del Sud" Rosso Sicilia IGT

Read more>>

Price: €11.50

Feudo Montoni, "Colori del Sud" Bianco Sicilia IGT

Read more>>

Price: €11.50

Feudo Montoni, Nero d'Avola "N"

Read more>>

Price: €13.50

Feudo Montoni, Catarratto

Read more>>

Price: €15.50

→ No CommentsTags: ······

Bill Leigon talks wine and technology (interview part 3)

June 11th, 2010 · video, wine

→ No CommentsTags: ······

Bill Leigon talks naked nymphs and mobile marketing (interview part 2)

June 5th, 2010 · marketing, video, wine

→ No CommentsTags: ·····

Wine Australia Ireland 2010

June 3rd, 2010 · Ireland, wine

Rathbone Raiders take their trophy at Touch Wine 2010 in Dublin
So here we are enjoying the fruits of our labours at the charity tag-rugby event that warmed up a number of Irish wine folk the day before the annual Wine Australia tasting.  As you can see, we won a cup.  There were other cups, more ostentatiously proportioned it must be said, that we might have won if we’d had a mind to.

Muscle, youthful vigour and the feminine touch were lent, in roughly that order,  to the Bubble crew by visitors from our Australian suppliers Rathbone Wine Group; the son, with his friends, of a leading light of Irish wine journalism; and a member of the Wine Australia team, poached to order because, as far as the Rules are concerned, a team with no ladies is no team at all.

We had a lot of fun before, during and after.

I ought to write a serious post about the extraordinary efforts of Wine Australia and its man in Ireland, John McDonnell.  I will try.

→ 1 CommentTags: ···