Next tasting - Friday 10th October

Uncover Europe’s Best-Kept Wine Secret

Web: https://inknotts.com

The next Grand Union Wine Society tasting will be on Oct 10th, presented by Martin Flowers of InKnotts Wine in Mansfield. 

Step into the world of Moldova – a country with over 6,000 years of winemaking heritage and a reputation for crafting wines that rival Europe’s finest. In just the last five years, Moldovan winemakers have earned over 7,000 international medals, including the coveted title of Best Red Wine in the World (2022).

As the 6th largest wine producer in Europe, Moldova’s vineyards stretch across 112,000 hectares, producing both renowned international grapes and rare indigenous varieties found nowhere else.

This exclusive tasting is your chance to experience remarkable wines you won’t see on supermarket shelves – authentic, award-winning, and unforgettable.

Join us and taste what the wine world is finally starting to discover.

In addition to wide range of wines to be tasted, Martin will be bring small plates of savoury Moldovan snacks for everyone to try.

This promises to be a great evening, which members and their guests are warmly invited to attend.

Please register your intention to attend by paying in the usual manner, as per the attached guidance. It is very helpful to us if you are able to pay by Friday October 3rd.

What we tasted in September 2025

A new light on Laithwaites?

This month we were very glad to welcome Ross Donaldson and his team (Sam and Dan) from the Laithwaites shop in Nottingham. Laithwaites are a hugely successful wine importer, but they also make their own wines, and these are what we tasted today. These wines all come with their own stories, from the original French vineyard taken over by Tom Laithwaite to the vineyard in Windsor Great Park that resulted from customer feedback. The wines were full of interest too.

For more information: https://www.laithwaites.co.uk/jsp/content.jsp?pg=store_nottingham

The wines tasted were:

1. Windsor Great Park Vineyard, sparkling; Berkshire, England, 2019. Chardonnay Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier.

2. Harrow & Hope Blanc de Blancs, sparkling; Marlow, England, 2020. Chardonnay.

3. Château la Clarière blanc; AC Bordeaux, France, 2022. Sauvignon blanc, Sauvignon gris.

4. La Voûte; VDF, Limoux, France, 2024. Chardonnay

5. Château la Clarière rouge; AC Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux, France, 2022. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Cabernet Franc.

6. RedHeads Night of the Living Red; South Australia, 2022. Durif, Shiraz, Touriga Nacional.

7. RedHeads 1888; Barossa Valley, Australia, 2022. Shiraz

8. La Presbytère de la Clarière; AC Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux, France, 2020. Cabernet Sauvignon.

   
   

   

   
   

Next tasting - Friday 12th September

A new light on Laithwaites?

The Grand Union Wine Society’s September 12th tasting will be: A new light on Laithwaites?

Laithwaites is probably a name that is familiar to many members of our Society, with several of us being regular customers. Since its foundation in 1969 as Bordeaux Direct, this family-run wine merchant has developed a solid reputation for excellent value for money and attentive customer service.

Members may be less familiar with the top-end wines that Laithwaites produce from their own vineyards and wineries; it is these that we will be tasting on the 12th September. Over recent years Laithwaites' holdings have expanded across the globe, from Tony Laithwaite’s original acquisition in Castillon (literally a stone’s throw from the great appellation of St Emilion) to include estates in Bordeaux, the south of France, the Barossa Valley, and in England, where they own estates in Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Oxford, and even a planting in Windsor Great Park.

The tasting will be presented by Ross Donaldson, the Manager of Laithwaites’ Nottingham store, and his team. It will reflect on Laithwaites’ fascinating 50-year history and will showcase the family’s own top-end wines, from elegant English fizz through savoury gems from Bordeaux to bold Aussie reds. It promises to be a great evening, which members and their guests are warmly invited to attend.

Web: https://www.laithwaites.co.uk/jsp/content.jsp?pg=store_nottingham

Please register your intention to attend by paying in the usual manner, as per the attached guidance. It is very helpful to us if you are able to pay by Friday Sept 5th.

I know from personal experience that Laithwaites have wines that are a world away from the bargain bin offerings of their bulk advertising campaigns. I do hope you will come along to discover them.

Finally, September is the annual subscription month. The annual subscription is unchanged at £20 per person. Please could I ask you to pay this now.