What Would I Buy From Harrods If Money Were No Object?

Problem

What to buy?

Firstly I'd wait for the sales. However, if you are not around for the sales, or want something for Christmas looking at both ends of the price scale:

Organic tree honey

£25 for 250g. From Food Halls, ground floor.

Last time we bought honey, prices ranged from about £1-2 for own brand in Morrisons, to about £2.50-£5 for each of three jars of speciality honey, bought for a Jewish guest of honour to celebrate Jewish New Year. I thought that was an extravagance.

Money no object?

If you don't already have one (we do) get a Coravin. It's like a steel straw which makes a hole in the cork so you can pour a glass of wine without lifting the cork. The cork-reseals.

For when you want one glass of wine, if you drink alone, or one of you likes red and the other wants white.

Useful Websites

http://www.drinkaware.co.uk

https://www.coravin.co.uk

http://www.harrods.com

Harrods has branches in London, England, UK;

They were also previously in Singapore
Please look at my new website
http://www.luxurytravelforless.co.uk

Beer in Britain, map from Marks and Spencer

Marks & Spencer produced a handy map entitled Brewed in Britain in 2015. Marks won the award International Beer Challenge Retailer of the Year in 2014. They say that Britain has about 1,300 breweries.

Handy guide to all colours of beer and even beer designed to match your curry! Colours range from pale, such as Cornish Pale Ale, (£2.40 for 500 ml): through lager; Saison, Amber;  Red (Yorkshire Red); Norfolk Bitter; Battersea Rye which is brown. Finally Porter, London Porter. 
Porter is a dark brown beer, malted, 'similar to stout'.

Travelling and Beer Tasting
BRITAIN
In Britain every street and village seems to have a pub or two. Look for a free house (one not tied to a particular manufacturer/owner/organisation).
Useful information from CAMRA, campaign for real ale.

HOLLAND & GERMANY
Known for Weiss beer which means white beer.

IRELAND
Known for black beer. It is made from malted (sprouted) hops. The malting develops sugar for making alcohol which gives energy for growth - that's why fruits have sugar.
Guinness is ubiquitous (found everywhere) in Ireland where even a clothes shop has bottles int he window.

Belgium
Belgium is very proud of its beers, with speciality pubs offering up to 30 beers.
In the UK 'Products containing alcohol can only be sold or delivered to those 18 or over.'
Drinkaware.co.uk

marksandspencer.com/food-digest

http://visitabrewery.co.uk

http://www.beeracademy.co.uk/courses/foundation-course/

Angela Lansbury, travel writer, author, speaker

Map of the Vineyards of England and Wales

I saw this map on the wall of The Butlers Wine Cellar Limited in Queen's Park Road, Brighton, when we went in there to buy some wine. I asked where they got the map and said I wanted to know because I'd like one. This is the 2011 edition and out of date which cost £2.95. Helpful Mike in the shop posted me an old copy as he had a spare one. I thought it would arrive in a tube but it packed flat into an A5 envelope with a first class stamp. Thank you, Mike!

I'll be reading it and listing places to visit and checking online to see the places still exist and get updates. So come back later to find out what I've found out.

Would you believe by the time this map was printed in 2011 we already had 160 vineyards in England. Another seven in Wales. And global warming is good news for wine growers in the UK.

I have written earlier posts about visiting vineyards.  Denbies has a big, bustling building offering indoor and outdoor tours, a shop adjoining the ground floor cafe, plus a smart upstairs restaurant. 

Nyetimber is even more picturesque. It was open only intermittently for odd days in 2014 but plans to open more often later next year.  I also tried wine tasting at a bustling vineyard complex in Wales which has a restaurant, a bar, outdoor seating for eating in good weather, a shop and accommodation.

Speaking of English and Welsh wine, do you know the difference between English and British wines? England now has protected status for geographical locations. But a British wine can be a blend, not even grown in England, but blended and bottled somewhere in Britain.

Butler's Wine Cellar Ltd

247 Queens Park Road, Brighton BN2 9X.

Tel: 01273 698 724.

www.butlers-winecellar.co.uk

An online map of vineyards:

http://ukvineyards.co.uk/vineyards-map/

More Associations:

www.drinkaware.co.uk

www.drinkbritain.com

www.englishwine.com

www.englishsparklingwine.com

www.englishwineproducers.com

www.sparklingenglishwine.com

www.ukva.org.uk (UK Vineyards Association)

www.wineguilduk.org

Angela Lansbury, author, travel writer, speaker.

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