After really quite a good, cold, dry winter, the first signs of spring are just trying to appear. The early flowers have done reasonably well. Snowdrops and crocuses were wonderful this year and the former are still going quite strong. The daffodils and primroses are late but starting to brighten up our gardens and woodland. I have seen a few early cowslips, but they are not really out yet. The next wild flower, the bluebells, won’t be too far away, although they don’t usually appear before St George’s Day, April 23rd, and then flower until the end of May. Their brilliant, shiny green leaves will soon be starting to poke through the surface and then you will know that winter really is over and spring well underway. A few hawthorn and hazel are already showing signs of breaking leaf in the hedgerows. Our mowers are still “hibernating”, but another few days of this reasonable weather will see them dusted off and giving our lawns their first cut of the year. Fingers crossed for a good, warm spring and a lovely hot summer! We’re due one.

Spring Tasting

Saturday 7th April 5.30 until 8.00 & Sunday 8th April 11.00 until 1.30.

Do put these dates in your diaries now! We’re not yet sure what we’ll be giving you to taste but it will be something designed to tickle your taste buds.

As usual, this will be held in our Tasting Room off the yard behind the shop building. It’s always a sociable occasion, so we hope that this appeals to you and that you will be able to spare the time to come on one or other of the above days. When the weather is dry and has been for a few weeks, do please feel free to park on the grass through the yard behind Trencherman’s. However, if it has not been dry, please do NOT park on the grass or you will get stuck!

Summer Tastings

Saturday 7th 5.30 to 8.00 & Sunday 8th July 11.00 to 1.30

We hope that not too many of you will be away on holiday and that you will be able to come on one or other of the days. Apart from the December wine tasting, this is our biggest tasting of the year.

Autumn Wine Tasting dinner at Trencherman’s

Friday 12th October

A date for your diaries. We haven’t decided where the wines will be from will be from, but it’s always a fun occasion, so please pencil it in your diaries. As soon as we have a firm idea we will let you know. If you would like to register your interest at this stage, please do! Prices will remain at £45 a head which includes a multi course gourmet dinner.

Wines from Trencherman’s

Much has changed here since the early days when we only sold the odd bottle of wine to put in a hamper. Now wine is an important, if not the most important, part of our business, as you can see from the amount of room it takes up in the shop. We must be one of the larger independent wine merchants in the area with around five hundred different wines and spirits from which to choose. We buy the majority of our wines direct from the producer, so you will find many wines here which you won’t find elsewhere and prices are very competitive. We sell a lot of magnums, which make wonderful presents or a terrific talking point at a dinner party. Winemakers always say that the wine in a magnum matures better than that in a normal sized bottle. So there’s another reason for trying a magnum!

We are more than happy to give advice on starting or stocking cellars or laying down wines; wines for parties or weddings; which wine to buy to go with a particular dish for a dinner party; wine as presents; Vintage Port for godsons and fine wines for special occasions. A major advantage of buying your wine from us is that you are nearly always able to buy a single bottle before committing yourself to a case purchase – and, of course, we have regular Tastings. If you find you don’t like what you have bought, we will exchange it for something else (full bottles only!). Wines can be purchased on sale or return for larger parties or weddings, as well as sparkling elder flower, and we can chill everything which needs cooling in our chillers, which saves fiddling about with buckets of ice. Glasses are loaned free of charge if you have bought the wine from us.

Many wines vary from vintage to vintage and so we are continually changing the range and variety of wines which we stock. There is something for everybody here, with a wide selection of wines from France in particular, but also from Italy, Spain, Australia, New Zealand and South America.

We are, of course, especially strong on French wines, with the southern Rhône being, as ever, a consistent performer. Bordeaux has had three good vintages in a row – a fantastic 2015 an even better 2016 with 2017 a small but good vintage too. Burgundy, on the other hand, has had several very poor vintages in a row due to frost and hail, and wines are in exceedingly short supply and pretty expensive. The Southern Rhone has had a succession of wonderful vintages and 2015 and 2016 were both very highly acclaimed. If you are strong-willed, it would be well worth putting a few cases of the 2016s back for future consumption. However, they are drinking beautifully now, so don’t feel you have to!

From Spain we have wines from Ochoa in Navarra and from Rioja Martinez Bujanda and Miguel Merino. These are really lovely wines and well worth trying if you have yet to do so. Our old favourite from Martinez Bujanda, Candidato, has always been and still is just the best value around. Martinez Bujanda also have extensive vineyards at Finca Antigua (nothing to do with the West Indies!) in La Mancha producing excellent quality, sensibly priced and very drinkable wines. Do look out for them!

We have a selection of fine clarets and vintage ports in our cellars if you need a special bottle or case of wine as a present, or even just for yourselves!

Trencherman’s Home-cooked Meals

These are ever popular and we are always amazed at how they fly out. Our apologies for the lack of choice after Christmas, but we were all but wiped out and have only just about got back on an even keel. We have a choice of about 10 meals at the moment and are making more each week. The latest ones to be made were Thai Green Pheasant Curry, a particularly good Game Casserole and Lamb Tajine.

A Feast of Game!

Game is not only very good for one, being free range and very low on fat, but it is increasingly plentiful. We have good stocks of most things, so clear a corner of your freezer and stock up at these bargain prices!

Pigeon Breasts

There have been lots of pigeons around and our pigeon shooters have been busy controlling them….so we have quite a few in stock! They’re easy to cook and quite delicious. Down from £6.95 to just £4.95 for 10 while stocks last.

Pheasant Breasts

The offer is a bit late appearing this year, but we have quite good stocks of Pheasant breasts at £2.95 a pack of 4, down from £4.95.

Pheasant Thighs

These have no sinews so are great for casseroling. Usually £3.95 per pack of 8, these are on offer for £2.95 per pack.

Partridges

Down from £3.95 a bird to £2.95 a bird.

Grouse

They were really plentiful this year and amazingly good value at only £4.50 a bird. Now they are just £3.95 each.

Olives

Our olives are renowned, especially the large green Gordal! Until Easter we will be reducing the price by 20%! Stock up now!

Canapé Cases

Another favourite. These come in packs of 64 and we will be reducing the price from £4.50 to £3.60 also until Easter. They last for ever, so they too are a good buy.

Dried Pastas

We have a really good new range of pastas. Spaghetti, Linguine, Tagliatelle Nests, Tagliatelle, Orzo (rice shaped), Tonnarelli al nero di sepia (black squid ink pasta), Cannelloni, Gargarnelli, and Lasagne. 20% discount off all our pastas until the end of April – so stock up now!

Not only is this quite delicious, but it is a really easy recipe and the end result is some of the most tender and tasty pheasant you’ve ever eaten. By using just the thighs, one avoids all the sinews which are in the lower part of the legs.

Ingredients for 4 people:

• 2 packs of Pheasant Thighs (16 thighs);
• 2 tins Duck or Goose fat
• Coarse Salt,
• Fresh or dried Thyme.

Method

• Place the Pheasant thighs in a dish, covering liberally with salt and thyme. You can put them in layers if need be.
• Cover with cling film and leave overnight or for at least 7 or 8 hours.
• Shake off the loose salt and thyme before placing in an oven dish.
• Cover with the duck or goose fat.
• Cook on a very low heat for 2 to 3 hours, turning once or twice to make sure the joints are covered in fat at all times.
• Remove from the fat and dry on kitchen paper.
• Serve on a mixed salad of soft leaves with some crusty bread