Royal wine merchant hosts street party for HM’s 90th

Royal warrant-holding wine merchant Walker & Wodehouse, part of Bibendum PLB, will throw a street party today to mark the start of a weekend of events celebrating the Queen’s 90th birthday.

The street celebration will take place from 2 to 4pm today outside Walker & Wodehouse HQ on Regents Park Road in Primrose Hill, London, marking the start of a weekend of official birthday celebrations.

Local residents and guests will be able to sample some of the British-born highlights of the merchant’s portfolio including English sparkling wine from Coates & Seely, wine from Sussex based Bolney Wine Estate, gin and tonics made with the official Queen’s birthday Gin, NB Gin, and Elizabeth IPA, a beer especially brewed to mark the Queen’s 90th birthday.

“To be selected as the only drinks brand in the only official commemorative album for the Queen’s 90th is an honour and a very proud, emotional time for us as a company,” said Vivienne Muir, owner of NB Gin. “It is indicative of the quality of our product that is enjoyed globally”.

Local cake shop, Primrose Bakery, will be providing a selection of cupcakes, with donations for both the cakes and drinks going to children’s charity, The Rainbow Trust.

“We have an excellent range of British products, so what better way to celebrate both our royal connections and our home grown portfolio than with a party for our neighbours and our staff to commemorate the Queen’s 90th birthday,” added Gareth Groves, managing director of Walker & Wodehouse.

NB Gin is produced in North Berwick, Scotland.

UK pubs will also be joining the celebrations this weekend, with landlords given permission by Prime Minister David Camercon to stay open an extra two hours until 1am on the 10 and 11 of June.

The Queen celebrates two birthdays each year: her actual birthday on 21 April and her official birthday on a Saturday in June, this year 11 June. The celebrations will start with a service of thanksgiving at St Paul’s cathedral on 10 June, attended by the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh. The following day the traditional Trooping the Colour ceremony, also known as the Queen’s Birthday Parade, will be staged in Horse Guards Parade. On the Sunday, the Patron’s Lunch will be held in The Mall.

Pubs opening times were also extended during the 2014 World Cup, Royal Wedding and Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. During these events the BBPA estimates that beer sales at pubs across the UK increased by “at least 5%”, with food sales were up 8%, equating to a £20 million boost to the pub sector.