Waddesdon’s new wine shop to offer First Growths from Rothschild collection under Coravin

Rothschild Waddesdon Limited has revamped the wine shop at Waddesdon Manor and will offer samples of fine wines from the Domaines Barons de Rothschild portfolio – including First Growths – via Coravin, in a bid to make them “more accessible”.

Waddesdon will display its full range of Rothschild Grand Crus in the new wine shop

The new wine shop at the Rothschild chateau in Buckinghamshire, which is now part of the National Trust, will stock the largest collection of wines from the Domaines Barons de Rothschild portfolio, consisting of 126 Rothschild wines priced between £7.50 to nearly £26,000, as well as 50 ‘guest’ wines.

It replaces the previous shop that was tucked way in the Old Billiard Room in the house, and aims to make the collection “more accessible” to customers by offering complementary daily wine tastings as well as 50ml pours of fine wines through the Coravin system, according to Sara Sweetland, managing director of Rothschild Waddesdon Limited (the trading company that is part of the Rothschild Foundation, and whose profits supports Waddesdon Manor).

‘We hope this interactive approach will help make our wines more accessible, so customers leave with a bottle that is suited to their palate,” she said. “We’re also excited to allow customers the chance to taste legendary wines without the pressure of committing to a bottle, by trying a 50ml pour during their visit.”

Rothschild wine expert Peter Tompkins told db it was a bold move to extend the shop in the current climate, but one that capitalise on the growth RWL had seen in wine sales, as well as underlining the history between the house, the Rothschild family and the wines.

“We’ve had consecutive growth in retail in wine for the last five years so we thought it was a good move to capitalise on that. Obviously it’s a bold move given the climate but we thought we’d go for it,” he told db.

“We’ve researched throughout last year shops that offer Enomatic or Coravin pours – many of which are in central London which is very different to rural Buckinghamshire with a venue that has a pay barrier. We’re starting with four wines that sum up the portfolio, explain its breadth geographically and also make the prices affordable, but we will be putting the first growths on by the glass as well.”

A flight of four wines, that will be changed on a regular basis will be available via Coravin, with the first wines including Aile d’Argent 2015, a rare blend of Semillon and Sauvignon from Chateau Mouton produced by Baron Phillipe de Rothschild (£11.50 per 50ml taster), Lafite’s Argentinian Malbec Cabernet blend Caro 2015, which is produced in tiny quantities (£5.95 for 50ml), a single vineyard Chilean blend from Lafite, Los Vascos Le Dix 2015 (£5.95 for 50ml), and a the “legendary” 1990 Bordeaux, Chateau Duhart Milon 1990 (£16.95 for 50ml).

A custom-built cooling unit in the shop will showcase the full range of Grand Cru wines – which range in price from £120 to £25,995 a bottle – so they are fully visible to the shop’s customers.

Highlights in the list include Château Mouton 1982, Château Lafite 1961, and Château L’Evangile 1982 but there will also be 50 ‘guest’ wines from classic regions such as Burgundy and the Loire, as well as “individual wines with character”, Tompkin said, including twenty that aren’t available elsewhere in the UK.

The shop will also stock a selection of more modestly priced bottles, starting at £7.50, with a total of 27 wines retailing under £12, as well as a range of gins, ales and beers made using botanicals and fruit gathered on the estate.

Tomkin said that working directly with the cellars of the respective Rothschild estates guaranteed ‘cellar-to-cellar’ provenance, ensuring the wines have been stored “immaculately” have not travelled unnecessarily, and have been looked after correctly in transit. This ability to account for the condition and provenance of each bottle was exceptionally rare, he said, as the prestige and global appeal of the Rothschild portfolio meant it was under constant threat of fraudulent reproduction.

“The 1961 Château Lafite remains among the most frequently replicated wines on the planet, yet Waddesdon stocks three bottles that have spent nearly all their life resting in a dark corner in the cellars of Château Lafite, slowly evolving in optimum conditions before being transported directly to Waddesdon’s own cellars,” he said.

“It’s mainly the condition of these wines that our clients are interested in – you could buy them for less on the open market but a lot of our clients want to ensure absolutely pristine provenance and authenticity of the wine, so if we can offer them a three-pack of ’78 Lafite that comes with Lafite strapping, that’s been re-corked and has QR codes, that in itself holds rarity.”

Rothschild Waddesdon Limited (RWL) is part of the Rothschild Foundation which looks after the trading at Waddesdon Manor, including the hotel, the dairy wedding venue, the Manor restaurant, the Wine Shop, Gift Shop, Stable Café and Courtyard and food to go outlets. It works closely with Waddesdon Wine, the main trade representative for the the three branches of the Rothschild  family in the UK, which looks after the wholesale and trade operation.