The Majestic Buzz

Continuing the day of sinful blogging, I've found my new Costco. That is, at least as far as my booze is concerned. There is a chain of stores in the UK called the "Majestic Wine Warehouse". A branch opened in Hereford just since we lived here so it's not just new for the Yanks. We kept driving by it -- it's on our only path into town -- and finally decided to stop this past weekend.

The place is simple but clean and bright and very white. Not unlike some of the large liquor stores in the US, stacks of boxes of wine line the aisles and fill the corners. Loose bottles sit on top with details and pricing. The wife wandered to the free wine tasting center (surprisingly unsupervised) and I found my way to the case beer selection.

Case beer, in the groceries anyway, typically means cases of cans or really expensive cases of bottles. I'm still in the "try everything I see" stage of life overseas, so buying a full case of anything expensive doesn't work. At the Warehouse, I was surprised to find an impressive mix of variety packs from brewers, both UK and beyond. For better or worse, this was also the first place I've seen a case of Labatt Blue.

Consistently, one of my favorite beers before coming to England was Chimay -- a Belgian Trappist Ale. To our Moms and Dads: you would not like this beer. It's dark, strong (upwards of 9%), and has flavors that you didn't even know beer could have, like ripe fruit and spice. Lo and Behold, the Warehouse had 6-bottle cases of Chimay packed with a Chimay glass for less than a tenner. Even better, it was a mix of the red label and the harder to find blue and white labels of Chimay. I'll take one please.

Consistently, one of my favorite beers after coming to England has been St Peter's Organic. The local stores carry loose bottles of a few of their varieties. I was dumbstruck when I found the Warehouse had not only cases of their best bitter, but also two different variety packs. One of the packs, Dark Beers, was full of beers I hadn't seen elsewhere. For 16 quid, not a bad deal - mixed cases ordered direct from the brewer are £22 and up.

The Warehouse continued to impress. You can order in-store or online and they will deliver. They have frequent wine tasting nights where you can try their latest selections paired with cheese and probably some crumpet action, too. The clerk at the store said they change their offerings frequently.

Now, I just need someone to split a case with. That Boo is a light-weight.

Cheers!