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Here you will answers to common questions & queries, and tips for choosing the best wine for you. If you would prefer to speak to customer advisor, or cannot find what you are looking for, please call Rouge Blanc Wines on 0870 126 1088.
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Ten Top Tips for Choosing Wines
Brought to you by Jamie Goode via his official website, Wine Anorak.
- Don't fill your cellar with the wines you like at the moment. The temptation may be strong to buy cases and half-cases, but I guarantee that your tastes will change, and then you'll be left with a cellar full of wines that, no matter how well rated by the critics, you won't feel like drinking.
- For this reason, buy experimental bottles in preference to full cases. There are just so many wines out there, of so many different styles, that it makes sense to buy plenty of 'educational' bottles.
- Attend as many testing's as you can. Taste and learn. But remember to spit!
- Remember to take the opinions and advice of wine 'experts' with a pinch of salt. If any wine 'expert' is worth listening to, they'll be humble enough to acknowledge that they are fallible and that their expertise can by necessity only cover certain areas.
- Don't fall into the trap of exclusively seeking out highly-rated or expensive wines. The temptation to do this can be strong, especially if you have plenty of disposable income. Instead, drink widely and build up a context from which to then fully appreciate the more stellar wines. You'll also find it easier to mould your own opinion.
- Get good advice on what to try, either from a merchant who you trust, or from a critic whose palate seems to match with yours.
- Keep notes on all the wines you try. At first you may not be very sure of what you are writing, but gradually your confidence will grow. It is also interesting to see how your perception of certain wines changes with experience!
- Read as much as you can. There are many excellent reference works around: see my book reviews section for some tips at the Wine Anorak.
- If you get the chance, visit some wine countries. There is nothing like visiting the vineyards where the grapes are grown -- putting wine in its natural context -- to bring a wine to life.
- Finally, join an online wine discussion forum. In my opinion the Wine Lover's Discussion Group on Robin Garr's wine pages is the best, with its fully international flavour. Lurk for a while at first to get a feeling for the place, and then join in.
For full contact details, please visit our Contact page.
Rouge Blanc Frequently Asked Questions
Order & Delivery Information
How long will it take for my delivery to arrive?
What time can I expect my order to arrive?
What do I do if my order has not arrived within the estimated delivery time?
Which courier/delivery service does Rouge Blanc use?
Can my order be delivered to my home address?
What will happen to my delivery if I am not in to receive it?
What if I want my order to go to more than one address?
Can I collect my order from your Marlow location?
Who can I contact if I have any further questions?
Choosing your Wine
Your wine is reviewed by Jamie Goode - but who is he?
Am new to wine; can you offer advice on what to buy?
Rouge Blanc Wines is run by Wines4Business, a dedicated wine company backed by Peter Jones. For more information please visit About Us .
Rouge Blanc Frequently Asked Questions
Order and Delivery Information
How long will it take for my delivery to arrive?
UK orders will normally take up to 48hrs. However, the majority of orders placed before 3pm are delivered next day. Deliveries to non-mainland UK, Highlands and Islands of Scotland will take up to 4 working days.
What time can I expect my order to arrive?
Deliveries can be at any time of the day so if there is nobody available to take delivery please advise us of this beforehand so we can arrange to store your order in a safe location.
What do I do if my order has not arrived within the estimated delivery time?
If your order does not arrive within the estimated delivery time, please contact our customer service department on 0870 126 1088
Orders are processed quickly, so if you need to amend any details on your order, please get in touch as soon as possible. Please contact our customer service department on 0870 126 1088
Which courier/delivery service does Rouge Blanc use?
Rouge Blanc uses City Link exclusively. We feel they provide they best service possible to distribute fragile goods all over the UK. City Link mostly uses their own branded delivery vans to make deliveries, but occasionally they may deliver using ordinary non-branded vans.
Can my order be delivered to my home address?
Yes, please supply delivery address details when placing your order.
What will happen to my delivery if I am not in to receive it?
You can either advise us to leave your order somewhere safe in advance or, we will try to delivery at a later date. Please note there can be a charge for re-delivery.
What if I want my order to go to more than one address?
This is very simple with Rouge Blanc, just call our customer service department on 0870 126 1088 to place your order and provide details.
Can I collect my order from your Marlow location?
Unfortunately not. We do not allow any collections from our distribution centre.
Who can I contact if I have any further questions?
Our customer service team are always available to answer your queries. You can call our customer service department on 0870 126 1088.
Choosing your Wine
Your wine is reviewed by Jamie Goode - but who is he?
Jamie Goode is the Rouge Blanc wine expert. Each wine in our range is individually selected before inclusion on the website, and this ensures our customers get the best available wine in the world today.
Jamie Goode came to wine writing by a rather convoluted route, via a PhD in plant biology and several years of working as a book editor. He writes for several print publications, including Decanter, Wine International (formerly Wine Magazine), Harpers Wine and Spirit Weekly and the Western Mail. He's also a member of the Circle of Wine Writers. Jamie lives in west London and when he's not drinking wine he can be found playing guitar, tending the vines on his allotment, hitting golf balls erratically, watching bad football (he's a Manchester City fan) or relaxing with his family (two boys, aged 7 and 8).
In 2004 he was short listed for wine writer of the year at the Glenfiddich Food and Drink Awards (for articles in Wine International), and the Prix du Champagne Lanson (Ivory Award, for wineanorak.com). He also made his TV debut as one of the wine experts for C4's Richard and Judy.
So far In 2005 Jamie has been short listed for the Roederer Wine Writer of the Year award and from July he will be the wine columnist for the Sunday Express and is our very own Wine Expert for Wines4Business.com, one of the UK's fastest growing on-line wine suppliers.
I am new to wine; can you offer advice on what to buy?
Opening your horizons is the best thing to do when looking for a good wine. Jamie Goode always has a select choice at any time, and this can be viewed by visiting Jamie's Top 10 . These wines are carefully selected by quality and value for money, so you cannot go wrong here.
Our customers also provide fantastic feedback on our wine range, and even though this is personal opinion, we always feel this is great information and reference when choosing.
Alternatively, why not read Jamie Goode's Top 10 tips for ‘newbie's' ?
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