Your worldly-wise fine wine merchants from Bristol, England. Pioneers of great taste since 1793. Quench your wine curiosity.
06/11/2024
Join us for an elegant fine wine dinner featuring Felton Road Wines and food pairings from Little French.
While you enjoy courses including dressed crab and truffle risotto, you'll also gain insights into the vineyard's philosophy and winemaking process.
From the first sip to the last bite, this experience promises to be a celebration of taste, tradition, and terroir.
Tickets for this exclusive evening are £120 per person and can be purchased at https://brnw.ch/21wOpSZ
03/11/2024
The perfect winter tasting - in collaboration with .bristol - we will be exploring different styles of sherry and the influence and history of sherry casks in whisky, all within the beautiful surroundings of our historic cellars.
Join us from 7pm on Saturday 23rd November for this fascinating evening. Get your tickets here: https://brnw.ch/21wOl2x
16/10/2024
Our incredibly popular Celebration of Wine is back for another year, this time at Bristol Grammar School.
Join Mimi Avery, along with a host of winemakers. to taste your way around the world - from Bordeaux to Barolo and Catalunya to Coonawara.
We're running an afternoon and an evening session on Saturday 16th November.
Tickets are £35 per person and available online.
08/10/2024
Last week we were delighted to host 38 cyclists for coffee and breakfast at our Culver Street store, before they set off on a three day, charity bike ride.
Raising money for the riders covered over 100km a day, cycling from Bristol to London.
The money raised will support those who work in the drinks and hospitality industry.
25/09/2024
Last week Mimi Avery led guests through a tasting of eight exceptional wines, each telling a chapter of our 100-plus year history.
Hosted in the cellar under our iconic Culver Street shop, wine lovers were treated to Musigny Grand Cru 1969 Burgundy and Klein Constantia 1994 Western Cape.
More recent vintages included Averys Special Vintage 2014 Champagne and a 10 Year Old Tawny Port.
It was a spectacular evening, hearing Mimi's memories of her father and grandfather, as well as some of her own tales of the wine world.
We opened another even older bottle on Friday for a private tasting in the cellars - Tavrida Black Muscat 1937.
Amazingly it was still full of life, sweet with bags of fig and sultana aromas.
The Black Muscat grape variety was brought to the Crimea in the first half of the 19th century and became known under the name of Muscat Kallyaba. The wine distinguishes itself with its strikingly bright juicy ruby-garnet colour, smartly sparkled in a glass with various soft glints of ruby and beautiful precious crystal colour.
The wineries in Massandra were built during the reign of Czar Nicholas II. During the process, wine caves containing thousands of bottles were constructed beneath the city. This “personal wine cellar” of the Czar contained tens of thousands of bottles. These caves survived the Russian Revolution, both World Wars, the fall of Communism, and Yakov Smirnoff.
In 1990, about 13,000 of these bottles – never before available in the West – were put to auction. At Averys we have a small collection in our Fine Wine cage.
12/09/2024
What would you imagine a 55-year-old bottle of wine tastes like? Well we can tell you!
Last year a long-standing and loyal customer of ours brought in an original 1969 Averys bottling of Pommard Rugiens after finding in their cellars. We all thought it would probably be over the hill but in fact was delightful showing delicate, sweet red fruits.
What's the oldest wine you've tasted?
31/08/2024
Today we can reveal the three top wines from our Summer of Wine tasting in Bristol. These are the top-selling fizz, red, and white from the day of the event. So you can see how much your fellow customers loved them.
Didn’t make it to Summer of Wine? Not to worry, the date has been confirmed for Celebration of Wine, our biggest tasting of the year.
Join us on Saturday 16th November at Bristol Grammar School for Celebration of Wine 2024. There will be a whole host of wines to try, producers to meet, and much more. You have two sessions to choose from and the evening always sells out first. So if you’re getting a group of you together, make sure you order your tickets early.
In the meantime, try the champion wines from Summer of Wine and decide which is your favourite.
18/08/2024
Not every wine is an Averys wine, only the very best make the cut. That's why when we put our name on something, we make sure it's the best.
This Pinot Noir, crafted for us by winemaker Vincent Prunier, is soft and seductive, brimming with juicy red berry flavours and finished with subtle, leafy notes. A truly classic wine with a personal touch.
16/08/2024
We are lucky to have such a long history and to have developed great connections with top producers around the world. At this special tasting event, Mimi Avery - 5th generation Avery working in the company, is going to guide us round her top picks that highlight our long relationship with wine makers and the wine trade.
Who better to ask for their top picks from the cellars than our team of expert Wine Advisors?
Based above our Bristol shop, they know the range inside out and can tell you exactly what’s hitting the spot with your fellow wine lovers right now. The only condition? They had to choose a red drinking at its absolute peak. So every wine here is beautifully mature, and reveals a magical world of complex flavours that only come with age.
Join Averys and Laura from Brushstrokes Courses for a delightful Paint and Wine evening. Learn how to paint an autumnal candle whilst enjoying five wines and a carefully selected cheeseboard.
In 1963 Ronald Avery blended the first Averys Champagne with help from the family-owned and run Champagne Boizel. Since then, three generations of the Avery family has selected the blend but we've stayed with that Champagne house for the last six decades.
And there's something else that's stayed the same. You've probably noticed the rise in price of big-name Champagne brands which is why we're proud to have held the price of Averys Special Cuvée Champagne for the last four years.
17/07/2024
Join us tomorrow evening for a wine tasting showcasing aromatic grape varieties such as Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Viogner, Muscat along with a selection of complementary cheeses. Find out more at www.averys.com/events
03/07/2024
Join us for two melodic evenings of music that will have you humming along as you sip your wine. Known among friends and fellow musicians as 'The Singing Sommelier', Tristan Darby is founder and tutor of Bristol Wine School as well as being a professional singer with a reputation for his powerful, soulful baritone voice.
He has toured nationally with big bands in major main house theatres and music venues, playing to capacity audiences and regularly gigging in the south-west with his quartet.
Choose from soulful jazz on Thursday 1st, smooth blues on Friday 2nd, or both!
We’ll start with a glass of fizz before taking our seats to enjoy a selection of upbeat and exciting tunes that have been (somewhat tenuously) linked with five different wines.
🏴 It’s English Wine Week! Let’s celebrate something we’re actually good at!
From sparkling wines to rival Champagne to mouthwateringly crisp whites that will put you in a summery mood whatever the weather, the English wine scene has never been more exciting. We’re proud to work with some amazing producers in England and have picked a trio from Sussex, Cornwall and Essex to help you join in the celebrations.
25/05/2024
This week is all about Chardonnay! Deciding what to uncork to celebrate? You won’t be short of choice as Chardonnay is the world’s most widely planted white grape variety and grown in wine regions all over the world. From crisp, elegant Chablis to big, buttery Aussie styles, there’s a Chardonnay for everyone. If you’re looking for inspiration, here are a few of our favourites …
Join us for a delightful evening filled with powerful blues melodies that will have you humming along while you enjoy your wine. Tristan Darby, also known as 'The Singing Sommelier,' invites you to an evening of music and wine. 🍷 🎵
Experience an evening of vibrant music as we sip on a glass of sparkling wine before settling in to enjoy a selection of energetic tunes paired (albeit loosely) with five distinct wines. Get ready for an evening of musical and sensory delights with Tristan Darby and his quartet, promising an unforgettable experience for all.
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Videos
Our incredibly popular Celebration of Wine is back for another year, this time at Bristol Grammar School.
Join Mimi Avery, along with a host of winemakers. to taste your way around the world - from Bordeaux to Barolo and Catalunya to Coonawara.
We're running an afternoon and an evening session on Saturday 16th November.
Tickets are £35 per person and available online.
Very elegant, very classy, very demure, very mindful 🍾
#verydemureverymindful #averysofbristol #averyswine #verydemure #champagne
Trick or treat 👻
We don’t do tricks here at Averys, just treats 🥂
If you prefer the dark side, why not try our Dark Corner Durif Shiraz – an alluring, weighty Shiraz Australia. Or if light, bright and bubbly is more your thing, then Roche Lacour Crémant de Limoux is for you. With toasty richness, it’s the smartest way to pop a cork and add sparkle.
What will you be drinking this Halloween? Let us know in the comments ⬇️
Popping the cork this Champagne Day 🍾
We’re celebrating Champagne Day with our very own Averys Special Cuvée Brut Champagne. For us, Champagne is all about that magical effervescence, those beautiful bubbles. That’s right … the Fizz 🍾 ✨
What do you love about Champagne?
Our guide to National Curry Week
Thinking of treating your tastebuds to celebrate National Curry Week? You’re not alone Bristolians.
Here’s our guide to some of the best curries in town, and what to pair with them! Spoiler, this will make you hungry (and thirsty). #NationalCurryWeek
Celebrating Bordeaux Wine Month with Château de Breuil
We’re celebrating Bordeaux Wine Month with one of our favourite bottles from the Haut-Médoc.
Château du Breuil 2014 is a mature claret with length and complexity, an estate oozing with history dating back to the sixth century.
The vineyards all lie on south-east-facing, clay-limestone slopes, leading down to a stream at the bottom. The team work hard amongst the vines, chopping back the foliage to ensure optimum sunshine.
A classic blend of Bordeaux grapes – Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot – it was aged a year in both French and (unusually) American oak barrels, to lend it the structure to age.
Do teaspoons help keep sparkling wine fizzy?
Did you catch Mimi on John Darvall's BBC Radio Bristol show? Listen back now to her busting a common wine myth.
What you need to know about Viognier
Happy Viognier Day!
There's something a little romantic about this grape. It produces wines which are fuller-bodied than many white grapes, it's aromatic and it's often used to add perfume and a gentleness to the harsh red Syrah grape.
It's naturally low in acidity, is usually higher in alcohol than other wines and has a voluptuous, sometimes even oily mouthfeel.
It's an amazing grape which produces magnificent wines that will have you reaching for your glass.
Visit our store to pick up a bottle for tonight, or order online at https://bit.ly/3vpMjAl.
Mimi Avery on her father's pioneering work
Averys of Bristol has a long history. Established in 1793 , the family of wine merchants have introduced the UK to countless new grapes and styles.
Here's 5th generation merchant, now Brand Ambassador, Mimi Avery talking about how her father John discovered New World Wines.
Averys Barossa Shiraz
We’ve got a new Averys own label for you to get excited about!
Our Averys wines are a benchmark for great value, great quality wines made in a style typical of that region.
When looking to create our first ever Averys label Shiraz, we had no hesitation in heading straight to the Barossa region, home to the oldest Shiraz vines in the world!
These old vines together with an abundance of sunshine give Barossa Shiraz incredible depth of flavour that’s unmatched anywhere else.
Made from 100% Shiraz and aged in French oak for 12 months, it’s sumptuously rich and juicy with spiced plums, hints of black pepper and a long, velvety finish.
It’s yours today for the discounted price of £10.99 (normally £15.99).
Shop online today!
#averyswine #barossawine #shiraz #australianwine #Bristol #australiaday
Averys Own Label Special Cuvee Champagne Tasting Note
🍾 It’s World Champagne day!
🥂 To celebrate, here is Mimi talking about our own label Special Cuvée Brut Champagne.
A true benchmark for Brut NV!
#champagneday #champagne #sparklingwine #wine #averyswine
Our story began with a shop in Bristol in 1793. Through the generations, the Avery family have been at the heart of the business and are famous for being among the great pioneers of the British wine trade.
It was in the 1920s with Ronald Avery at the helm that Averys sailed to success.
While other UK wine merchants bought wines from agents, Ronald made a point of travelling to wine estates to taste the wines with the winemakers. He was an excellent taster and by tasting in situ, he quickly discovered the best wines, producers and vintages.
The relationships he built would become the cornerstone of Averys’ success and last until this day. In 1949, after sailing his yacht to Bordeaux, he met the Moueix family, one of today’s most important Bordeaux families. They encouraged him to buy a few cases of Château Pétrus, a wine which was unknown at the time but would become one of the most expensive wines in the world.
Such was his reputation that many winemakers fresh from graduating in oenology would be keen to train under the great Ronald Avery. Famous winemakers who worked with Ronald at the start of their careers include Wolf Blass, one of Australia’s most flamboyant and well-loved winemakers.
In 1964, Ronalds son John spent his summer holiday in California where he was so impressed by the wines that he eventually persuaded his father to start selling those of Beaulieu Vineyards. The famous names of Ridge, Heitz and Sterling would follow and Averys became one of the early supporters of Californian wines.
The following year he travelled around Australia in a Rolls-Royce and met some of Australia’s leading wine figures. He came home with an order for 10 cases of Penfolds Grange 1960. This was the first time Grange had been imported to the UK and, of course, it would go on to become Australia’s most famous wine.
Not content with being first to import many of the famous names of Australia and California, John began to explore New Zealand. He imported the first commercial New Zealand wines to the UK in 1978, a year before New Zealand even produced a sauvignon blanc.
Owing to his forthright opinions and excellent tasting ability, John became one of the world’s most admired wine judges. He was the first European to judge at the New Zealand Wine Show in 1978 and continued travelling and judging on wine panels around the world right up until his death in 2012.
Today, Averys’ insatiable appetite for wine excitement is embraced by a team of wine buyers and John’s daughter, Mimi, who continue to innovate and pioneer up-and-coming wine regions and winemakers.
