It's another win for Corks Out

Corks Out is once again proud to pick up their second award this year. 

After a national win in February for their Spirits range, now Corks Out has picked up the Excellence in Customer Service Award at the Chester Retail Awards 2012. 

This award recognised quality throughout customer service, product knowledge, sales and presentation.  A mystery shopper gave a detailed report and said 'I can honestly say i don't think i have ever been given so much attention in a shop.  Knowledgeable, friendly, polite and very genuine, they definitely know what they are doing, a very professional set up'.

Ruth Yates says

Winning this award was a great achievement, but scoring 100% in all of the eight areas was fantastic and something i am very proud of.  The Chester store was the main focus of attention here but each and every team member at all of our stores and the website go that extra mile to make sure they exceed our customer's expectations.

It's March Madness Mother's Day...

Don’t forget Mother’s Day this Sunday (18th March)  Have you got your Mum something special yet? If not we have some great ideas and offers for you. And, as well as Mothering Sunday it’s St Patricks Day on Saturday 17th.  

15% off all Champagne in March

As March madness continues we offer you 15% off every bottle of Champagne in store, providing it hasn’t already been discounted. From Bollinger to Laurent Perrier & Pol Roger to Cristal there’s something for everyone. If Champagne isn’t what you are looking for we are also having a bit of an end of range sale at the moment to make way for new products, so 15% off a great selection of wines. 

Morton Blanc de Blanc Vintage 2000 New Zealand Sparkling Wine

 Down to £13.99, Save- £3.00 per bottle (limited stocks available.)This amazing fizz is made in the same way as Champagne and an amazing alternative, especially as it’s a vintage fizz. Click here to view 

In store tastings 

As you may know we hold very popular tastings in store each month, and if you fancy treating your Mum to something different why not get her a few tickets to one of our themed tastings. You could even join her and make it a special day for you both.Click here to view tasting calendar. 

Bespoke gift wrapping 99p all weekend… 

 Our bespoke hand finished gift wrapping is classy and stylish, 99p this weekend only! (16th Friday and 17th Saturday)  

And that’s not all, it’s Paddy’s Day… Don’t forget it’s St Patricks Day on Saturday 17th so get in the spirit. 10% off all Irish whiskey this Friday and Saturday only!  

Don't miss tasting 35 of the 'Top 100 Australian Wines'

Only 6 tickets remain for our Top Australian Wine Tasting at The Park Royal Hotel, Warrington on 1st March.  Not only will you have the opportunity to taste these amazing Australian wines but the renowned Matthew Jukes will also be on hand to chat about a few and why he chose them for his 'Top 100 list'  You will be presented with a tasting glass, which is yours to take away at the end of the evening.  Click below to find out more details and to purchase one of the few remaining tickets..

http://www.corksout.com/products/A-tasting-of-a-lifetime-with-Matthew-Jukes-.html

It's a successful start to the New Year, as Corks Out was presented with the Independent Spirit Retailer of the Year 2012 award at the Drinks Retailing Awards last night.  Corks Out was also nominated in two other categories – Champagne Retailer of the Year, and Online/Direct Sales Retailer of the Year at the sparkling awards ceremony held at the Dorchester Hotel on Park Lane.

The awards recognise that the company is continuing to develop and broaden the range of products in its stores, and also the success of corksout.com, the company’s website.  Ruth Yates was delighted with the win, “We are proud to be recognised for our Spirits and Champagne ranges, where the focus is on unusual and high quality products. We stock only the best products that offer great value for money, and it was good to see the judges recognising this in the awards. This is the third year in a row that Corks Out has won an award at the Drinks Retailing Awards, and is good to see that we are continuing to impress the judges."

Corks Out is proud to announce that the well know wine columnist, Matthew Jukes will be presenting an Australian wine tasting event at Corks Out on the 1st March. Matthew is a highly respected journalist, author, wine buyer, lecturer and wine judge. He is one of the worlds leading experts on Australian wine and each year compiles his "100 Best Australian Wines" list. He has been the wine correspondent for the Daily Mail for over a decade, and composes the wine lists at several top London restaurants.

Further details of the event can be found on our website - Matthew Jukes Wine Tasting.

Corks Out, the leading independent wine merchant, has launched  a new mobile-optimised website which allows customers to buy champagne and wine using an iPhone or smartphone.

The new mobile website will automatically be shown to customers going to www.corksout.com and allows customers to browse and search for wines, read product tasting notes and reviews, and buy wine – in short all the key features of the main website.   The move makes Corks Out one of the first wine merchants in the UK to launch a mobile site, continuing a trend of market leading innovation at this family run, award winning independent wine merchant.

Phil Smith, e-Commerce Director at Corks Out, explained “This is about our customers and their expectations. A significant proportion of our customers visit our website on the move, seeking a specific product, say an iconic wine or a champagne.  I want to make it easy for someone to order a wine on the commute home and have it waiting for them the next day.  We are absolutely focused on offering the best customer service for our customers and this is just one of the many innovations we are moving forward with.”

It would appear that the most popular use of the mobile site so far has been to order champagne, maybe because Corks Out has some of, if not the, cheapest champagne offers in the UK.  Currently, Corks Out is selling a bottle of Bollinger Champagne for £30.99 and a bottle of Pol Roger Champagne for £26.95. There are also a range of other champagne offers on their website including such famous names as Laurent Perrier, Billecart-Salmon and Thienot. When asked, Mr Smith said “They are certainly the lowest prices we have sold champagne at, and last time I looked were the lowest online prices in the UK.” 

About Corks Out

Founded in 2003 by Ruth Yates, Corks Out is a leading Independent Wine Merchant in the North West of England, with five wine stores in Stockton Heath, Alderley Edge, Chester, Heswall and Timperley. The company has won a string of awards for innovation and customer service, including three major national awards this year - International Wine Challenge - Large Independent Retailer of the Year 2011, Top Merchant Best Retailer Award 2011, and National Drinks Retailing Awards Independent Wine Retailer of 2011. Corks Out is widely seen as "the voice" of the independent wine retail industry and has consistently been at the leading edge of innovation within the industry, being the second retailer in the UK to introduce wine tasting “jukeboxes” into its stores.  It stocks a wide range of high quality, value for money wines, seeking out unusual and interesting product for its customers. The company redesigned and re-launched its website just before Christmas 2010 and has now offers one of the most extensive range of wines with comprehensive tasting notes online.  It is one of the first independent wine merchants in the UK to launch a web-optimised website.

Corks Out are proud to announce its winter wine tastings this November, giving customers a chance to taste around 200 wines, champagnes, and spirits in a fun and informal environment.  The tastings are being held:

• Chester Racecourse – Wednesday 23^rd November 2011 , 5pm until 9pm
• Park Royal Hotel (M56 J10) – Thursday 24^th November 2011, 5pm until 9pm

This is always one of the most popular events of the year with a wide range of wines on taste. Each year we bring new and exciting wines and spirits to the event for people to try. There are a number of fun events for people to participate in:

• Guess the wine competition
• Record a video tasting of your favourite wine (the best will be published on www.corksout.com)

Any orders placed on the night will receive a 15% discount against our normal store prices, or the price of their ticket refunded (No other discounts apply). Tickets for the tasting cost £15 each and can be purchased from the website at Chester Racecourse Winter Tasting and The Park Royal Winter Tasting

Cheapest price for two leading Champagnes in the UK this weekend? Corks Out is promoting Billecart-Salmon Rose Champagne (£46.99) and Canard Duchene Leonie Brut Champagne (£19.95) until 8pm on Monday 31st October within their online store

Corks Out, the online wine retailer, is running a one-off Champagne sale promotion on its website this weekend with two big brand Champagnes being sold at what may be the lowest price in the UK.

The Billecart-Salmon Rose offer is on sale at £46.99 (RRP £56.99 ) for a minimum order of 4 bottles. Billecart-Salmon is one of the few Champagne houses owned by the original family and is a highly prominent brand. The Rose Champagne is pale pink, refined with a bouquet of strawberries, raspberries and fresh bread leading to a long finish.

The Canard Duchene Cuvee Leonie Brut offer is on sale at £19.95 (RRP £26.99) for a minimum order of 6 bottles. Canard Duchene is famous for its historical links to the Russian Imperial Family and the association with "Sabrage", the opening of a Champagne bottle using a sabre sword. The Leonie Brut Champagne has a delicate mousse, with aromas of apple and a touch of minerality. It is stylish and velvety on the palate, with a long fresh finish.

As well as these weekend-only Champagne Offers, Corks Out also provides customers with consistently cheap champagne prices, often the cheapest online prices in the UK. These include:

Pol Roger Brut Reserve Champagne is on sale at £27.99 with no minimum purchase quantity. One of the most popular Champagnes in Britain, Pol Roger is famous for its fine mousse with a nose of white flowers, green apples and brioche.

Laurent Perrier Rose Champagne is on sale at £37.90 (RRP £51.01) with no minimum purchase quantity. Laurent Perrier Rose is a beautiful pink salmon colour, with crisp aromas of strawberries, raspberries, redcurrants and black cherry. It is beautifully presented in a matching gift box.

These cheap champagne offers are exclusive to the Corks Out website, and are available until 10pm on Monday 31st October. The offers are subject to Corks Out normal terms and conditions and postage and packaging charges.

About Corks Out
Founded in 2003 by Ruth Yates, Corks Out is a well-established, family run Independent Wine Merchant in the North West of England, with five wine stores in Stockton Heath, Alderley Edge, Chester, Heswall and Timperley. The company has won a string of awards, including three major national awards this year - International Wine Challenge - Large Independent Retailer of the Year 2011, Top Merchant Best Retailer Award 2011, and National Drinks Retailing Awards Independent Wine Retailer of 2011. Corks Out is widely seen as "the voice" of the independent wine retail industry. It stocks a wide range of high quality value for money wines, seeking out unusual and interesting product for its customers. The company launched its web site in 2009 and provides next day delivery of wines, whiskies and Champagnes throughout the UK and Europe.

Corks Out has been announced as the overall winner of the New Zealand Independent Wine Retailer Competition 2011; beating over 50 other retailers.  Between June and July, the focus has been on New Zealand Wine across the UK, with in-store displays, tastings, wine dinners and promotions.   

David Cox, Director of New Zealand Winegrowers commented, “each year when the judges come to assess the results of NZ promotion they are hugely impressed with the ingenuity and inventiveness that many of the UK’s independent retailers put behind promoting New Zealand wines.  We feel that they really are able to make a genuine connection with our wines and the personalities behind them and thus sell them on to their discerning and loyal customers.” 

Cox continued to say that “although the standard was again very high, nonetheless, the work of Ruth Yates and the Corks Out team tipped the scales for the judges and they were deemed worthy winners”

All the finalists were all invited to an awards lunch at The Modern Pantry in Clerkenwell, London on Tuesday 27^th September 2011, where the menu was matched to a range of wines from the cellars of the New Zealand High Commission.

This year saw a good spread of entries from around the UK, leading to New Zealand wine promotions being run in Scotland, England, Ireland, Wales and Jersey. This year’s campaign was called ‘TRY New Zealand’ and the POS was rugby themed in order to build awareness of New Zealand wines in the lead up to the Rugby World Cup. The Rugby World Cup started on 9^th September and the final will be held on 23^rd October 2011.

Corks Out has always been proud of its role within the local community, creating local stores with character and individual personality.  We are therefore pleased to have won three awards at the Warrington Business Awards:

• ·         Small Business of the Year
• ·         Retailer of the Year
• ·         Business Person of the Year (Ruth Yates)

It was a wonderful evening held at the Park Royal Hotel, and it was a great night for all the team at the Stockton Heath store who attended.  It was particularly pleasing to see Ruth win the Business Person of the Year award, clearly reflecting the development of Corks Out from a single store to a nationally significant Wine Merchants.