Oddbins....

The problem with these independent wine merchants is that they usually only have one or two outlets so if you wanted to attend a tasting and buy in store, you were either local or had to make a special trip to go there. Oddbins was all over the UK so very easily accessible by a large proportion of the population and, in larger towns and cities would have loads of outlets. At a guess, even Edinburgh probably had about ten Oddbins shops.
Not a huge problem. Sure it means that producing something like the steadman list wouldn't be viable, but each store would presumably be expected (a forlorn hope!) to pay its own way. And, yes, you'd only serve your local area.
 
Some Pol Roger and Perrier Jouet NV saved from a wedding.
That's an interesting point - what bottles do we still have that we bought from Oddbins?
I still have 2 bottles of 1996 Bin 707... expensive bottles at the time - £27 :-) - I think I got my discount on them, I can't remember, some bottles were never allowed discount - like DP for instance...
Bill,
Were you working in Wokingham in the 1988/89 time frame?
We may have crossed paths?
There was briefly an Oddbins in Bracknell too I think?
Graham...
Hi Graham - sorry, 1999 not 1989 - I do remember sitting in a couple of training sessions in London and thinking 'oh - I'm very old compared to all the others' - I was 36!
 
Harpers trade mag running the story today, and quoting from this thread. It always makes me a bit uneasy when forum members are quoted, presumably without explicit permission, though there's nothing contentious in the article. It is a reminder that many eyes in the UK wine trade watch this forum (there are many, many 'lurkers' viewing the threads on a daily basis, not just logged in participants).

Exclusive: Closing doors for Oddbins - Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News
 
Oddbins and their wonderful staff educated me in the 90s as I got into wine. They were young,intelligent and just loved their wine. These people,were so far removed from the stuffy old men in some of the other wine merchants. In particular I visited Stirling and Paisley and loved the tastings on Saturday lunchtimes while on my break from work! There were a few people in Stirling who were just brilliant.One young man would often bring in the left overs from his Friday night Fine wine selection and allowed me to taste on the Saturday. I recall tasting some fine wines on those occasions. Although they didn’t stock it at the time they introduced me to Chateau Musar and suggested I visit Peckhams ( remember them?) to purchase. In Paisley we had Ed who wore an eye patch and iirc made the local papers for not having the appropriate license to play music in the shop - what a rebel. As well as the personal service I loved the newsletter with the fantastic drawings from Ralph Steadman. Good luck to the departing staff and thank you to everyone who has served me over the years.
 
Yes, it is very sad. I had read with extra sadness of the last remaining Glasgow branch closing a couple of weeks ago, Glasgow having been a bit of an Oddbins stronghold. The Fine Wine Store and the tastings there in the 80s and 90s really were fabulous - first growths and Grand Cru Bugundies, et al. It and the equivalent in Edinburgh were *very* regular haunts.

It all went wrong with the sale to Seagram, but even wronger with the sale to Castel I think. Why it couldn't survive when good independent wine shops seem to be doing pretty well against the odds, I do not know.
Too many branches? and Castell's feeding the branches with their run-of-the-mill wines that overflowed in Castell's warehouses and their commitments to producers of very average wines that were well below the taste of Oddbin's loyal and discerning customers who rejected price-led industrial wines made for volume.
Maybe an explanation?
 
I just wanted to let people know that Oddbins has closed its doors for the final time.

I was Assistant manager in Richmond Hill, Kennington and West Dulwich.

We closed our doors in West Dulwich yesterday for the final time

They weren't able to find a buyer for the business.

All other remaining branches have also closed.
Very sorry to hear this. I loved Oddbins in its heyday.
 
Harpers trade mag running the story today, and quoting from this thread.

And Drinks Business yesterday - Oddbins closes doors on UK stores - The Drinks Business

The original incarnation of Oddbins used to have a shop on St Albans shopping street and as we went shopping there on Saturdays I used to go in every Saturday. I was limited by how much I could carry, but it was a very rare week when I didn't come home with a bottle. One time they were promoting Greek wines; commonplace now but back then it was a case of 'I didn't know they made wine there'. They were good, I had a knockout Syrah. Oddbins also used to have good California wines - at a time when no-one else did. There were always gems on the shelves and the staff were not only enthusiastic but knowledgeable.

Also called in the large shop under the bridge in Farringdon. I remember one time thinking the Penfolds Hermitage (as it was then) a bit pricey as it was a few pounds more expensive than the other Aussies. If only.....
 
My (now) wife bought me my introduction to proper wine from Oddbins Keddies branch in Southend way back in 1989. A mixed case of Penfolds reds in a wooden case.

She followed it up a couple of years later with another wooden case of six bottles, this time a mix of Billecart-Salmon’s that were put together as a Christmas selection.

I bought my second ever case of wine from them too. Grand-Mayne 1989.
Did Oddbins replace Lay and Wheeler at Keddies ? I remember a L&W 'alcove' on the ground floor from the '80s. I bought some 1982 La Mouline from them in a bin end sale. They are still drinking well.
 
Keddies, now that’s another long gone shop. That part of Colchester never recovered, a shame.
The Oddbids in Colchester was a large out of town unit. As such it stocked loads of the good stuff. In hind sight it probably lost money.
 
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This is sad news. Oddbins were responsible for getting me into wine, as the legendary Martin Perret from the Fine wine shop on Mitchell Street, Glasgow, would do wine tastings at the RSAC Club, of which I was a member. I remember the catalogues with their tear-off offers. In 1994 I bought the Billecart-Salmon triptych - NV, Rosé, 1982 Cuvée NF - for £49.99, reduced from £70.97. God, that 82 was good. As I got into wine, I used Oddbins to find the oakiest Australian chardonnay I could find. I loved that style. Wall to wall oak. Yum. I thought French wines were insipid and thin then - my palate has changed somewhat....

My first wine rack was an ex-store one, holding 98 bottles, bought for £15 in late 1993 from the Woodlands Road store in Glasgow (there was some rot on some of the wooden staves at the bottom). It wouldnt fit in my MG Metro, so I drove it home slowly with the rear hatch open to the skies and the rack hanging out. I was so proud when I filled it up in early 94.

I still have many bottles from the Oddbins days, including 1990 Lafon Rochet (bought in 1993 for £8.49), an immaculate 1988 Talbot (1994, £13.99), numerous Penfolds (96 Kalimna, 96 Grange, 96 389, 96 707...I liked the 96s), Jim Barry Armagh, and some other Bordeaux. I remember buying a 1992 Mouton Rothschild, drinking it a little too early (1997), thinking it was crap, and pouring the last 20% down the sink. The Orion, drunk the same night, was stellar (no pun intended).

In the 1990s, when I moved to Englandshire, I was a regular at the Nottingham Oddbins shop, where I loved the atmosphere and the eclectic choice. Leasingham, Leeuwin, D'Arenberg, some amazing Greek reds, and frankly anything that was offered to me was eagerly snapped up. Saturday afternoon's tastings were always a joy.

Thank you, Oddbins. You opened my eyes to the world of wine, and while my liver won't thank you for it, I certainly do.
 
Did Oddbins replace Lay and Wheeler at Keddies ? I remember a L&W 'alcove' on the ground floor from the '80s. I bought some 1982 La Mouline from them in a bin end sale. They are still drinking well.
Must have done. I first went there in 1989 and it was certainly Oddbins by then. Oddbinz was certainly in an Alcubierre on the ground floor, so you’d have to think it was a straight swap.
 
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