The Old Cellar

Last week, we had our friends from Georgiev/Milkov visiting the UK for a second time. We started the week with a visit of and ended up at the cosy and beautiful town of Cheddar ( yes, cheddar cheese).
A week full of passion, positive energy, and great wines. Thank you to everyone for the support and for truly embracing the culture, the passion, and the indigenous and amazing wines that Peter and Rado are crafting. You are all ambassadors of their story with their struggles, honesty, and successes.
Hope to see you soon again.












bud

So grateful to be able to represent our superb Hungarian producer at the Furmint February event this week. Krisztián and János, thank you for your dedication, passion, and awesome wines.
Thank you also to for inviting us and for organising another special day.
Egészségére 🙏

Happy holidays to all of you amazing producers, distributors, independent wine shops, bars, and customers. Thank you for embracing us and the suspiciously good wines and spirits that come from the land of passion, tradition, and contemporary vision called The Balkans.

See you all in the New Year.

🥂🍷

Last week we had the pleasure to be part of the biggest wine and spirits fair on the Balkans such a wonderful and eye opening experience to be able to explore some of the gems from Serbia, Albania, North Macedonia, Bulgaria and many others neighbouring countries. Great amount of networking and meeting some of the finest professionals from the industry. Well done to the organisers and Belgrade, what a vibrant city full of history, traditions, and contemporary vision. Last but not least, we had the pleasure to visit one of our long-standing producers, , who were brilliant hosts but also made us feel as part of the family. Hvala 🙏

We had a blast helping the Ministry of Tourism of Bulgaria showcasing some of the best wines and regions this week at Thank you for having us. 🍷⚘️🇧🇬

Funky, groovy and delicious 😋 Only 120 ( out of 1000) made it to the UK but this is the Indigenous blend of the 3 Thracian enigmatic grapes 🍇 - Pamid, Mavrud and Rubin.
Drop us an email to reserve some.
[email protected]

Thank you all for coming to see us yesterday. What a great event organised by . Bravo 👏

Looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow. Can't wait.



winery
estate

It's about time we say a few words about Our Core Team behind The Old Cellar .
Please meet :
Stoyan (left) was born near an UNESCO World Heritage site - The Madara Rider which is a large early medieval rock relief carved on the Madara Plateau east of Shumen not far from the Black Sea coast. He is the founder of the company and a serial entrepreneur.
He moved to London in 2006 after some time spent in South of France. He is passionate about Rakia (Fruit Brandies from the Balkans) and he is our spirits buyer and financial director. If you are a Mediterranean / Balkan shop or restaurant owner you definitely need to get in touch with him so he can share experience and friendly advice.
He is a food lover and a great chef and in his free time you can find Stoyan exploring the coast of England, France or Spain spending time with his children enjoying a glass of Rosé.
[email protected]

Dilyan (middle) was born in Ruse, the biggest Bulgarian city on river Danube and was raised since a young child with the culture of helping in their small family vineyard overlooking the river and also the grape picking, winemaking and rakia distilling every autumn.

After graduating International Tourism he moved to UK in 2005 and built a career in hospitality reaching the level of Michelin star restaurant manager, along with WSET Advanced qualification and various wine and spirits trainings before switching to the wine trade for good 8 years ago.

You can find Dilyan browsing various Balkan producers to discover interesting new wines and spirits for us to introduce to the UK market, organizing a tasting event or wine dinner or helping a customer build a successful drinks list selection.

His belief is that “The Bulgarian wine is our responsibility to the future generations to show the value and authenticity of the Bulgarian products to the whole world”!
[email protected]

Georgi (right) was born in Harmanli, a small town near the border with Greece and Turkey. Raised in a winemaking family he has spent most of his childhood helping his Father and Grandfather in the vineyards which shaped him as a wine and nature lover from a very young age.

After graduating Agricultural Tourism he went on a gap year to the US and then continued his education in the UK graduating Msc Business and Management at University of Portsmouth in 2013.
Following his dream to go back to his roots, he ended up working for the biggest wine retailer in the UK (Majestic Wine). After 9 years’ experience of going through the ranks and working as an Area Sales manager for South London it was time for a shift in careers and we can proudly say that he is now our Sales Director.

He is so passionate about indigenous grapes and sharing our producers exciting stories and if you need support in terms of training, tastings or margins he will be happy to assist. [email protected]

ZARIĆ DISTILLERY RAKIJA
DINNER AT THE CORNER TERRACE
Friday 7th July 7:00 pm
Destilerija Zarić

We invite you to join us on Friday 7th July at 7:00 pm at THE CORNER TERRACE on Grosvenor Parade, Uxbridge Rd, London W5 3NN for our ZARIĆ DISTILLERY RAKIJA DINNER where you will have the opportunity to taste a range of premium rakijas made by one of the best distilleries in Serbia matched alongside 5 matching courses dinner. Our hosts will be the owner of the distillery Milan Zarić and our team at The Old Cellar UK.

The tasting will include 20 ml of the following 5 rakijas
OPSESIJA MALINA RASPBERRY 3 YEAR OLD RAKIJA
NIRVANA VILJAMOVKA WILLIAMS PEAR 3 YEAR OLD RAKIJA
MAGIJA KAJSIJA APRICOT 3 YEAR OLD RAKIJA
NOSTALGIJA DUNJA QUINCE 3 YEAR OLD RAKIJA
KRALJICA SLJIVA PLUM 7 YEAR OLD RAKIJA
accompanied by 5 specially prepared matching courses by our chef. Please be on time as the whole restaurant will be served and the rakijas introduced by Milan Zarić at the same time for everybody.

£39.95 per person, adults only, deposit required
Please call 0208896 9211 or email [email protected] to reserve your table as the spaces are limited.

ZARIĆ DISTILLERY RAKIJA
TASTING AT FULHAM KITCHEN
Sunday 2nd July 7:00 pm
Destilerija Zarić
We invite you to join us on Sunday 2nd July at 7:00 pm at FULHAM KITCHEN Fulham Kitchen on 228 Munster Rd, London SW6 6AZ for our ZARIĆ DISTILLERY RAKIJA TASTING where you will have the opportunity to taste a range of premium rakijas made by one of the best distilleries in Serbia. Our host will be the owner of the distillery Milan Zarić alongside our team at The Old Cellar UK.

The tasting will include 20 ml of the following 5 rakijas:

OPSESIJA MALINA RASPBERRY 3 YEAR OLD RAKIJA
NIRVANA VILJAMOVKA WILLIAMS PEAR 3 YEAR OLD RAKIJA
MAGIJA KAJSIJA APRICOT 3 YEAR OLD RAKIJA
NOSTALGIJA DUNJA QUINCE 3 YEAR OLD RAKIJA
KRALJICA SLJIVA PLUM 7 YEAR OLD RAKIJA

accompanied by a plate with matching canapés to each rakija prepared by our chef. Please be on time as the whole restaurant will being served and the rakijas introduced by Milan Zarić at the same time for everybody. After the tasting Fulham kitchen will be open to continue your evening with us.
£10 per person, adults only, deposit required

Please call 02036093354 or email [email protected] to reserve your table as the spaces are limited.

New Kid on the Block 📣 Hand made Pamid 2022
Our little project of wines in limited series kicks off with this absolute delight.

🏞 Made by our friends at .winery in Thracian Valley, this is such an example of a great summer red.

🍇 100% Pamid -
A very ancient grape variety cultivated on the Balkans. With very thin skin and excellent fertility normally consumed fresh and young.

🍷Handpicked in the first few days of September, 4 days maceration, spontaneous and barrel fermentation. The wine stays with the lees for a month with daily batonnage.
Very low alcohol 11.5%.

🍾Bright raspberry colour. Delicate nose of cherries and raspberries. Elegant body, crisp acidity, and a lovely fruity finish.

🏷Hand made with hand written label on the back, signed by the Winemaker. Beautiful sky blue wax on top. Limited parcel of 504 bottles.

Please do not hesitate to contact us by dropping us a message or email [email protected] as it will dissappear really quick.

Spotlight on the women of CEE at 67 Pall Mall - Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News Women winemakers of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) were at the centre of a first-of-its kind tasting in London this week, which dove into some of the...

Celebrating female winemakers from Central and Eastern Europe in the month of International Women’s Day.
Trade and press tasting with Caroline Gilby MW at 67 Pall Mall on the 14th of March. Join us to meet the twenty amazing female winemakers and taste the 100+ wines.
Zsirai Pincészet TR Tállya Tokaj Sol Montis Csetvei Pince The Old Cellar Malux Hungarian Wine & Spirits Rumelia CHATEAU BURGOZONE Villa Melnik (Вила Мелник) Seewines Yamantiev's winery Bendida Chateau Copsa Iconic Estate Familia Darabont Cramele Recas Aurelia Visinescu Aleksic Fautor Winery Gitana Wines Frelih Wine bar Šuklje Fedora wines Doppler Winery Vino Graben - Winecellar Vino Graben RHEIN EXTRA

Very well done to our friends from Bratanov Winery / Винарна Братанов . Such a talented, passionate and dedicated family winery that truly deserves this recognition 👏

DiVino.BG DiVino e списание и сайт за вино, винена публицистика и култура.

To All you beautiful women - from all of the female winemakers and winery owners that we work with to all women in the wine industry and to our wives and mothers -
HAPPY INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY.
You are all superheros , you are all incredible and we are incredibly lucky to have you in our lives. ❤️🙏

Do join us if you can. Some great wine stories to share.

Thank you for the support to all our amazing producers, distributors, independent shops and friends from all of us.
Keep being our motivation and inspiration through 2023 and we will continue to help everyone explore the gems from Bulgaria and the Balkans.
All the very best for 2023 :)

New Blaufränkisch wines that you need to try before you die Wine expert Justin Keay looks at how Blaufränkisch (and its many styles in Central Europe) is fast becoming a wine for today's palates

BALKAN RAKIA MASTERCLASS

The teams of The Old Cellar, Rakia Shop Rakia SHOP and Laki Kane Laki Kane Cocktail Bar & Thai Restaurant, Islington have joined forces to present to the UK bar trade, drinks specialists and press a BALKAN RAKIA MASTERCLASS as a continuation of the series of events to promote and establish this spirits category in UK. We will have Svetlin Mirchev - one of the leading rakia experts and international spirits judge to host the masterclass and provide in depth information about the rakia category. And along the tutor tasting of a range of premium Balkan rakias neat there will be cocktails on show with them as well.

Looking forward to welcoming all adventurous bartenders, journalists and spirit specialist who are willing to explore this undiscovered so far in UK corner of the spirit world, yet based on a long and authentic history and full of genuinely interesting products, stories and producers!

https://divino.bg/Divi-i-shtastlivi?fbclid=IwAR3ayU3P2yV78Ras1SB68e3YxM3epwrHVtRLpFzmhiGj3bkaWvQk0TR5sOc Growers that inspire Bratanov Winery / Винарна Братанов 🤗
https://www.theoldcellar.com/our-growers/bratanov-family-winery

Advertorial | Диви и щастливи | DiVino Винарна Братанов е първата и засега единствена българска изба, която изцяло ферментира вината си с т.нар. диви дрожди. 

At Blue of the Danube trade and press tasting showcasing some of the finest gems from Bulgaria.
Orbelia Winery / Винарна Орбелия
Logodaj Winery and Vineyards
Bratanov Winery / Винарна Братанов
Radostin Milkov
kortenwinery
Bononia Estate Winery and Resort
wine cellar
Thank you Wines of Hungary UK and Caroline Gilby MW for the invite and for your hard work in organising it.
Central and Eastern European wines are back on the wine map.👌

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the first ever Rakia Masterclass. It was an absolute delight to share some amazing products from the Balkans with you.
Also massive thank you to our host Marian Beke and his team at The Gibson for the support and for creating some inspirational cocktails to showcase the versatility and the quality of the Balkan spirits.
Furthermore thanks to our producers for their continuous hard work to shape this new category by creating some jaw dropping Rakias.
Black Sea Gold Pomorie
Destilerija Zarić
Hubert 1924
Хинап - Hinapska
Rakia SHOP

from The Old Cellar team
Stoyan Stoyanov
Dilyan Kolev
Georgi Panayotov