Gauntleys Fine Wine, Whisky and Cigar Merchants

About

Situated on the entrance to Nottingham's famous Exchange building, Gauntleys is one of the oldest independent companies in the city and is currently the world’s third oldest still family-owned tobacconist!

Gauntleys was founded in 1880 by Thomas Fox Gauntley as a traditional, English tobacconist. Very little changed within the business until the mid-1980’s when John Gauntley took over the running of the business from his father and introduced wines and spirits. Gauntleys were one of the first UK wine merchants to venture into the Rhone Valley in France; an area that had, up until that point, been largely ignored by all the big retailers. Today they have an enviable portfolio of agencies, featuring some of the great winemakers of the region along with a selection of the talented next generation. They also have the UK agency for one of the greatest Champagne growers in the region, that being Champagne Vilmart, as well as a selection of wines from the Loire, Alsace and beyond. There are ample opportunities throughout the year to sample wines from these amazing regions via the in-store wine evenings, which are held about every 6 weeks or so.

The Gauntleys range of whiskies and spirits is deep and diverse and has been specially curated by Chris Goodrum, Nottingham's top malt whisky impresario and expert, although being a modest person he would never deem to call himself an expert! The range of over 300 whiskies includes many specially selected Malts from Scotland, Ireland, England and Wales plus a large range of Independent private bottlings. Chris also believes that great whisky isn't just the preserve of the British Isles, and you will find a selected inventory from all over the world including Italy, France, Sweden, Switzerland, Australia, India and Japan to name but a few. Chris hosts several whisky tasting evenings throughout the year within the store that are, not only educational (and Chris has a lot of knowledge to share!) but fun too – the best way to learn! As an aside, Chris also has a YouTube channel, called the Good Dram Show, in which he tastes and presents several interesting spirits, as well as commenting on relevant stories and gossip within the industry. A new episode is filmed most weekends, so there is always something new and interesting to watch!

As an Accredited Habanos Cigar Specialist, Gauntleys has an extensive range of Cuban and New World cigars which have been carefully chosen by Eann Wallace. Eann is well versed in the art of cigar production and smoking, which means he, along with the rest of the ‘upstairs team’ can advise customers on the perfect cigar for that perfect moment. Eann also hosts regular cigar sampling evening's focusing on cigars that he feels are exciting and producers that are being quite innovative. The evenings are run in a relaxed and informal way whilst also being educational and fun. Eann has had the pleasure of travelling to several cigar producing countries, such as Cuba and Nicaragua to learn about the production and manufacture of cigars, and no doubt has a story or two to tell about his escapades!

Whatever you are looking for Gauntleys, one of Nottingham’s oldest retailers, has an amazing array of products and will no doubt be able to help.