Grouse Club @ <a target="_blank" href="http://www.thebullcharlbury.com/">The Bull</a><a target="_blank" href="http://www.thebullcharlbury.com/"> - Charlbury</a>


Sheep St, Charlbury

Chipping Norton 

OX7 3RR

BY NEAL MARTIN | SEPTEMBER 12, 2025

The Food:

Courgette and basil gazpacho 

Chicken liver parfait on toast

Grouse with confit legs and grouse heart served with spinach

Blackberry tart

The Wines:

<table>
 <tbody><tr>
 <td>1990 Dom Pérignon</td>
 <td>95</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>2022 Richard Kershaw Wines Chardonnay Deconstructed Lake District Bokkeveld Shale CY96&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</td>
 <td>94</td>
 </tr>
<tr>
 <td>1959 Petit Village</td>
 <td>89</td>
 </tr>
<tr>
 <td>1966 Cheval Blanc</td>
 <td>97</td>
 </tr>
<tr>
 <td>1973 Cheval Blanc</td>
 <td>87</td>
 </tr>
<tr>
 <td>1959 Domaine Faiveley Nuits Saint-Georges Clos de la Maréchale 1er Cru</td>
 <td>87</td>
 </tr>
<tr>
 <td>1989 Pichon Baron</td>
 <td>96</td>
 </tr>
<tr>
 <td>1966 Grand-Puy-Lacoste</td>
 <td>91</td>
 </tr>
<tr>
 <td>1978 La Mission Haut-Brion</td>
 <td>97</td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>1967 Climens</td>
 <td>98</td>
 </tr></tbody></table>
This year’s edition of the annual Grouse Club saw the three musketeers
relocate to the rolling hills of the Cotswolds. The club’s members—Lord Bruce,
his butler Gareth and yours truly—headed to The Bull in the village of
Charlbury. Christopher Columbus was yet to discover America when The Bull first
opened its doors in the 16th century. Suffice it to say, The Bull
has been serving flagons of ale for one or two years. That said, I wager that
during its half-millennial existence, these walls had never witnessed such a bevy
of fine claret, nor such inane conversation or dribble.

This gastropub is definitely more gastro than pub. That said, it comes
with all the trimmings you’d expect: a low, sagging ceiling and ancient oak
beams, flagstone flooring, open fires and walls thick enough to repel canon
fire. On this Wednesday at lunchtime, the place thronged with Notting Hill
escapees, families and locals upholding the dying tradition of a cheeky
lunchtime pint. Sadly, there was no sight of car-expert-turned-farmer Jeremy
Clarkson, who apparently drops in for the occasional pint when the queues are
too long at his own pub, which is every day. Nor did we spot U.S. Vice President
JD Vance, who recently tried to book a table. Search the gossip columns if you
don’t believe me, though the truth is nothing close to the tittle-tattle you
will read.

<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757604657665-VT_Grouse+Cover.jpg">Chef Sally Abé, center, with Lord Bruce at left and James Gummer at right.

Perhaps it is no surprise that since its refurbishment in 2023, The Bull
has been a roaring success. Phil Winser and James Gummer, the team behind the
restaurant, have a track record of successful openings, including London’s The
Pelican and <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/vinous-table-canteen-london-uk-may-2025">Canteen</a>. It was a pleasant surprise to find chef Sally Abé in her kitchen apron.
Abé is one of this country’s brightest talents, also recognisable from
appearances on the BBC’s “Great British Menu.” I had no idea that the former
Harwood Arms chef had moved out to the sticks. Now, I was salivating even more
with thoughts of glorious grouse.

The menu at The Bull can be described as classic British. However,
reading the menu online, it could certainly sound more appetising, as it
follows the trend for gruff, almost monosyllabic descriptions. You might
describe the food as posh pub grub, but that would undersell it. Expect
simplicity married with impeccable sourcing, all delivered with Abé’s
professional touch. 

<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757604676952-cougette+gaz_VT.jpg">Courgette and basil gazpacho.

We commence with a small cup of courgette and basil gazpacho that
awakens the senses, crammed with vivid flavours. Then, a chicken liver parfait
that is impossible not to love. It is the best I have ever tasted, so light and
creamy it might float away, beautifully garnished and spooned onto toasted
brioche. 

<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757604699174-grouse_VT.jpg">Grouse with confit legs and grouse heart served with spinach.

The star of the show, the grouse, had been sourced from a shoot up in Northumberland.
Two thousand twenty-five is another difficult year for the game bird that can
only be hunted from the “Glorious Twelfth.” A knock-on from the catastrophic
2024 season, breeding is down, meaning that shoots are being cancelled in order
to try and replenish numbers. At least it is possible to obtain grouse, unlike
last year when we had to suffice with substitutes at <a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/vinous-table-grouse-club-bouchon-racine-london-uk-oct-2024">Bouchon Racine</a>. Here, Abé prepared the bird masterfully. She trimmed it off the bone
so that you are not scraping around a carcass, first poaching then roasting the
grouse to lock in its juices and gaminess. The legs were done confit style and
the hearts were oven-roasted, all served resting on a plate of wilted spinach
with a redcurrant jus to die for. Perfectly seasoned, this represents one of
the finest examples of grouse that I have eaten during “Grouse Club,” and it
acts as a perfect foil to the vino.

<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757604716534-blackberry+tart_VT.jpg">Blackberry tart.

Finally, I could not resist a blackberry tart served with ice cream. No
words needed. Just look at the photo and try not to salivate. 

Lord Bruce excelled himself in terms of raiding his enviable cellar,
which is to wine what Prince’s vault is to music. We commenced with a 1990
Dom Pérignon. I have found bottles a little variable in recent years, but
this was certainly a great one. Golden in hue, it blossoms on the nose with
brioche, almond, lemon zest and hints of honey that imply botrytis. The palate
is just effervescent with impressive vigour after 35 years. Boasting yellow
fruit, honey once more and a slightly mellifluous finish, this is everything
you want in a mature DP. I brought along a white from my recent trip to South
Africa. Why bang on about South African wines matching classic regions if you’re
not going to slip them into salubrious meals like this? Served blind, it is no slight
against either palate that both of my dining companions thought it was
Burgundy, Saint-Aubin to be precise, because that is what it tasted like. The
(takes a long, deep breath…) 2022 Chardonnay Deconstructed Lake District
Bokkeveld Shale CY96 from Richard Kershaw Wines delivers the tension
and mineralité you would expect from a Premier Cru Burgundy, whilst the
palate has that verticality that dupes you into thinking you are somewhere in
the Côte de Beaune. Meliorating in the glass by the minute, there is tremendous
focus and sophistication to this, one of the Cape’s finest Chardonnays. The
following morning, Lord Bruce asked where he could buy a bottle. Job done.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757687691561-bordeaux_bottles_VT.jpg">Onto a series of clarets. The 1959 Petit Village comes from an
era when this Pomerol estate was owned by the Ginestet merchant. The 1959 comes
across a little rustic and timeworn on the nose, though the vintage’s richness
still shines through with smudged, overripe white-tipped strawberries and
raspberries. With aeration, sous-bois intermixed with wild heather and
tobacco surfaces and adds more complexity. The palate has degraded over decades
yet remains cohesive with extant red fruit. This is simpler than the top-drawer
Pomerol wines from ’59, though it has a welcome touch of allspice on the
finish. Bottles need to be drunk soon unless in large format. The 1966
Cheval Blanc is often overshadowed by the astonishing 1964—unfairly, to
judge by this splendid bottle. I had only tasted this vintage once, back in 2014.
Even then, it was from half-bottle (and there is nothing wrong with
half-bottles, as was soon proven). As an aside, when I met winemaker
Pierre-Olivier Clouet in London a few days later, he told me that 1966 was the
first vintage to be fermented in concrete vats that were new at the time. This
has a stunning, ethereal bouquet of camphor-tinged red fruit, potpourri and
violets that has fabulous delineation…there’s something almost Burgundian about
its allure. The palate is framed by melted tannins, perfectly balanced and a
little savoury with age. It gains weight in the glass, delivering a gorgeous
piquant finish that entices you back for more. Quintessential Cheval Blanc, and
wine of this year’s Grouse Club. It was partnered by a slightly younger
version. The 1973 Cheval Blanc is a vintage that I had never tasted, and
perhaps we hoped that it would replicate the stunning showing of the ’73 Petrus
at the inaugural Grouse Club at Bellemy’s. That was not to be, though this
still put on a creditable performance in context. Light and herbaceous on the
nose, the aromatics are refined, but there is undeniably&nbsp;a slight washed-out,
underripe element. Scents of antique bureau manifest in the glass. The palate
is marked by sour cherries on the entry, with quite sharp acidity and some
attenuation towards the finish. It’s still perfectly enjoyable, although this
bottle was aided by sound provenance. 

There followed a Burgundy interlude. The 1959 Nuits Saint-Georges
Clos de la Maréchale 1er Cru from Faiveley was just degraded by
time. Pressed flowers emerge on the stolid nose typical of Faiveley at that
time. There are dark berries and singed leather, but this misses the detail and
precision of a great old Pinot Noir. The palate is tannic and firm, a bit dry around
the edges, with remnants of dark fruit on the leathery finish. Perfectly
drinkable, but drink up.

Back to Bordeaux. The 1989 Pichon Baron is a wine that I have enjoyed
many times, and it is just wonderful. Graphite and tobacco interlace on the
intense, black-fruited nose that could only be born in Pauillac, old school in
some ways and yet still brimming with vigour. The palate has fabulous balance,
impressive weight and backbone, with gentle grip on the finish that never
imposes too strongly. There is a sense of control and grandeur about this
Pichon Baron that never ceases to amaze. Wonderful. The 1966
Grand-Puy-Lacoste is another vintage that I had never come across. Indeed,
pre-1982 vintages of this Pauillac are thin on the ground. This has a classic
nose of cigar box-tinged black fruit with quite a strong marine influence, more
cedar-like scents emerging with time. The palate is lighter than the ’66 Cheval
Blanc, yet there is a pleasing bitterness/salinity that keeps this on its toes,
mellowing out marvellously towards the piquant, slightly leafy finish. The 1978
La Mission Haut-Brion came from half-bottle, and if I’ve said it once, I
will say it again…there is nothing wrong with half-bottles. This is hands down the wine of the vintage. Powerful black fruit mixed with mulberry, warm gravel and
hints of Japanese nori burst from the glass and never give up. The palate has
amazing concentration for a ’78, quite dense and almost muscular yet velvety
smooth on an atypically plush finish. This Graves is at its peak now and should
not be overlooked…in whatever format. Alas, a bottle of 1979 La Mission
Haut-Brion was corked.

<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1757604783076-climens_VT.jpg">Any diner who wishes to finish in style must finish with Sauternes.
Period.

The 1967 Climens is an incredible Barsac that repeats the stellar
showings of two bottles drunk in the last couple of years. Spectacular on the
nose with otherworldly intensity, the scents of yuzu, marmalade, quince and
Mirabelle are completely intoxicating. Despite the intensity, there is
incredible delineation. The palate is tensile and fresh, the acidity slicing
effortlessly through the layers of botrytised fruit, blood oranges and quince
on the vivid finish that is so long you can feel flavours lapping against your
senses a minute later. Brilliant.

I probably say it every year, but this was my favourite Grouse Club so
far. Laughter and banter, exquisite cooking courtesy of Sally Abé and the best
game bird there is—a lunch without end. Getting out in the countryside, you can
unwind more, leave modernity behind. 

Another downpour greeted our departure, but that was all part of the
fun. Today was all about friendship, tradition for reasons of hedonism only,
grouse and fine claret.&nbsp;We also had the welcome addition of baby Ernie, who dribbled even more than myself thinking about our grouse.&nbsp;Next year?© 2025, Vinous. No portion of this article may be copied, shared or redistributed without prior consent from Vinous. Doing so is not only a violation of our copyright but also threatens the survival of independent wine criticism.

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