Last weekend Ian and I hopped in the car down to the south coast, to Lymington to stay with my Mum. We took all our warm clothes as we braced ourselves for windy walks on the beach and pub lunches in front of the fire.
If you've never been to Lymington, or the surrounding villages in the New Forest then you really have missed out; it's beautiful. Just see for yourself...
After a long, chilly, but gratifying walk along the beach at sunset we needed to warm up, so ducked into a little wine bar called The Cave, in Milford.
The Cave is a wine-bar-come-shop and feels like it's been plucked off Upper Street in Angel, rather than tucked into a little seaside town.
Apart from the selves and shelves of beautiful wine and champagne, there are a few high benches, and a couple of slouchy chairs, as well as a small bar, all of which lend themselves perfectly to a relaxed yet up-market atmosphere.
Even better, they do wine tastings; just the ticket to warm us up!! We went for two flights of red.
The 50ml sizes they gave were perfect for two to share a good taste (and were reasonable too!). What I loved about it was there was no pretentious sniffing or swilling (or worse, spitting!!!); you were left to enjoy your selection of wines, and could ask questions if you wanted. Such a perfect way to learn what types of wines you like best.
If you're wondering, the Malbec was by far the best, in my opinion!
So if you're ever in Milford on Sea, and fancy something a bit different from a local pub, make sure you pop into the Cave! I defy you to go in there and leave without a bottle!