50 wines that all sell

I first heard about the George, in Petersfield, Hamp-shire, in this very publication. It was featured in the 20 January issue, a finalist in the MA's Best Wine Pub of the Year award. It caught my eye because the picture showed co-licensee Jason Stredder grinning broadly in front of a shelf-full of wine bottles, numbered one to 50. A rather intriguing back-bar display, I thought, and worth another look.

Stredder, with business partner Jonathan Berry, took over the pub on Petersfield's historic town square in September 2002. With décor as undesirable as its customers, the former estate agent set about transforming the place.

One of his main priorities was to make wine a real focus. "So many pubs have the wines tucked away, even when they are listing a decent selection. I wanted to have the wine on display," explains Stredder.

Won't risk spoiling the wine

He erected a long shelf that runs the length of the bar and numbered each of the 50 bottles on the list. There's space on the shelf for three bottles, but he only puts two of each red wine on there, with whites and bubblies residing in the fridge ­ "I don't want to risk spoiling the wine when it gets a bit too warm in here," he says, adding that he has also tailored the lighting to avoid any excess temperatures.

Stredder reckons that his back bar display has even tempted customers beyond their usual glug, not to mention helping them avoid any pronunciation embarrassment when ordering by number. "It also gives customers a better idea about what they're in the mood for. If they can see a bottle of rosé in front of them, it encourages them to try it," he says.

Wine makes up 40% of sales at the George and the choice ranges from Le Plonk Blanc (£9.25, £2.40/175ml), an own label wine devised by Stredder and one of his four key suppliers, the General Wine Company in Liphook, Hants, to Cristal 1996 for £165 (well, it is Hampshire).

Wines in between range from an Aussie Pinot Noir from Tyrrells (£15.25/£3.95) and Californian Zinfandel from Fetzer (£14.95/£3.85) to Argentinean Pinot Gris from Santa Celina (£13.50/£3.45) to Hawkes Bay Sauvignon Blanc from Matua Valley (£14.95/£3.85) and a Cava from Juve y Camps (£16.95).

The pub is part of the Unique Pub Company stable and while Stredder and Berry are locked in with the beer offering, they have free reign on the wine selection ­ which suits Stredder down to the ground.

"We've found that people want something a little bit unusual around here," he says. Among the best sellers are a South African Gewürztraminer from Weltvrede (£15.95/ £4.10) and a Barbera d'Alba from the Piedmont (Patrizi, £12.75/£3.30) ­ not your usual Aussie Chardonnay or Chilean Cabernet, then?

"We get a lot of girls in here that come to drink wine and they are always asking us for something different," says Stredder, who also trains the staff. "It's important that my staff know each wine on the list ­ when they get behind it, they can sell anything." And all the wines sell, he insists.

We're still a pub not a wine bar

Maybe it's because he has chosen to incorporate a corkscrew on his signage ­ just to let people know that he's serious about wine ­ "though we're still a pub, not a wine bar," he insists.

Or maybe it's because he changes the list every quarter. "It's good for customers to see new things on the list," he declares.

Then there are the regular wine tastings that the George puts on, including a weekly Italian food night with six accompanying wines.

It also helps that 40 of the wines on the list are available by the glass, encouraging even more experimentation ­ thanks to a Le Verre de Vin wine preservation system that Stredder installed on day one. Lucky Petersfield.

Free wine tasting training for MA readers

Next month sees the return of the London Wine & Spirits Fair at the capital's Excel exhibition centre. This key event in the drinks trade's calendar provides a cost-free opportunity for licensees to meet suppliers and discuss ways to improve their wine lists and increase profit.

To help our readers make the most of visiting the fair, we have teamed up with the Wine & Spirit Education Trust to offer a free introduction to tasting wines, training your staff and ways to encourage customers to buy more expensive wines.

The session will last less than an hour and will be repeated each day that the fair runs to enable as many licensees as possible to get along.

When and where:

Tuesday 17 May at 10.00am

Wednesday 18 May at 11.00am

Thursday 19 May at 11.00am

All the session will be held in the on-trade theatre and places are limited. To reserve yours, call Erica Dent at the WSET on 020 7246 1504 or e-mail: edent@wset.co.uk

More information on the fair and who will be exhibiting is available at www.londonwinefair.com