Ask the Hermit.
The Concierge for the Curious
Don’t know what wine to buy? Good.
Tell me what you’re eating, what you usually drink, what you hate, and how much you want to spend.
I’ll choose the bottles.
£10, credited against your next wine order.
Once you’ve paid, you’ll receive a short questionnaire by email. Tell me what you’re after, and I’ll take it from there.
The concierge for the curious.
Not sure what to buy? Don’t worry about knowing what the wine is called. Tell the Hermit what you’re looking for, and I’ll do the thinking.
A bottle for dinner. Something strange. Six wines for a party. A brilliant gift. Something under £20. Something you’ve never tried before. A wine to go with a particular dish. Or simply:
“I want something really good.”
Tell me whatever you think might help — occasion, budget, number of bottles, food, tastes, dislikes, mood, favourite wines, wines you hate, or absolutely nothing beyond what you’re trying to achieve.
I’ll come back to you personally with a considered selection of wines and a little explanation of why I’ve chosen them. If I need to know more, I’ll ask.
£10
And here’s the important bit: if you buy your wines from Hermit, the full £10 comes straight off your wine order.
So you’re not really paying for advice. You’re putting £10 toward finding the right bottles.
Once you’ve paid, you’ll receive a short questionnaire by email. Tell me what you’re after and I’ll take it from there.
Or just want some great wine that we’re really excited about?
The Hermit Six
Six bottles. No decisions required.
Tell me your preference — mostly red, mostly white, or a mix — and I’ll do the rest. Pre-order by Tuesday and pickup on Saturday. Your week’s wine, sorted.
£118
Six bottles to sort your wine needs for the week. You tell me your preference — mostly red, mostly white, or mixed — and I’ll do the rest. Easy.
(Just a note: the wines pictured have been in The Six before but aren’t necessarily the ones you’ll find in yours.)
Rather choose your own?
Browse what’s in the shop this week — a few familiar, a few less so, all things I’d happily put into somebody’s hands.
The first Saturdays.
We're early days, and proud of it. In our first few weeks a small handful of orders have found their way to tables in Hexham and the surrounding area — an honest start to what we hope is a long conversation.
Every Saturday we learn a little more about what this corner of the world likes to drink, and we tailor the next week's lineup to match. Yours could be part of the next Saturday.
Your questions, answered honestly.
Straight answers, no fine print. Anything else — Ask the Hermit.
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You can indeed! We host regular pop-ups at The Biscuit Factory, so you can find us there. Or mention you’d prefer to pick up in Newcastle in your pre-order notes and we’ll arrange it.
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Each week's pre-order closes Tuesday at 11:59pm. Order by then and your wine is ready for Saturday. That deadline is what gives me the days in between to order, receive, and pack every case properly.
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That Saturday's order has closed, but the following week is open — so you're first in line for the next Saturday. If you need something sooner, Ask the Hermit and I'll see what I can do; I'm often able to help.
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Not yet — it's pickup only for now (Hexham and eventually Newcastle on Saturdays). That's deliberate: keeping the wine close and cared-for, and the price honest. Proper home delivery is on the roadmap for when we can do it well, and I'll let the list know the moment it's live. Until then, the Saturday ritual is the point.
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A mixed case of six bottles I've chosen that week after tasting — the ones with life in them. It's usually around £110 for the case (paid at order) but sometimes that will fluctuate a bit depending on the bottles in the lineup. It's rarely the loudest, most famous bottles — it's the ones I'd happily put in your hand and say "you should try this."
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Yes. Take the Six exactly as I've picked it, or start from it and swap bottles for your own picks from the week's lineup. The lineup lists every bottle with a few honest words so you can choose with confidence.
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If a bottle's faulty, I'll replace it, no fuss. If it's simply not your taste, that's genuinely useful to me — tell me what you'd rather be drinking and I'll choose better for you next time. You're never tied into the Six; order one, a few, or take the lot.
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By tasting — a lot. I taste everything before it’s offered, and the wines that make the cut — apart from being made well and tasting delicious — all share a specific quality: life and vitality. I work closely with a small number of incredible importers who care about wine the way I do and champion small, independent producers with passion and great skill. No scores, no points, no hype; if I wouldn't happily pour it for a friend and talk about it, it doesn't make the lineup.
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For choose-your-own, order what fits your table — it doesn't have to be a full six. The Six is six bottles because that will fill your house with great wine for a while, not because of a rule. The only real requirements are 18+ and a Saturday collection.
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You must be 18 or over to order. We operate Challenge 25: if you look under 25 you'll be asked for photo ID when you collect. We don't sell to anyone under 18, and we don't sell to adults buying for someone under 18. Please enjoy responsibly. 🍷
Keep me posted.
Between pickups, this is where the good stuff goes — no weekly noise, no clutter.
Sign up and you'll get:
The week's lineup before it's gone — order by Tuesday, collect Saturday
Invitations to tastings and gatherings, when they happen
A seasonal recommendation or two worth waiting for
Honest news as the shop takes shape
Occasional, worthwhile, and yours to leave anytime (though I do hope you stick around). 18+ only.
Come and go as you please — one click and you're out. No hard feelings.
The best bottles are
rarely the loudest.
The things that stay with us often begin with someone saying, "You should try this."
A friend. The owner of a small shop you've visited for years. The person who always seems to know exactly what to recommend.
The Hermit is being built around that idea.
A collection of wines, spirits, and provisions chosen because we believe in them.
Some you’ll recognise.
Others you’ll wonder how you ever lived without.
That’s what we’re here for.
What earns a place on the shelf.
Not a style.
Not a trend.
Not a checklist.
What matters is something harder to define.
We look for bottles with life in them.
Bottles that feel unmistakably themselves. Bottles with energy, with character. Bottles that leave an impression.
If we wouldn’t enthusiastically place it in someone’s hands and say, “You should try this,” it doesn’t belong here.
A place to linger.
The Hermit is the sort of place people return to.
Somewhere to discover something new. Somewhere to bring friends. Somewhere to stay a bit longer than you intended.
Something for tonight. Something to save for a special occasion. A conversation that lasts longer than expected.
No rush. No pressure. No performance.
Just good bottles, good company, and a place worth returning to.