I have never before ventured to deepest, darkest Blackheath, so when I was invited to a blogger event at Le Bouchon wine bar there, I thought it was a good excuse to visit a part of London that I hadn’t seen before. It was a lovely sunny day, perfect for sitting outside with a few glasses of wine and some cheese and charcuterie, which is what we did, in a very successful attempt to recreate a holiday feeling. Blackheath is one of those areas of London that feels like its own little village (and it’s not on the tube line, which helps). Apparently it was dominated by chain places but quite a few independents like Le Bouchon have popped up, giving the place more character. Le Bouchon was everything I expected a French wine bar to be – small enough to be intimate but big enough to accommodate people dropping by without a problem. Very tastefully decorated with a mix of high tables and stools, and lower tables and chairs, plus big windows that open onto the street and a few tables outside.

On a perfectly beautiful sunny summer evening I made by way to Blackheath for a bloggers evening at a French Wine Bar. A first for both going to Blackheath and a French wine bar that claimed to be halfway between a pub and a restaurant.

I think I walked past the bar once before I finally understood my google map. There is something very welcoming about the simple wooden interiors and large paintings that made want to just dump my bag and get started with a chilled glass of wine. First up we were served a Champagne Rose’ and hors d’oeuvre of regular stuff like sun dried tomatoes – not in oil as I expected but these were nice and tangy, very dry on their own though, sweet mini peppers stuffed with cheese and served with Tapenade.
Le Bouchon has ample seating indoors and out on street , it is tastefully done and perfect for a n evening out with friends or with family to have that one glass or carafe of wine ,gaze at the beautiful surroundings and drink in the ambience.Also good to grab a high stool, drink a glass of red with a date.

The sunshine and a comfy table visible outside from the beautiful big windows were too hard to resist so we moved outside to soak up some sun, there was a light breeze …just perfect to get started on wine! Well with the 120 wines on offer with a distinct French touch , I was all set to order my white wine ,I wanted a light and slightly sweet one so on Jeanne’s recommendation I got a German white called Gewürztraminer – an aromatic white which goes well with cheese and fatty gamey meat and tastes like lychees ,floral and with tiny bubbles in the glass. I loved it! I could have done with some bread but thankfully didn’t have any just then as the charcuterie and cheese was yet to arrive. It was fun deciding what cheese to choose with the charcuterie.
I choose Comte - a 24 month old mature cheese with a nutty flavour & hard but creamy texture, Secret – a cheese I’ve never had before – its made from unpasteurised cows milk with fruity and nutty notes and last one I gave into a desire for some blue cheese with Forme d’ Ambert – a creamy and very light blue cheese – prefect to slather onto the accompanying bread .Before our beautiful cheese and charcuterie boards reached our table, little did I expect such large portions , it was more than enough and served as very satisfying main course.

I was seated with some very friendly bloggers and conversation flowed as smoothly as the wine.

My delicious cheese and charcuterie served with red grapes,pickles and dried apricots – perfect with the platter - Comte Saucisson a traditional tasty pork sausage with Comte’ ,Walnut Saucisson – pork sausage nutty and dry but very delicious and a pepper Saucisson 100% pork sausage aged in black pepper.I finished my cheese off with some Spanish Red – Rioja – intense on spices and oak ,fruity with a hint of liquorice.

Travelling into Blackheath by train and walking up the high street is like getting out-of-town into a nearby modern village.Le Bouchon is Blackheaths answer to an independent ,one-off wine bar with a good selection of wine and cheese , in contrast to the many chains that otherwise easily take over majority of the high street. It’s the kind of place you could back to many times over and even make your fav haunt if you are a local – easy.