On Saturday Robert takes Bertie to Richmond Park; other suburbians in west London go to the supermarket, wash the car or simply have a cup of coffee and read the papers.
That’s what I do: FTWeekend and the page (above) is my favourite, a must-read if you look after your own money. I keep an eye on high yielding investment trusts in case Robert asks for advice. This morning I noticed Murray International is at a discount of 8% (or 6.48% on the Hargreaves Lansdown website). Either way it has fallen out of favour. I remember Robert waiting ages to buy because it was at a premium to NAV. It has been a good performer chucking out more than 4% a year.
This is an investment trust for the mature reader, wanting income and prepared to sacrifice capital growth. The dividends roll in quarterly and go up annually – 47.50p in 2016, 54.50p last year. A nice bonus would be if the price went back to the NAV, an easy 8% win.
Part Two: how to spend it. Chateau Clarke – an “Irish” claret – has gone up in the world since it was bought by the Rothschilds in 1973. On Thursday I had a productive meeting with trustees and staff of the Southwark Irish Pensioners’ Project after which I had lunch with a co-trustee of the Benevolent Society of St Patrick at my club. I prefer a Burgundy at lunch but my guest insisted on claret and, his name being Clarke, he was charmed by my choice. Indeed his family had owned the property. We had a 2009, a good year as you know. It was more spectacular than a Burgundy costing 50% more so I’m glad he steered me to Bordeaux. I had another bottle for lunch yesterday, purely for the purpose of quality control.
Dating back to the 12th century, the origins of Château Clarke began when Cistercian monks planted the first vines and in 1818 the knight, Tobie Clarke purchased the land, named after him to this day.
After passing through several hands, Baron Edmond de Rothschild bought the property in 1973. Baron Edmond restored the property and redesigned the vineyard resulting in a wine-producing area of 54 hectares and modernising the winemaking process throughout. Today, the vines are planted on clay-limestone hilltops that enable the Merlot vines to express their character.
Ever since the first wine was bottled in 1978 the quality of Château Clarke wine has steadily improved which is a testament to the stringent controls on the method of cultivation and wine production.
Since 2001, all the handpicked and meticulously sorted grapes are transferred into a wooden vat using gravity for the vatting process. The wine is then placed in new barrels where it is left to mature for between 14 and 18 months. This process means that the wine produced at Château Clarke is a true reflection of the land that made it: concentrated and distinguished, it allies power with aromatic complexity, and has great potential for ageing. (Waddesdon Manor)