Mine's a Pint - Winter 2018

When talking to Anne-Marie and Charlie you
can see how passionate they are about their
shop and brand. They seem to have hit on a
niche market but, with that combination in
mind, who doesn’t like beer and cheese when
there are so many combinations to try? They
now stock in the region of 450 different types
of beer from around the world, 50 different
cheeses from the UK and the continent and
around 70 different types of gin, rum, vodka,
whisky and liqueurs.
share a glass with them at the shop on Sunday
9 December (2pm-4pm). The Grumpy Goat
team will be brewing a special beer for the
event with Reading’s newest brewery Double
Barrelled, and there will be canapés from We
Are Friends (a local vegetarian and vegan
pop up). So, head down and raise a glass to
their continued success. See you there!
Phil Gill
Over the years you can see that Anne-Marie
and Charlie have invested more money where
they can to ensure that customers are happy.
For instance the addition of new fridges to
keep the beer cold in summer, and the wide
selection of spirits and liqueurs which is
probably bigger than any other selection in
an independent store in Reading.
They’ve introduced a loyalty card system
this year (to find out more about this take a
look at their website thegrumpygoat.co.uk).
Other ways they’ve developed the shopping
experience include the fact that they’re
happy to take beer recommendations and,
at Christmas, they have a pre-order service
for their cheese so customers can just drop
in and collect their Christmas cheese boards.
Anne-Marie and Charlie pride themselves
on their customer service and say they feel
privileged to employ such fantastic staff
who are also very knowledgeable and keen
to make a good impression on everyone
who steps through the door. When I asked
the pair about their plans for the future they
shared with me a couple of ideas. In the near
future they will be introducing a growler
fill system to enable customers to purchase
fresh beer straight from the taps and they
also have plans to set up a monthly beer box
which you can purchase online.
But the real reason for this article is to mark
their big fifth birthday! To celebrate, Anne-
Marie and Charlie are inviting everyone to
Mine’s A Pint
18