Apres Planet April '15 | Page 2

3 BEAUTY 2 POLITICS Partly Political furniture: By Richard Williams Each of the party leaders aspire to become a long Labour: Economy Shelving could be the term part of the political furniture in this country. opposition’s tagline for them. Perhaps We decided to create our very own Stand-By Coat Racks “acoustic panel” of items, for a highly accurate rep– complemented by resentative poll of how the parties look Stand-By Hanging before the general election. Bar (which could, after all, come in It’s very likely that our range of handy) might be co-working furniture could be relevant here too, fairer? since the likelihood is that a hung parliament will lead to another coalition. Roll on another 5 years! If the Eds succeed, they can relax on Labour rebels attack Ed with Celeste Green Party: Sting – not an ob- Acoustic Wall Panels. Mr Osbourne Millibar Lounge allegedly threw the Splat Acoustic vious choice Armchairs and initially, but something the Panel... calculate their time party will need in its tail if it in office with Ball Clocks. is to make headway. Plus, it’s Nordic Swan eco-labelled and Conservatives: Under incredible pressure, they have faced a Timetable Shift; this item can easily recyclable. be folded up and moved aside... The Soundwave Planter As part of its Sustainable Platinum rating, (pictured) allows you to integrate greenery within your Generation Task Chair requires a Life Cycle open plan office, whilst the Cross Outdoor Table Assessment, a rigorous, independently audited is also recyclable. Our sustainable furniture range process that evaluates the environmental attributes of a product throughout its total life. Finalshould keep them happy too. ly, Dave might find his arguably smug pal George Liberal Democrats: Courage Modular Sofa is hiding under the Jobs Easy Desks (pictured balanced and can fit into any combination asked of below) come May 7th... it, which is great if you can’t decide on a right or left hand corner sofa. Balance Height Adjustable Bench Desk (pictured with upstanding Nick below) is an excellent choice for working at just the right level – high, low, or right in the middle... and to finish SNP: The stoic Scots could make the most of off we have Liberty Side Chairs and Liberty Office Unite SE Bench Desk, Chair, though we can’t quite decide between them. which, one should note, is made in the United Kingdom. They’ll either be waiting anxiously on the Question Mark Armchair, with its 360° swivel, for the votes to be counted, or more likely think that they are part of the Plentybord System. BRINGING THE PEACE AND QUIET OF THE OUTDOORS INSIDE. UKIP: If they get into power, we’re sure Nige would be happy to rename the office in honour of BS Filing Cabinets (pictured below) – British made, they’re solidly built, reliable, and not going anywhere. It will help keep their manifesto in place too, whether they win or not... TriASS Carcase – made by Assmann, is proudly Germanic like Nigel’s greatest asset... his wife. A modular office solution, it will help you look outside the box when it comes to storage. And finally, we’re absolutely certain that Mr Farage will deck out his private bar with Happyhour Tables should something extraordinary happen at the end of a 4 day week. ET TU BRUT? W THE RISE OF THE ENGLISH SPARKLING WINE By Wessel Stoltz Plaid Cymru: Whether they rise as high as a dragon with a hot nosebleed, or fail so miserably they want to hide away in Valley HQ, we’d be delighted to supply them with our Plaid Screen Room Dividers. They can devise their next steps in in the privacy of Cwtch High Back Sofa (pictured below), with its acoustic qualities, offering the peace and quiet of the Welsh countryside (ok, that might be pushing it!). And they’ll always be able to use the VisitASS Reception Desks to offer you a warm welcome. GINKGO WALL PANELS Well, yes, the English can make brut. And not just hand-make a traditional method brut and brut rosé any old brut, but one that hold its own against some sparkling wine. of the world’s most renowned champagnes – a brut that is produced right in the heart of Kent, England. It didn’t take too long for oenophiles, Michelin-starred restaurants and princes to take notice Just shy of an hour’s train journey from Charing of Mr Hall’s fruit-driven fizz creations: wine writer Cross will see you arrive in a village where you can Matthew Jukes described the first vintage of Herbert Hall as “the finest debut English Sparkling breathe in the aromas of fresh air and freshly produced cow dung. An altogether pleasant and Wine I have ever tasted”; Le Gavroche, J Sheekey smile-inducing smell (but that might just be my and Le Caprice have all add ed HH to their rather inner farmer’s olfactory prejudice at work…) impressive wine lists and Prince Charles has even that spells your arrival in the countryside town of invited Nicholas to make a bubbly under his Highgrove label. High praise indeed for a newly Marden. established winemaker. It is here, just outside the town that Nicholas Hall decided to plant his vines. The south-facing slopes On a recent trip to the vineyard, Nicholas treated a of what used to be the 10-acre hops farm his great few of us to a viniculture initiation. Being a grandfather worked when he first arrived there as a garagiste operation (what we would call a boutique labourer in 1893, proved to be ideal for viniculture. winery) does, however, not mean that he presses the grapes in his garage - instead he took us to an The garagiste-style production of Herbert Hall impressive outbuilding that houses his pride and yielded its first harvest (organically grown, mind joy: a German-made pneumatic press that’s you) in 2009 of which Nicholas decided to responsible for pressing the Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes that fills all 15 000 bottles produced on the farm each year. Here he explained the terroir (gravel-seamed clay) and the difference between the straw-coloured brut and the ever-so-slightly pink brut rosé – both perfect English summer drinking wines – whilst giving us the grand tour and showing us his handiwork. His handiwork? Try meticulously sticking on 15 000 labels by hand and then finishing each bottle off with a flourish and your John Hancock. But that is exactly what producing Herbert Hall means to Nicholas. It’s a labour of love, and it shows in the tasting. the finest debut English Sparkling Wine I have ever tasted” Matthew Jukes