A new wine shop is set to open at a former Oxford University bookstore.

The Oxford University Press bookshop at 116-117 High Street closed in March 2020 when coronavirus pandemic hit.

In February last year Oxford University Press announced that the shop would not be reopening and it has remained empty ever since.

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Now wine chain Amathus is preparing to open a wine shop at the High Street premises.

It has shops across London and the south selling wine and whisky, including those in Bath, Brighton, Hampstead, Muswell Hill, Notting Hill, Soho and South Kensington.

Oxford Mail: Amathus at Leadenhall Market, LondonThe chain has applied to the city council for listed building consent for new signs outside, and has also applied for a premises licence.

Planning permission has already been given earlier this year for change of use of the basement and ground floor from retail to part retail for the ground floor and part library for college use.

The application for listed building consent at the Grade II listed building says: "This application relates solely to the new ground floor retail unit.

"The proposals outlined here seek to display advertisements associated with the commercial operation of the premises and redecorate all painted timberwork to the front elevation."

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Established in 1978, Amathus Drinks Plc is a family owned drinks importer, distributor and specialist retailer.

Its website says: "Our mission is simple: to provide first class products and services to our customers in the on-trade, specialist retail and direct to consumers."

It adds: "This is our real point of difference – a wide range of exclusive brands, expertly sourced. Our whisky selection includes a wide selection from ​Burgundy's Michel Couvreur, a few from Denmark's Copenhagen Distillery and Sweden’s Spirit of Hven, Japan’s Matsui and Kurayoshi, and (a little closer to home) The English Whisky Company, based in Norfolk.

Oxford Mail: A preservation award"Equally diverse is our wine portfolio which has grown exponentially over the past two years, all meticulously sourced by our in-house Master of Wine, Jeremy Lithgow. Our wines cover diverse countries and styles and include award-winning producers such as Chablis’s Domaine Gueguen, Australia’s Penley Estate, Elk Cove from the USA, Chile’s De Gras, with Artemis Karamolegos, Chateau Carras and Tsiakkas, paying tribute to our Hellenic roots."

Oxford Wine Cellar opened in Oxford High Street earlier this month.

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It is is the latest addition to the family-owned Oxford Wine Group portfolio which includes the Oxford Wine Company, the Oxford Wine Café, Sandy's Piano Bar and Little Sandy's in Witney.22 Sept 2023

OUP is based in Walton Street and is renowned for publishing the Oxford English Dictionary both in print and online.

Oxford Mail: Oxford University Press in Walton StreetA statement on OUP's website said in February last year: "OUP has decided not to reopen the Bookshop, which has been closed since the first UK lockdown in March 2020.

"Instead, OUP books in Oxford will move to a new home in Blackwell’s Bookshop on Broad Street."

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About the author 

Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here. 

He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.

His Trade and Tourism newsletter is released every Saturday morning. 

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