English wine? English? Wine?

When the rest of the world thinks about England, they most likely think of red phone boxes, the Queen, cups of tea and rain. They probably don’t think about wine. Oh, we Brits LOVE wine – we guzzle gallons of the stuff, I’m sure you know that. But we actually make it too. We MAKE it! And we make it pretty darn well.⁣
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Recently, in a chat with ex-Dom Perignon and Cloudy Bay winemaker, Nick Lane, he said that the UK was the most exciting place to make wine in the world right now because it’s such a new industry and it has the unique opportunity to forge its own path. He could make wine anywhere in the world, but he’s choosing to make it in England! And it’s not just because its novel – we have the goods too. ⁣
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The vineyards in the south of England sit at a latitude just a couple of degrees north of Champagne and the soils are made of the same stuff – chalk – because the land masses used to be connected. A cool climate provides grapes with killer acidity (perfect for sparkling – yay!) and warmer temperatures are meaning we’re now getting the ripeness too. Even the Champagne houses are eyeing up the English terroir: Taittinger have planted vines in here and Pommery have made an English cuvée!⁣
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It’s not just award-winning sparkling wines we make here, either. We’ve got still whites, rosés and reds too. I know, I know – you might not believe me. It feels a bit like how some people still view English food. People still think we’re eating over-boiled cabbage with liver and onions, when we’ve got one of the world’s most incredible, diverse and delicious food scenes, with the Michelin stars to prove it.⁣

Why not see what all the fuss is about?
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