SWGB: sustainability and using glass wine bottles Sustainability isn’t a “nice to have” these days, it’s an essential part of business success, and winegrowing is no exception. In an exciting development last year, WineGB, (English and Welsh wine’s national association) commenced a new environmental sustainability scheme. It’s called SWGB, standing for Sustainable Wines of Great Britain. The SWGB code affirms that members …
Louis Pommery England – English Sparkler, French Twist
Louis Pommery England – English Sparkler, French twist Champagne Houses have kept a watchful eye on English Sparkling Wine ever since it started making waves a few years back. What began as rumour became fact when they bought land in Britain for sparkling wine production. Two Champagne Houses well-known for this are Vranken-Pommery Monopole* and Taittinger. Meanwhile, English Sparkling wine is …
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The Great Vine – the World’s Oldest Grapevine?
The Great Vine – the World’s Oldest Grapevine? Where is the world’s oldest grapevine? Perhaps in continental Europe, which has been growing grapes for centuries. Alternatively, in a place that’s a cradle of winegrowing, such as Georgia or Syria. Surprisingly, the world’s oldest documented grapevine is thriving in London. This is The Great Vine, which it’s now 252 years young. There …
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Lyme Bay Chardonnay 2018 for English Wine Week 2020
Lyme Bay Chardonnay 2018 for English Wine Week 2020 This year’s English Wine Week is a little later in the year than usual. It runs from Saturday 20 June to Sunday 28th June. To tie in with this year’s event here’s my English wine recommendations. The principal feature is the newly released Chardonnay 2018 from the Lyme Bay Winery in …
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Herbert Hall English Sparkling Brut Rosé 2016
Herbert Hall English Sparkling Brut Rosé 2016 My first encounter with Herbert Hall wines was in 2016 with their Traditional Method Brut. That’s from Kent, and it proved to be one of the outstanding wines in a line up of high-quality Britfizz. You can read about that here. However, Herbert Hall also makes a Brut Rosé of a similar calibre. Herbert …
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Christmas 2019 – a dozen wines to check out!
Christmas 2019 – a dozen wines to check out! Happy Christmas to you all, and here’s my pick of the wines for Chrismas 2019. Here’s my Christmas Card as well. It’s the skating rink at the Christmas Market held in Bruges, Belgium. Anyway, here are a delightful dozen wines for the festive season that are all available in the UK. …
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Black Chalk – Classic 2015 – first release
Black Chalk – Classic 2015 – first release Hampshire has become something of an English Sparkling Wine hotbed during the last few years. Perhaps it’s arguably not quite as well known for wine as say Kent, Sussex or Cornwall. However, there are nevertheless some 27 vineyards in Hampshire at present, 21 of which are making sparkling wine. Some of these …
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Knightor Trevannion. English Quality Wine from Cornwall
Knightor Trevannion. English Quality Wine from Cornwall I’ve been exploring English wineries recently; in Cornwall, Hampshire, Sussex and Kent. Trevannion is from a Cornish winery called Knightor. It’s less than five minutes drive from the Eden Project, near St. Austell. Only grapes grown in England and Wales can be used to make English Quality Wine. Hence the grapes are from Knightor’s Cornish vineyards, …
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English Fizz comes of age
English Fizz comes of age. For English Fizz, this is the year that a step change happened. In years to come, we’ll look back at 2016 as the year that everything seemed to come together. Climate change, professional winemaking, maturing vines, grape varieties, site selection, business and investment skills, media recognition, coveted awards and sheer self-confidence mean that English Sparkling …
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England, My England. Aka The British are Coming!
England, My England. Aka The British are Coming! While still a small industry, the quantity, and quality of the wines made in England and Wales are increasing. It’s getting hard to remember that English wine is only a recent success story. The death of English and Welsh wine In 1920, the last commercial vineyard in Britain was abandoned, finally ending a …
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