London Wine Fair in bubbles-England

I started tasting at the London Wine Fair the only decent way. With some English sparkling.

 Nyetimber http://www.nyetimber.com/ 

Classic cuvée 2007 A blend of 56% Chardonnay and the remainder an equal split of Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, it spends three years on its lees before release. This was a belter of a way to get back into English wine, a wee slip of a thing it has many years ahead of it but it is bright, zippy and as racy as you would expect. Green apple, fresh citrus notes and hints of honey and candied peel on the nose this is one I would drink half the case and hide the other half. Delicious!

 Rose 2007 Officially new and indeed exciting. A blend of 75% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Noir I was slightly disappointed when I tried this that I wasn't sat in the glorious sunshine with my favourite people sipping bubbles and gossipping. A slightly savoury nose with ripe, plump red berry flavours it is enticing from the start. Like the Classic cuvée it is taut and racy with crisp redcurrants, ripe red cherries and crunchy red apples coming through on the palate. Fresh and lively this has many years left in it, if one happened to be getting married this summer it would be worth getting a case of this to have one on each anniversary to celebrate.

Blanc de Blancs 2003 I loved this. I am a relatively new convert to the joy that is Blanc de Blancs. I love my Pinot dominant sparklers but over the years some really smart Chardonnay heavy wines have turned my head and this is no exception. Fresh apples and yoghurt on the nose with subtle toasty notes starting to come through this wine shows real vibrancy for its nine years in age. A very stylish wine, soft and fresh with almonds, apple and stone fruit one to get your hands on while you can.

 Ridgeview www.ridgeview.co.uk

Ridgeview only make sparkling wine and lots of it. Being the dedicated nerd that I am, I tried the entire range and here are my Top 3.  

Grosvenor Blanc de Blancs 2009 Told you I'm a sucker for a decent Blanc de Blancs. Much bolder and richer than the Nyetimber despite being several years younger it has a stone fruit and honeyed nose which follows through onto the palate with a slight nuttiness which is counter balanced by the fresh apple and lemon flavours. Complex and interesting, this really hit the spot.

 Bloomsbury 2009 A blend of 58% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir and 12% Pinot meunièr this was ripe and almost juicy on the palate with stone fruits and apples mingling with brioche and a hint of dairy. Very, very drinkable.  

Victoria 2009 A saignee Pinot Meunier dominant rose with the remainder made up of Pinot Noir, this was delicious, soft and savoury. On the nose red berries and fresh cherry blossom delicately balanced with some savoury, rich notes. I know it isn't terribly English but I really wanted some Iberico ham to match with the pomegranate , red berries and blossom. The Victoria still has a youthful edge to it making it a perfect choice with friends, sunshine, laughter and not very English ham!  

Chapel Down http://www.chapeldown.com/

Based down in Tenterden, Kent Chapel Down make both sparkling and still wines. Here are two they were showing on the Bibendum stand.  

Primrose Hill NV This is a wine we unanimously decided, in our tasting group in Tasmania, that we would be happy to drink a comfortable amount of and on trying it again at the fair, my decision stands. It's a cheeky little number with a fresh and fruity black currant and hedgerow nose. The palate is sprightly with red and black currants, berries and spice lifted by some crisp acidity to produce a dry and very appealing white sparkling wine.  

Rose NV Made from 100% Pinot Noir this is a delicate salmon pink with an equally delicate red cherry and rosehip nose. I thoroughly enjoy the variety of dry sparkling rose wines that are currently knocking around and this is no exception. Delicately complex with red fruits, citrus and a slight floral note all comfortably enlivened by a crisp, fresh acidity. A very elegant glass of fizz indeed.  

Hush Heath http://www.hushheath.com/home

Having a very quick chat and some cheery banter on Twitter with the folks from Hush Heath I was thrilled that their approach to wine is not too dissimilar to mine. Wine should be fun, especially good wine. They make good wine and it is most definitely fun.  

Balfour Rose 2008 Rose that one has fun with doesn't need to be some glow in the dark, sticky, catastrophe. The Balfour Rose is a pale salmon in colour and tastes vibrant, fresh, fruity and crisp. Red cherries, raspberries, redcurrants and quince all sit happily with a touch of spice and I can guarantee that a glass of this will make you realise that stylish and fun are very happy bedfellows. Delicious!

Chapel Down Brut Vintage Reserve

Kent, the garden of England. The best thing to do in a garden on a hot day is to crack open a bottle of bubbles and see where the conversation takes you and with a bottle of Chapel Down Brut on the go you can be sure of happy free-wheeling chat that will put the world to rights.

I have enjoyed many a bottle of Chapel Down Brut over the years and when i nipped back to England late last year I picked up a bottle to taste with friends back home in Tassie. To have two such different English bubbles in our first tasting group was a treat and the response to the Chapel Down was actually more accordant than the Nyetimber. In the most affectionate way, this is a great session sparkler.

Lemon in colour with many small, fast moving bubbles the nose presents an unusual blend of blackcurrant, rose, violet, rosehip and apple. The palate continues with many flavours that are unexpected in a white sparkling with red fruits such as redcurrants and strawberries adding to the mix of flavours found on the nose. 

With a crisp and refreshing acidity these red and floral flavours really work to create a flavoursome and very drinkable wine. Best enjoyed young the Chapel Down Brut really hits the spot and I look forward to popping the cork on a bottle one sunny day when I'm back in the UK.

Yes England makes wine and yes it is good....

So day 2 of the UK road trip and what do I know apart from the fact I've spent a huge amount of time in the car? Well I can pat myself on the back for the accurate assumption that we can make cracking fizz here in England. 

First stop was a repeat visit to Chapel Down in Tenterden, one of the bigger producers of sparkling wine in the UK and a jolly lovely place to visit. Having become familiar with Chapel Down at Majestic, I made a flying visit earlier in the year and as I was in the area to visit Andrew at Gusbourne I felt it would be rude not to pop in again. They have a very well set out offering with a fancy pants restaurant, Richard Phillipe, upstairs and a tasting area/fancy pants deli shop below. I took a meander around the vineyard as it was an uncharacteristically warm day with golden sunshine blazing through the yellows, reds and oranges of an English autumn.

Fizz wise the range of six is a mix of the traditional and the what exactly is that of Reichensteiner and Rivaner. Prices range from £16.99 to £24.99 which is pretty typical of English sparklers and well priced when considering the quality produced.

A few miles away is Gusbourne Vineyards, a huge property that is partially planted with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. The capacity for growth at Gusbourne is huge as there is lots of good land that just hasn't been planted yet. It's a good job there is capacity for growth as this stuff is fantastic! I've tried a few English sparklers made from traditional varietals and they have all been most impressive.

Nyetimber (got to include them even if the meanies won't let me visit!) Camel Valley and Ridgeview have won scores of awards and accolades between them over the years and a visit to Gusbourne says to me that this isn't a fluke. The ability to produce serious, high quality exciting and dynamic sparkling wine is what English wine is all about. There are some very good still wines around, the Gusbourne Pinot Noir 2007 will keep the French on their toes but it is sparkling that we excel at. I tried the 2006 Brut and the 2006 Blanc de Blancs which blew me away. There is a rose in the pipeline which I look forward to trying at a later date. 

I had a long an interesting chat with Nick from Herbert Hal in Mardenl, wines to be released 2012, about the future of the English sparkling wine industry. Nick not only has a real passion for fizz but also a very sharp business mind and I look forward to trying his wines once they are ready.

After speaking to him I still very much feel that we are on the edge of something very exciting in England with regards to sparkling wine. I would recommend anyone who has not tried an English fizz or has maybe only tried one to start scouring them out now because in 25 years time it will be like saying you saw The Beatles at Skegness Town Hall before they were big. Depending on your age feel free to substitute The Beatles for Take That at a Rollers skating rink in Milton Keynes or Dizzee Rascal at Butlins but you get the idea...hunt them out before they go global!

http://www.ukvines.co.uk/vineyards/gusbourne.htm 

http://www.englishwinesgroup.com/ 

http://www.herberthall.com/

http://www.ridgeview.co.uk/