English Wine Week: The producers
As English Wine Week comes to a close, BigHospitality finds out what wine producers have on offer and why they think restaurants, hotels and pubs should sell English wine.
English wine makes a good choice for the on-trade according to Julia Trustram-Eve of English Wine Producers because they are produced in fairly small volumes, which suits restaurants who want to extend their list without having to buy in bulk. More importantly, they are good food wines.
"So many lovely summer dishes go well with light aromatic white wines and recent research showed how well those wines also go with cheeses," says Trustram-Eve.
Her thoughts are echoed by Frazer Thompson of Chapel Down in Kent, Sam Linter of Booker`s Vineyard in Sussex and Elfrida Spooner of Denbies in Surrey who believe that theirs and other English wines are the perfect match to dishes made using produce from the same area.
“There’s a completely natural affinity in what the land produces in terms of food and wines, so if you have locally produced food on the menu, local wine is likely to be a good match. It’s also good in terms of food miles and CO2 emissions and helps to boost the overall rural economy,” says Thompson.
"Most vineyards throughout Europe will sell their produce within 30 miles of their vineyard," adds Linter. "It`s a European way to do it. We have really good English wines now it`s a shame not to use them, especially if you have a locally-focused menu."
Want to know more? Vineyards across England have been opening their gates to visitors this week in celebration of English Wine Week, but because we know time can be short in this industry, we`ve got the details of five producers for you to help make things a little easier.
Chapel Down - Kent
Some of the old hybrid Germanic varieties have been grubbed up at this vineyard in the Garden of England so they can concentrate on growing more traditional French grape varieties like Chardonnay and Pinot Noir - the basis of their award-winning sparkling wines - and the varieties that thrive in England, such as Bacchus. Chapel Down produces a wide range of different wines - from the sparkling ones like the Pinot Reserve 2002 and the Brut - to the dry white still Bacchus and even a cool climate still red Pinot Noir at its main base in Tenterden and at ... other vineyards in the South East. For English Wine Week, Chapel Down has re-released its English Rose still rose wine, which has also been on sale in branches of Marks & Spencer this week.
Sales contact: Wendy Lloyds/ Lizzie Pratt fnyrf@ratyvfujvarftebhc.pbz 01580 763033
Denbies - Surrey
Laying claim to the title of England`s largest vineyard, Denbies produces sparkling wines and still red, white and rose wines at its estate in Dorking. Wines are sold under three ranges, the Estate Range, Vineyard Select and Cellarmaster Choice and there are a dozen different wines in total made by winemaker Marcus Sharp. Two new vintages have been released during English Wine Week - Greenfields 2002, a sparkling wine made from Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay which picked up a Silver medal at this year`s Decanter awards and Denbies sparkling rose, made from Pinot Noir and which won Bronze at the same awards.
Sales contact: Elfrida Spoonerrysevqn@qraovrfivarlneq.pb.hx 01306 734652
Bookers - West Sussex
Sam Linter (pictured, right) took over the winemaking at Bookers in Bolney from her parents Janet and Rodney Pratt more than 10 years ago and she is arguably one of the most pro-active English winemakers around: "Some of the restaurants just don`t know we`re there, because they`re just too busy to find out so we`ve been going out to them to make sure they know about us," she says. At the vineyard, nestled in the heart of West Sussex, Linter makes still red (including a Merlot), white and rose wines and sparkling wines. Hybrid Germanic varieties (Muller Thurgau, Dornfelder and Schonburger) are grown along with traditional French Champagne varieties and, of course, Merlot. For English Wine Week Linter has released Bolney Blush 2008, a still rose `perfect for summer drinking and the best example yet` of the estate`s rose.
Sales contact: Sam Linter fnz@obbxrefivarlneq.pb.hx 01444 881575
Nyetimber - West Sussex
Sparkling wine producer Nyetimber, owned by Dutchman Eric Heerema, regularly finds its wines compared with Champagnes and has picked up numerous awards over the last few years. Le Gavroche, Maze, Le Caprice, Simpsons, Browns Hotel and The Dorchester, are all known to list Nyetimber and the company`s Ros McCall believes more restaurants and hotels will be looking to stock it as Champagne prices continue to rise along with the strength of the Euro. "We are encouraging our on trade distributors to offer Nyetimber as an alternative to house champagne, either alongside or instead of, and have seen a steady increase in by the glass listings," she says. Nyetimber is just about to launch its Classic Cuvee 2003, a blend of 60 per cent Chardonnay, 23 per cent Pinot Noir and 17 per cent Pinot Meunier and `one of the fruitiest wines from Nyetimber yet`.
Sales contact: Ros McCall ebf@alrgvzore.pbz 01798 813989
Camel Valley - Cornwall
This Cornish vineyard run by Bob Lindo and his son, Sam, won the industry its first gold medal for an English still wine at this year`s International Wine Challenge with its Bacchus 2007. The Lindos produce still red, white and rose wines from French and German hybrid varieties and also some award-winning sparkling wines using the traditional Champagne grapes. Rick Stein is a fan and stocks the Brut in his Seafood Restaurant in Padstow. The chef teamed up with the vineyard for English Wine Week to host a Fizz & Fish evening, serving Camel Valley sparkling wine with fish and chips delivered to the vineyard from Stein`s chippy following a tasting to compare Camel Valley wines against Champagne.
Sales contact: 01208 77959 vasb@pnzryinyyrl.pbz
For a list of vineyards in your area visit www.englishwineweek.co.uk
