With St. George’s Day approaching, we wanted to celebrate the growing strength of the English sparkling wine category. Luckily for us, Gusbourne was more than happy to accommodate.
There was a time when the mere mention of English wine would result in raised eyebrows, audible laughter or visible disgust – but those days are long behind us. Wine production in England has come an awfully long way in the last 20 years, particularly for sparkling wine in Kent, Surrey and Sussex.
Champagne is no longer the automatic festive tipple, Michelin star restaurant menus no longer list token bottles and England’s homegrown sparkling wines have proved hugely successful in blind tastings and numerous competitions. Taittinger even became the first French label to invest in English sparkling wines.
According to Wines of Great Britain (the official body for the UK wine industry), in 2015 the number of commercial vineyards in England totalled 502, while the number of wineries stood at 133. In 2017, one million vines were planted in the UK, the largest number ever planted in a single year, while hectarage has doubled in the last 8 years and is set to grow by a further 50% by 2020.
English fizz is rising to the top, thanks to producers such as Gusbourne. This week, the team of Kent-based wine wizards kindly let MoM explore their wonderful vineyards and winery while they explained the brand’s process and ethos.
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