There are still people who think that English wine is a local-interest novelty act; those people are not keeping up. The recent Decanter World Wine Awards saw English wines achieve unprecedented results in blind tasting. Chapel Down, Rosé brut, Kent NV won a “Best in Show” medal, the first-ever time for an English sparkling rosé; Hambledon, Première Cuvée brut, Hampshire NV also won platinum and there were a further eight gold medals – including one for Cornwall producer Camel Valley.

Alongside growing quality, the sheer presence of English wine is helping push it. For example, Ochre, the restaurant at the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square, has introduced an English sparkling wine and bar snacks menu (ideal pre-theatre or -opera fodder). The list includes fizz from Nyetimber, The Grange, Chapel Down and Walgate, to accompany dishes such as Exmoor Cornish salted caviar, Jersey rock oysters and steak tartare. Meanwhile, home drinking is on the up too: supermarket sales of English sparkling wine were up by 16 per cent in 2023.

Note, the emphasis is on sparkling – and fizz accounted for the overwhelming majority of the DWWA awards. However, there is more going on in the chalky Downs and beyond. One place where English wine gets a fair shake is the members’ club for wine enthusiasts, 67 Pall Mall. As well as holding a huge selection of bottles in its cellars, the club also regularly hosts events with English wine as their theme.

Here, Paul Richards, global head of wine and spirits at 67 Pall Mall, gives us his insight into the current state – and future – of English wine.

How do the wine lovers at 67 react to English wines?

At 67 Pall Mall, we are huge advocates for English wine. We have a large list by the glass, and we have inquisitive members who are always keen to expand horizons and look to home soils.

The rise in demand for locally sourced produce, the ongoing commitment to sustainability and the investment in vineyard technology paves the way for a very bright future for the wines of home soils. While English sparkling has consistently impressed our membership and comes in, then swiftly out, of our cellars, our members’ intrigue often turns towards the British still wines. We have seen a huge change in demand for English wines across the nine years 67 Pall Mall has been open – we’ll continue to introduce members and guests to the best our vineyards have to offer.

There is excitement around the German grape varieties that continue to perform well, as well as the more popular French varieties that frequent the list. We look forward to seeing how this progresses.

With so many English sparkling wines catching the attention, which excite you and your members most?

The growing confidence of the producers to be making prestige cuvées has shown that the consumer has the appetite to embrace the English sparkling offering and is willing to toast their special occasions with something other than champagne.

We love Dermot Sugrue in the South Downs and his Sugrue, “The Trouble With Dreams”! There’s a broad sweep in terms of geography, approach and style: Oxfordshire’s Hundred Hills produces a wonderful blanc de blancs; Kent’s Herbert Hall, brut is farmed organically; Wiltshire’s Hugo, single vineyard is biodynamic. There are exciting young brands such as Westwell, from Kent, but you can rely on the old guard too: Nyetimber, Gusbourne, Hambledon, Hattingley and so on.

Are you encountering really good still wines too?

Still wines are helped enormously by the growing viticultural understanding of the terroir and the favourable summers of the last decade. Our English producers are just at the start of an exciting new part of the journey; producing exceptional pinots and chardonnays as well as the more established still wines from German grape varieties such as müller-thurgau and reichensteiner.

Camel Valley, Cornwall, were pioneers and are now followed by the likes of Danbury Ridge, Essex (we showed that at 67 Singapore for our English wine event there). More winemakers playing with skin contact, qvevri (earthenware fermentation vessels originating in Georgia) and other winemaking tools and techniques to extract textures and flavours we would not expect to see in a glass from our shores.

You mentioned a couple of organic and biodynamic winemakers – is that on the rise?

Organic viticulture is a challenge in the UK for the simple reason that it’s cooler and wetter than most wine-producing countries – the only way to combat the greater accompanying threat of mildew is through spraying fungicide. That said, there are a handful of producers who are trying to follow this path, notably Westwell, Tillingham and Domaine Hugo.

Westwell only uses grapes from its own vineyards, rather than buying any in, which obviously gives it more control as to how those grapes are farmed. They’re a little bit alternative and experimental, incorporating things like skin contact, wild ferments and ageing in amphora. Domaine Hugo is run by an organic farmer-turned-winemaker.

Tillingham, based in Rye in East Sussex, has established a reputation as a rather counter-culture, “alternative” producer. It’s a favourite of the Shoreditch House set at the weekends for its hipster vibe and is very much pursuing organics and even biodynamics where possible.

So, which are the hip new rising stars of English wine?

The rise of urban winemakers like Black Book and Renegade Urban Winery, sourcing grapes from around the country but with wineries in Battersea and Walthamstow, respectively, is exciting.

Langham, in Dorset, has moved from an enterprise that was originally quite hobbyist to something responsible for some serious, critically acclaimed wines. Crucially, the family decided they couldn’t do it all themselves, and employed a young, smart winemaker, Tommy Grimshaw, to really push things on, and they’ve given him licence to experiment and follow a minimal intervention approach.

One of the most engaging elements of English wine is the diversity of stories behind the various producers. Oastbrook, in Sussex, was founded by a Brazilian woman, the catchily named America Brewer, with her British husband Nick, after she moved to the UK – she then put herself through winemaking school at Plumpton College and between them they’re already making quite a stir with the wines (including some notable still wines) just six years after first planting their vineyards.

There are fun times to be had on our own green and pleasant land!

67pallmall.com

Three of the best

Sparkling wines

2020 The Grange, White From Black – White stone fruit on the nose, soft on the palate. Fine, smooth bubbles with a citrus focus. Notes of honeyed fruit with refreshing acidity. A clean and precise finish.

Westwell Wine Estates, pinot meunier MV – juicy red berries with a hint of pomegranate on the palate. A long finish with a dash of pink peppercorn. A brilliant balance of fruits, florals and herbs.

2016 Chapel Down, Kit’s Coty Coeur de Cuvée – a true encapsulation of the Kit’s Coty vineyard – rich, creamy texture on the palate. Notes of fresh apple and wildflowers, hazelnut and brioche on the finish. Excellent British craftsmanship.

Still wines

2021 Danbury Ridge, chardonnay – a bright, British, expressive cool-climate chardonnay, tropical fruits, subtle hints of freshly buttered toast. Young and fresh but with delicate complexity due to oak ageing.

2023 Oastbrook Estate Vineyard, pinot meunier – aromas jam-packed full of red cherries and wild strawberries. Cinnamon and clove are present on the palate, creating a welcome spice to this medium-bodied, smooth glass. A pure, clean and refreshing finish. 

2022 Blackbook Winery, ‘Trouble Every Day’ pinot noir – red berries, ripe strawberries and raspberries kick off the strong lineup of British ingredients found from start to finish. Violet petals, rosemary, even a hint of black tea leaves are evident on the nose. Cranberries flirt with blackcurrants. A touch of dark chocolate. A fantastic British pinot noir.