The English Sparkling Wines You Need to Try

If you haven’t embraced the flourishing world of English Sparkling Wine just yet, then English Wine Week is the perfect time to do so. Over the last decade, it has stormed past still wine in terms of reputation and quality, rivalling Champagnes on the international stage and becoming a mainstay of wine lists.

So, if you’ve been put off by the English fizz of old, then we’ve got just the bottles to show you what you’re missing!

Balfour M&S Lark Song English Rose

From renowned winery Balfour comes this English Rosé, a refreshingly dry bottle that’s half Pinot Noir, and half Pinot Meunier, Regent and Chardonnay. Ripe redcurrants and zesty lemon provide a sweetness with some subtle tang and juicy pears flesh out the taste nicely. Elegant beyond its price point.

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Find here: £16

Folc Rosé

Without a doubt, this is an English Rosé that holds more than a candle to the Provence Rosé selection. Bursting with ripe strawberries and raspberries, the sweetness is balanced to perfection. Floral and citrus hints with touches of elderflower and lemon keep things interesting, and the mix of seven varietals is so expertly blended that it feels delicate, vibrant, and fresh. Self-assured and sublime.

Size: 750ml
ABV: 11%
Find here: £17.95

Fitz Sparkling NV

Now for something a bit different. English wines are generally made in the traditional method like Champagne and with great success too, but Fitz doesn’t follow this method. Rather than a deep, biscuity and dry taste, this a super fresh and fruity expression more reminiscent of an approachable everyday sipper. Notes of peach, honeysuckle and apple intertwine in this delicate and light wine that could easily become a favourite go-to for any or no occasion.

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Find here: £19

Silverhand Estate, Silver Reign Brut NV

The first release of Kent’s Silverhand Estate, this is a quintessential English fizzer made from Champagne varietals and by the Charmat method. Prosecco style with bright citrus and fresh orchard fruits, this really is an exceptional Champagne-rivalling liquid without the huge price tag.

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Find here: £21.50

Lyme Bay Winery Brut Reserve

Down to Devon now, where Lyme Bay produced this fruit-forward blend of 6 different varietals including Seyval Blanc and Pinot Noir. Made in the traditional method, the result is a tantalising mix of acidity, full and fresh flavour, and a delicate fruity mousse. Freshly cut grass notes intrigue the nose, before opening up to green apple, toast, and citrus notes as well as just a hint of flinty minerals. Fantastic whatever time of year, this is a benchmark English sparkler.

Size: 750ml
ABV: 11.5%
Find here: £21.99

Rathfinny Estate Blanc de Noirs 2018

Rathfinny is another Sussex winery taking its rightful place on wine lists across the country, making full use of its sunny south-facing slopes. Single-harvest Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier join for this delicious, rich expression offering notes of cherry, vanilla, and baked apple. Minerality and florality intertwine harmoniously and a really loveable character comes across in every sip. This would sing alongside some fruity desserts!

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Find here: £38.75

Gusbourne Blanc De Blancs 2018

Gusbourne has been stacking up the awards for a while now and for a good reason. Their original Blanc de Blancs more than got people’s attention in 2010, and every release since has commanded justified excitement. This 2018 Vintage is plush with crisp green apple, citrus and buttery toasts, with an elegant and lingering minerality to fill out the profile. You’re paying a bit more than most, but this is a wine that completely lives up to those expectations. Serve alongside quality seafood for the perfect culinary experience.

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Find here: £63.95

Hattingley Valley Kings Cuvée 2015

This widely loved family-owned winery in Hampshire has been industry acclaimed since its first release. As is Hattingley’s way, this is aged for 7 months in oak and a further 6 years on the lees creating dreamy depths of texture and toastiness. A blend of 50% Chardonnay, 34% Pinot Noir and 16% Pinot Meunier, the balance of refreshing lightness and deep richness is magical. Honied nuts, brioche, creamy oak – it’s super premium English sparkling wine done perfectly.

Size: 750ml
ABV: 11.7%
Find here: £85

If you want to get up close and personal and see the English winemaking process from grape to glass, then check out these incredible Vineyard Tours!

The new face of English Wine: Silverhand Estate

With English Wine Week 2023 in full swing, we turn our attentions to a brand new English wine producer based in Kent who are doing things a little differently. Welcome to Silverhand Estate!

Who are Silverhand Estate?

If there were ever a sign that English wine and oenotourism is booming, then this is it. Officially the biggest wine project happening in Europe and the biggest organic wine project in the UK, Silverhand is part of the MDCV UK group who own various vineyards in Provence as well as England and its set to be a biggie.

Located in a properly ancient part of the country around Luddesdown in Kent, where there’s a 1000 year old court house and a house that belonged to William the Conqueror's brother on the vineyard site, Silverhand gets its name from the town’s namesake King Ludd, the founder of London and all round royal legend who lost his hand in battle. He was stripped of his battle rights until he was forged a hand made of silver and thus, Silverhand felt a fittingly royal name for the legacy that this English vineyard means to have. 

Big ambitions

Silverhand Winemaker

With 550 acres already under vine and another 300 to come, Silverhand’s output will be impressive with a million bottles slated to be sold by the end of 2026. A state of the art winery designed by Sir Norman Foster has been planned with a top end café-bar and restaurant on site too. While big does not always mean better in terms of wine however, it’s important to note that the team are setting an example by being organic and sustainable from scratch with their new winery being carbon neutral and producing biogas. Here are some of the things Silverhand are doing to minimise their impact on this area of outstanding natural beauty. 

Sustainable from scratch

Helena with the sustainability manager, William

The company’s existing mosaic of vineyards with their flinty chalk and clay soils are certified organic by Demeter and there’s a conservation team that works tirelessly across the estate throughout the year to ensure that the land gives back. In fact the biodiversity net gain in the area is already at +16%.

Dotted inbetween the vineyards are wild grasslands which are home to numerous wildflowers, flora and fauna. Working sheep graze between the vines and fertilise the soils and the hedgerows and bluebell woodlands are kept in place and maintained. Truffles are being planted beneath a swathe of trees to nourish the soil from within and there is also now a conservation programme for rare orchids that have been found by the hedgerows in the top fields. On the production side, the site composts organic waste, harvests rainwater and uses heat from natural sources, such as ground source heat pumps.

A new style of wine for England

What is currently setting Silverhand apart is a new style of wine they have produced which feels like a hybrid between Prosecco and Champagne or rather, traditional method, English sparkling wine. Their maiden release Silver Reign is a charmat method wine, aka the Prosecco method, where the bubbles are formed in a tank rather than in single bottles. Unlike Prosecco however, only the three Champagne varietals, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier are used in the blend, each grape is vinified separately before blending and there is lees ageing happening as well as 5% reserve wine to add complexity to the final wine. The result is a sparkling that has much of the complexity and toasty notes of Champagne, is less sweet than your average Prosecco on the market but with added fruitiness, verve and freshness. At a retail price point of £17 (though it will be launched in the on trade first), it really feels like a game changer for the industry.

Silver Reign English Charmat

Blend: 60% Chardonnay, 20% Pinot Noir, 20% Meunier
12.5% ABV and Vegan
13 g/l Residual sugar (NB extra dry Prosecco is between 12 and 17%) and 4.6 Tartaric Acid
3 months on lees in tank
Note: Nose of elderflower, white hedgerow flowers, pear and apricot. citrus and ripe stone fruit. Filled with citrus, fresh pear and cut apple flavours, and best enjoyed at any time.
£17 from thewinecaverns.co.uk 

However, it is not just charmat  / tank method wines that the estate produces; later this year will see the release of a vintage blanc de blancs wine and a Chardonnay dominant Brut NV wine.  There are also some other exciting developments on the way, but we’ll all just have to wait and see what those are…. Watch this space!

Words by Helena Nicklin

The Best Places To Drink English Sparkling Wine

Happy English Wine Week! Now in times gone by, this might not have been much of an occasion but with English fizz’s staggering rise in quality, popularity, and reputation, it is well worth getting out there and enjoying a glass. But where?

Well, for pretty much wherever you’re based, we’ve got a stellar establishment that’s championing fantastic fizz made right here in the rolling fields of England.

VINEYARDS

All over!

Now we’re not revealing anything too shocking here, but the best place to enjoy English sparkling wine is straight from the source, by visiting one of our many superb vineyards putting English fizz on the global stage. Getting up close and personal with the process from grape to glass is a special experience and it helps that they’re in glorious surroundings too. Check out the link below to find the best vineyard tours near you (and if you’re in the South West, you’re spoilt for choice!).

Find our guide here

LONDON

Oxeye Restaurant

Whilst it might not the cheapest option to sip on English fizz, Oxeye Restaurant in central London is a stunning establishment built around the very best of British ingredients. English bubbles dominated the huge wine list, from Nyetimber’s luxury Tillington, to Blackbook’s super silky Pinot Noir. When it comes to a premium dining experience to celebrate British food and wine, Oxeye is a treat you’ll never forget.

Find the website here

The George

Sister to the adored Cadogan Arms in Chelsea is The George, inhabiting a site that has hosted a pub since the 18th century. Stylish wherever you look, it’s upstairs that we’re interested in because it’s there that you’ll find it’s very own English Sparkling Wine bar. When the Wine List’s subheadings are, ‘London/Hampshire/Kent/Devon/East Sussex/West Sussex/Costwolds/Dorset’, you know you’ve got a great selection on your hands. If you want insight as you sip, keep your eyes peeled for their regular English wine tastings too!

Find the website here

The Coral Room

This beautiful, opulent bar sits in the heart of Bloomsbury, boasting striking art deco décor and a grand salon-style central bar from which you can order a superb selection of English sparklers. Curated by Master of Wine Anne McHale and sorted by county of origin, there are some 50 bottles to pick from, with house favourite being Ridgeview’s Bloomsbury Cuvee NV. Every style is represented here from award-winning Champagne varieties to quirky grapes you might never have tried, and there’s no better surroundings to sip them in.

Find the website here

MANCHESTER

Salut Wines

Like many others in Manchester, Salut is a wine shop doubling up as a dine-in venue. Slap bang in the city centre, over 400 bottles of wine surrounding you as well as a tapas restaurant, including stunning English Classic Cuvee from both Hambledon and Rathfinny. There’re also tapas if you like, stunning surroundings and all kinds of further afield wines from the familiar to the unusual.

Find the website here

NORFOLK

The White Horse

Coming in at Number 34 in the prestigious Estrella Top 50 Gastropubs list is The White Horse along the stunning marshes of Brancaster Staithe, an area of outstanding natural beauty. Top-notch gastropubs like this now rival swanky restaurants for their wine selections, and The White Horse provide a trio of English stunners from the masters at Nyetimber. Classic Cuvee NV, Rose NV, and Blanc de Blancs all feature, as well as locally made Cobble Hill Bacchus. English fizz and incredible seafood – what a pairing.

Find the website here

CORNWALL

The Idle Rocks

Cornish wine continues to go from strength to strength, and where better to celebrate it than the gorgeous coastal town of St Mawes where boutique hotel and restaurant The Idle Rocks sits. A personification of waterside comfort, the wine list is varied with options from across the globe, but it’s the Cornish and English Sparkling Wine Section that caught our eye. Again, Nyetimber provides tasty options alongside Knightor’s Classic Cuvée Brut and Sugrue’s The Trouble With Dreams. The wine list not only pairs with the dishes on offer but is also entirely sustainable – bravo!

Find the website here

BRIGHTON & HOVE

etch. By Steven Edwards

Winner of MasterChef the Professionals, Steven Edwards’s first restaurant, Etch in Hove showcases English wine’s cream of the crop brilliantly. Stocking wines from all over the South-East, there are dry Whites like Davenoport’s Horsmonden and Tickerage’s Chardonnay, but it’s the sparkling wine section that really celebrates the English Wine Revolution. Nyetimber, Wiston, Ridgeview, Rathfinny, Tickerage, Hoffman & Rathbone, Westwell... if you’re anywhere near Hove then this is the place to be.

Find the website here

If you want to get closer to England’s beautiful wines, then there are some incredible Winery Tours available here! Or, if you’d rather sip at home then these our are recommended bottles!

10 English Wines You Need To Try

With English Wine Week now in full swing, we wanted to shine a light on one of England’s greatest exports: English wine! Gone are the days when English wine was considered to be a joke. Our wines, both still and sparkling, are now being embraced as some of the very best out there. Here are some great bottles from producers that really should be on your radar.

KENT

Springfield Chardonnay, Balfour Winery, 2020 (as seen on talkTV with Helena)

Balfour’s very first barrel-aged Chardonnay, this is a Chardonnay modelled on a white Burgundy, yet keeping that characteristic Kentish freshness. Creamy and with a hint of spice from the new oak barrels, there’s a ton of ripe, orchard fruit notes here, a smoky grapefruit note, a slick of moreish saline and a granny smith apple skin tang.
Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Price: £25
Find here: Balfourwinery.com

SURREY

Broadwoods Folly, Rosé Brut, NV (as seen on talkTV with Helena)

This peppy pink made by the famous Denbies Estate and named after the mock gothic tower overlooking the vineyards, shows that English sparkling wine doesn't have to cost the earth to be good. Crisp and refreshing, this is a sherbety pink with notes of crunchy raspberry and rosehip, a touch of brioche and a quintessentially English lafiness on the finish. Its bright acidity and touch of flintiness would make this a winner with smoked salmon. 

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Price: £15.99
Find here: Lidl

HAMPSHIRE

Hambledon Classic Cuvée NV (as seen on talkTV with Helena)

Established in 1952 by Major-General Sir Guy Salisbury-Jones, Hambledon is England’s oldest vineyard and can be found nestled in the home of Cricket at Hambledon in Hampshire. Their Classic Cuvée is again, a blend of all three traditional grapes, (56% Chardonnay, 27% Pinot Noir, 17% Pinot Meunier). Grapes are handpicked on the estate and this cuvée uses the 2017 harvest as a base with 20% reserve wines added, giving it the characteristic toasty richness that Hambledon has become famous for. Hambledon also does fantastic tours, tastings and events. 

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Price: £34.99 (or £23.99 as part of a mixed 6 case)
Find here: Majestic

SUSSEX

Ambriel, English Reserve, Single Vineyard, Demi-Sec, NV (as seen on talkTV with Helena)

People can be sniffy about wines they perceive as sweet and the term ‘demi-sec’, which means ‘semi-sweet’, has been left somewhat in the eighties and early nineties. What’s wonderful about this demi-sec, which is a single estate wine made with 100% Pinot Noir grapes and made in the traditional method, is that when you taste it, you just perceive that extra dash of sweetness simply as fruit and flavour. This extra fruitiness beautifully counters the salt in cheese and is an absolute cracker with wedding cake! 

Size: 750ml
ABV: 11%
Price: £33.95
Find here: Corney and Barrow

others to try

OXFORDSHIRE

Doe Eyed Queen, Single Estate Vintage, English Sparkling, 2017

Where fine wine meets fashion, Doe Eyed Queen came from its founder Amy spending years exploring restaurants across London and realising the significant impact that the aesthetic appearance of a restaurant and its food had on taste. Amy wanted to create a wine that was as sophisticated and unique on the outside as the inside bottle. Made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from the 2017 vintage, it’s vegan, organic and sustainably made. Peachy and rich in flavour with notes of red fruit and brioche, it certainly tastes as good as it looks. 

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Price: £40
Find here: doeeyedqueen.com

HAMPSHIRE

Hattingley Valley, Classic Reserve

Hattingley Valley winery is found in rural Hampshire where the first vines were planted in 2008 and the first wines released in 2013. Made by multiple award-winning female winemaker Emma Rice with 53% Chardonnay, 31% Pinot Noir and 16% Pinot Meunier grapes, the Classic Reserve is Hattingley’s most widely available and most loved wine. A non-vintage sparkler based on the somewhat challenging 2015 vintage, this is the wine that gives you a true flavour of the Hattingley house style: Golden with fine bubbles, elegant notes of brioche, nougat and a touch of oak with a characteristic hedgerow note on the finish.

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Price: £30
Find here: Waitrose

Rathfinny Estate Blanc de Noirs 2018

Rathfinny has an enviable position on the sunny, south-facing slopes of England’s South Downs in Alfriston, Sussex. It has quickly made a name for itself as one of England’s finest wine producers. Blanc de Noirs is a sparkling wine made only from black /red grapes which in this case are Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier and these wine grapes came from just one single harvest in 2018, which has been dubbed the vintage of the decade. Rathfinny has a style that is rich but precise with a fantastic, lean, mineral character. Seriously elegant and will keep for a while. Rathfinny is another great place for a vineyard picnic too!

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Price: £38.95 (or £36.95 when in a case of six) 
Find here: Lea & Sandeman

Wild Rose, Black Chalk, 2018

If a wine style can be described as ‘precise’, then Black Chalk are the masters of it. Made in tiny batches from grapes grown on the chalky soils of Hampshire and using the traditional method, this rosé is at once rich, crisp and pure. Think raspberries and strawberries with elegant effervescence and a brilliant balance of fruit and acidity. 

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Price: £40
Find here: blackchalkwine.co.uk

KENT

Balfour Brut Rosé 2018

A renowned winery located on the Hush Heath Estate in Kent, the Balfour sparkling brut rosé was the first ever English wine to win a gold medal and the Trophy at the International Wine Challenge. This 2018 vintage wine is only ever made in tiny quantities from a single vineyard and it has a special story. The estate has belonged to the Balfour-Lynn family for three generations, but it was Richard and Leslie’s idea to plant vines at Hush Heath in 2002, with a view to making a pink sparkling wine like their favourite ever Champagne: Billecart Salmon Rosé. Their thinking was “If we can’t sell it, we’ll drink it”. But they did sell it and the rest is history. It’s a great place for lunch and a tasting with a lovely walk around the vines and the apple trees too. 

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Price: £39.99 (£33.99 at time of publishing)
Find here: Waitrose

Balfour Blanc de Noirs 2018

Another stunning sparkling wine from the Hush Heath Estate, this Blanc de Noirs made from the superb 2018 vintage is a prime example of English sparkling wine at its best. It has notes of orange, citrus and pear and gentle notes of red fruits on the finish. Pair this with meaty fish for a match made in heaven!

Size: 750ml
ABV: 12%
Price: £40
Find here: www.balfourwinery.com