Recommended Wines

An (incomplete) list of the English & Welsh wines I've tried over the past 12 months, that are good examples of their style. Worth trying if you're looking to plant a vineyard in the future...

Sparkling Wines

Camel Valley Vineyard - Camel Valley Cornwall Brut 2005 - Rated above the rest of the world in a SWVA blind tasting - most assumed it was a top class Champagne! Excellent sparkling with vibrant crisp clean fruit and rich toasted bread characters to finish. Primarily made with Seyval Blanc, which just goes to show what is capable of this variety 17/20

Nyetimber Vineyard - 1998 Prestige Cuvée Blanc de Blancs - A wonderfully constructed fizz. A real wine-judge pleaser with extended autolytic characters shining through, but with fruit to carry the flavours well. 18/20

Welland Valley - Tickled Pink 2004 - Delicious Rosé fizz, excellent colour and fruit on the nose and palate. 16/20

White Wines

Sharpham Estate - Bacchus 2005 - A good example of what Bacchus can do in the UK. Dry, but rounded with a little hint of sweetness, the herbaceous fruit is mouthfilling with hints of nettle and basil. 17/20

Sharpham Estate - Barrel Fermented 2004 - Good use of oak here - evident without overpowering the wine. The Madeleine Angevine works remarkably well with the oak in this example. 15/20

Chapel Down - Bacchus Reserve 2004 - Excellent Bacchus style although a little too much balancing sweetness here. 14/20

Astley Vineyards - Astley Triassic 2005 - A very complete wine, with balance and finesse, yet mouth filling fruit - very moreish! 14/20

Astley Vineyards - Astley Old Vine Kerner 2005 - Probably as close to a riesling style as you will find in the UK. Not a variety I wholeheartedly recommend but always seems to come up with the goods for Jonty! Wonderful wine. 16/20

Camel Valley Vineyard - Camel Valley Bacchus 2005 - I love Bacchus - it's my favourite white variety in the winery! It's a bugger in the vineyard though. When it all comes together you can make the best of English wines with it, and Camel Valley's example is one of their best wines. 17/20

Camel Valley Vineyard - Camel Valley Atlantic Dry 2005 - Made with Reichensteiner and Schonburger, this shows finesse and balance. The Reichensteiner gives the wine wine weight, and the Schonburger the lifted floral and rose petal aromas. 16/20

Three Choirs Vineyards - Three Choirs Willowbrook 2005 - A good commercial style from Three Choirs. Lifted floral aromas and lots of luscious fruit on the palate. Off dry and balanced well, leaves you wanting more! 15/20

Three Choirs Vineyards - Fumé 2003 - Seyval based wine, the oak is a little firm and the fruit a little racy, but you are left with a zingy zesty freshness on the palate, that I kept coming back to. I came back to this after leaving a half full bottle open for a day, and found it had improved again. The oak really sat well with the older flavours of the wine, and I think this one would be great laid down for a couple of years to show at its best. 16/20

Red Wines

Chapel Down - Tenterden Estate Pinot Noir 2004 - A very good example of English Pinot, not used for sparkling! The colour is very deep and bright, with lifted strawberry aromas. The palate was light yet very typical Pinot Noir. The finish was long and well integrated with the soft tannins. 15/20

Sharpham Estate - Red 2004 - Dornfelder and Rondo are used to create a very dense deep red coloured wine. Blackberry and a gamey quality to the palate are well integrated with the tannins. 15/20

Rosé Wines

Sharpham Estate - Rosé 2004 - Dornfelder is used to great effect to produce a vibrant pink wine. Off dry and with mouth filling fruit and length 15/20

Dessert Wines

Eglantine - North Star 2002 - Incredible concentration using Madeleine Angevine and a freezing process to make an "Ice Wine". Rich apricot aromas and luscious raisin and fig flavours. An incredible wine that is unfortunately only produced in tiny quantities. 18/20

Three Choirs Vineyards - Three Choirs Noble Rot 2003 - A true noble rot dessert wine made with Siegerrebe. Opulent aromas of rose petal, plum and apricot kernels follow through to the almost viscous palate. Rich and honeyed - a wine to be savored. 19/20

<<back to resources page			Recommended Wines An (incomplete) list of the English & Welsh wines I've tried over the past 12 months, that are good examples of their style. Worth trying if you're looking to plant a vineyard in the future... Sparkling Wines Camel Valley Vineyard - Camel Valley Cornwall Brut 2005 - Rated above the rest of the world in a SWVA blind tasting - most assumed it was a top class Champagne! Excellent sparkling with vibrant crisp clean fruit and rich toasted bread characters to finish. Primarily made with Seyval Blanc, which just goes to show what is capable of this variety 17/20 Nyetimber Vineyard - 1998 Prestige Cuvée Blanc de Blancs - A wonderfully constructed fizz. A real wine-judge pleaser with extended autolytic characters shining through, but with fruit to carry the flavours well. 18/20 Welland Valley - Tickled Pink 2004 - Delicious Rosé fizz, excellent colour and fruit on the nose and palate. 16/20 White Wines Sharpham Estate - Bacchus 2005 - A good example of what Bacchus can do in the UK. Dry, but rounded with a little hint of sweetness, the herbaceous fruit is mouthfilling with hints of nettle and basil. 17/20 Sharpham Estate - Barrel Fermented 2004 - Good use of oak here - evident without overpowering the wine. The Madeleine Angevine works remarkably well with the oak in this example. 15/20 Chapel Down - Bacchus Reserve 2004 - Excellent Bacchus style although a little too much balancing sweetness here. 14/20 Astley Vineyards - Astley Triassic 2005 - A very complete wine, with balance and finesse, yet mouth filling fruit - very moreish! 14/20 Astley Vineyards - Astley Old Vine Kerner 2005 - Probably as close to a riesling style as you will find in the UK. Not a variety I wholeheartedly recommend but always seems to come up with the goods for Jonty! Wonderful wine. 16/20 Camel Valley Vineyard - Camel Valley Bacchus 2005 - I love Bacchus - it's my favourite white variety in the winery! It's a bugger in the vineyard though. When it all comes together you can make the best of English wines with it, and Camel Valley's example is one of their best wines. 17/20 Camel Valley Vineyard - Camel Valley Atlantic Dry 2005 - Made with Reichensteiner and Schonburger, this shows finesse and balance. The Reichensteiner gives the wine wine weight, and the Schonburger the lifted floral and rose petal aromas. 16/20 Three Choirs Vineyards - Three Choirs Willowbrook 2005 - A good commercial style from Three Choirs. Lifted floral aromas and lots of luscious fruit on the palate. Off dry and balanced well, leaves you wanting more! 15/20 Three Choirs Vineyards - Fumé 2003 - Seyval based wine, the oak is a little firm and the fruit a little racy, but you are left with a zingy zesty freshness on the palate, that I kept coming back to. I came back to this after leaving a half full bottle open for a day, and found it had improved again. The oak really sat well with the older flavours of the wine, and I think this one would be great laid down for a couple of years to show at its best. 16/20 Red Wines Chapel Down - Tenterden Estate Pinot Noir 2004 - A very good example of English Pinot, not used for sparkling! The colour is very deep and bright, with lifted strawberry aromas. The palate was light yet very typical Pinot Noir. The finish was long and well integrated with the soft tannins. 15/20 Sharpham Estate - Red 2004 - Dornfelder and Rondo are used to create a very dense deep red coloured wine. Blackberry and a gamey quality to the palate are well integrated with the tannins. 15/20 Rosé Wines Sharpham Estate - Rosé 2004 - Dornfelder is used to great effect to produce a vibrant pink wine. Off dry and with mouth filling fruit and length 15/20 Dessert Wines Eglantine - North Star 2002 - Incredible concentration using Madeleine Angevine and a freezing process to make an "Ice Wine". Rich apricot aromas and luscious raisin and fig flavours. An incredible wine that is unfortunately only produced in tiny quantities. 18/20 Three Choirs Vineyards - Three Choirs Noble Rot 2003 - A true noble rot dessert wine made with Siegerrebe. Opulent aromas of rose petal, plum and apricot kernels follow through to the almost viscous palate. Rich and honeyed - a wine to be savored. 19/20
Writing tasting notes and scoring these wines is personal and subjective in nature. However, as a regular wine judge, tasting with a panel of wine industry experts, we tend to agree more often than we disagree. What counts is experience and regular tasting, necessary to keep the palate in tune! The scores are out of 20. They equate to the following medal levels at competition - 17+ = Gold, 15.5+ = Silver, 14+ = Bronze, 13+ = Commended. I aim to feature those wines of Bronze level or above, to recommend to consumers trying English wine for the first time, or looking to expand their knowledge of English Wines.
Would you like to submit a wine to be tasted and featured here? Please send samples as labeled finished wine only, with an indication of variety (if not mentioned on the label) and any special techniques employed in the wines production. Address to send samples here