Gusbourne Estate, Kent

The Gusbourne Estate was first mentioned in 1410, when John de Gosborne’s will was filed. Today, Andrew Weeber, a retired South African oral surgeon, now living in Geneva and Kent, is the proud owner. His Vineyard Manager is Jon Pollard, who studied oenology at Plumpton College. This is a very new estate. In fact, the word “new” applies to everything within our sight as well as the philosophy behind the wines. Mr. Weeber is 100% modern and has every winery, macinery gadget that you can buy, and like a boy with his new toys, he proudly displays them. They started the plantings in 2001 and their wines were launched in 2010, to much acclaim. For the moment, the wines are being elaborated at Ridgeview, as there is as yet, no winery. But I saw the plans for the upcoming winery and visitors’ centre, and we are in for a treat.

Because of all of this “newness” and the fact that the wine is made elsewhere (albeit, placed in the vey able hands of Ridgeview!), I was not expecting very much, but these wines were a fabulous surprise and I very much look forward to visiting Gusbourne again to better stock my cellar. Mr. Weeber is a highly entertaining, ambitious and passionate man and his drive is clearly expressed in all that he does. The wines are well-made and mirror his multi-faceted and explosive personality.

Gusbourne makes 3 sparkling wines only, using the Champagne grapes, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier: the Brut Reserve, the Blanc de Blanc and the Sparkling Rose. The estate is sited on the low, south-facing slopes of the escarpment at Appledore.

2007 Blancs de Blanc

Nose is clean, acidic and fresh. Body is lively yet corpulent – good finish, very nice.

I kept going back to this one – my favourite. It just really opened up and revealed a yeasty toastiness – very refined, flavourful and well-balanced.

Sparkling Rose

Ok – nose is good, notes of spice and summer berries. Palate is well-structured with good acidity. Finish a bit short.

2007 Brut Reserve

A fabulously grown-up nose of summer blossoms and fruit stone-pits…leading to a firm but fleshy and fruity body and a clean, persistent finish. Lovely.

2010 Pinot Noir

This is not an available wine, but as I am on the hunt for still Pinot Noir, he showed us one he has made. I am so glad that he did. The nose is lovely. Not at all a typical Pinot Noir, but it is really interesting - has a peppery finish.

Gusbourne Estate
Appledore
Kent, TN26 2BE
England

+44 12 33 758 666

For general enquiries:

www.gusbourne.com  

Hush Heath, Kent

HUSH HEATH ...

If you are ever in doubt as to why Kent is called “The Garden of England”, visit Hush Heath. We were transported into one of those picture-perfect images on a biscuit tin. Our magical tour was led by the winemakers Owen Elias and Victoria Ash, Rupert Taylor, the Sales Manager, as well as the owner, Richard Balfour-Lynn.

The estate is absolutely stunning: apple tree orchards, manicured Italian gardens, vineyards, oast houses … all wrapped up in a violently lush landscape of wisteria and roses. Balfour-Lynn is clear that his sole objective is to produce an English Pink Sparkling Wine to rival the finest Champagne, and this he does. It is a small and private production: No winery visits, no gift shops or tea rooms: just his wine … Balfour.

He rightly repeats the fact that Kent is a fruit-growing region, and adds that the New World cannot make sparkling wines properly: it is too hot. Whereas, our climate provides the crucial acidity. But, he feels that Champagne has done a lot to tarnish their image and wishes to distinguish the English sparkling wines: our acidity is different to that of France’s. His award-winning sparkling wine is thus a non-malolactic wine, left sur lies for 18 months and it is all about the acidity. His wines are young and fresh as he combines the best of the Old World with the New. He revels in the climatic diversity served up by Mother Nature, as he wishes to avoid homogenous, “reliable” wines.

 

2010 Nannette’s Chardonnay
I know that he said that he only does the Balfour, and when I visited, this was the case. He allowed us to taste this Chardonnay, which at the time was not commercialised, as he wishes to keep production restrained. But I have seen that it is now available to buy on the web-site, so you must do so.

The wine has a lovely nose. You can smell the extracts: unfiltered, rustic, meaty extracts that give this wine a complex structure yet at the same time, a refined expression. Chardonnay, so often bastardised around the globe, takes on an elegantly individual hue, here, in this garden of Kent.

2010 Balfour Brut Rosé

75% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay. Lovely nose, perfumes of rosemary and spices, leading to a fruity, rose petal palate with firm, persistent mousse and a clean, acidic and fresh finish. Delicious.

Richard Balfour-Lynn

Hush Heath

Five Oak Lane

Junction of Snoad Lane

Marden, Kent

TN12 0HX

Tel: 01622 832 794

winery@hushheath.com

Chapel Down, Kent

Chapel Down holds the place as the “darling” of English wine, and deservedly so.  It is still the largest producer of English wines, sourcing their grapes from their own vineyards both on and off-site from around the Southeast of England and East Anglia. They may be big, with even bigger plans, but the mindset of the Australian winemaker, Andrew Parley, is about making wines the traditional way (hand-harvesting, indigenous yeasts, low alcohol) – and finding an “English” style in an Old World context. There is a fantastic wine shop and bistro where you can taste their wines with the local produce they also sell. They are doing everything right. They use the white grapes Bacchus, Chardonnay, Huxelrebe, Schönburger, Reichensteiner, Seigerrebe and Pinot Blanc and the red Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.

Andrew says that he is not seeing a huge difference in “terroir” yet, and that frankly, he is more worried about exposition: catching the sun and avoiding the elements. They have a problem with getting their desired yields (as does the rest of England) and sometime struggle to get 1 ton an acre. This is fascinating. When I was in Italy for the last harvests, yields were down there, too, but for the opposite reason: it was too hot. In Emilia-Romagna, Abruzzo, Le Marche … they were all losing 20-30% of the grape yield. Here, they struggle to get them to mature. He adds that eventually, we’ll have an oversupply in the UK. 2010 was already a huge year and most wineries are lagging in production capacity – that will change as they catch up. Contract processing is slowing and more and more people are setting up shop and making their own wines. This is great news. 

Notes on the TANK SAMPLES:

1) the sparkling base wine:

60% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir and 10% Pinot Meunier

This base wine is from 5 different parcels, varying from clay and chalk from Essex. It has gone through malolactic fermentation. The pH is about 3, and the alcohol will be about 11+. He aims for 12.5˚, not more. He does not need to chaptalise. He can get a phenolic maturation at 11˚. Sugars went up this year because the berries were so small. Fungal diseases can be a problem, but this year has been great.

2) 2011 Chardonnay

Unoaked style from chalky parcels. Underwent a full malolactic. It is unchaptalised, and will still be at 13˚. No new oak – that would kill it, he said. He mixed clones, mixed parcels from different soils, chalk and clay. He is really experimenting - wants Chablis

2010 will need chaptalising. This is really nice.  Fresh and clean with a good finish. I don’t know if it is important to “copy” the Chablis model, but he seems to have captured the acidity and steeliness of it without forgetting the expression of the English fruit – it works beautifully.

3) 2011 Pinot Bianco

Used indigenous yeasts. This will develop nicely. Good.

Notes from Tasting Room:

1. English Rose Sparkling NV

Pinot Noir. NV but mostly 2008. Nose is stunning: great fruit with acidity and freshness. Nice palate, nice texture. Finish has a touch of bitterness, but altogether a pleasure.

2. Vintage Reserve Brut

Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Lovely: fine and elegant.  Nose is yeasty with a crisp palate of ripe apples and peaches. Recently disgorged. Sur lies for four years and some, so that is good.  

3. Pinot Reserve 2005
Nice. A yeasty, tight nose. Palate is clean with a fruity complexity. A fresh, lively and elegant wine

4. Bacchus 2010
Melon, peaches and freshly cut hay … this is such an interesting grape and everyone seems to be interpreting it their own way. This is certainly a good example of what it can really do: a well-structured and balanced wine.

5. Reserve Chardonnay 2010
This is really good. Underwent a full malolactic and the oak does dominate the fruit too much: preferred the unoaked version. Still, well-made and a very English expression of this French varietal – exciting stuff.

6. Pinot Noir 2011 tank sample
I am hoping that Pinot Noir becomes a real specialty in England. I am tasting a variety of attempts – I wish more people were giving it a go … This one is sort of northern Italian in style but with a slightly medicinal finish. Bearing in mind that it is a tank sample, I will eagerly return to this wine once bottled: the potential is there.

The Chapel Down Winery

Tenterden Vineyard

Small Hythe, Tenerden

Kent TN30 7NG

Tel: 01580 753033

www.chapeldown.com 

sales@chapeldown.com

RIDGEVIEW ESTATE, SUSSEX

When we arrived at Ridgeview, they had been up all night on “frost watch”, lighting fires, or bougies, in the vineyards. So effective is this ancient method of frost prevention, that as soon as all of the bougies are lit, they have to go around and put them out! By doing this, they can get the temperatures up by 2-4 degrees quite quickly and this is all they need. Ridgeview have their own weather reporter. The later in May there are frost alerts, the worse, because after then, any bad frosts means that it is very unlikely to have more bud bursts.

Mike Roberts, the charismatic and strongly-opinioned owner, along with his wife, Chris, takes a “bare earth” philosophy to wine-making: irrigation is cheating … compacted ground is a good protection from frost … grass is a natural radiator. He takes the European view that winemakers should not overly intervene or manipulate the wines - except when in bad years when they have to intervene and rescue it. He says that he is slightly skeptical of “terroir”, yet insists that aspect is crucial – cannot “fix” that. As with everything; location, location, location.

This is not a maritime climate, he explains. It is not wet and horrible and damp here. It is semi-Continental, and with its cool nights, resembles that of the Champagne region. It is difficult to change this preconceived and inaccurate image people have of Sussex, and England in general. Ridgeview is sheltered by the Sussex Downs and slopes southwards towards them. Yes, there is mildew and disease problems, but the high hills help keep things dry. The soils are limestone ridge and sandstone at four and five meters, and chalk, providing great acidity and backbone to these award-wining wines. Ridgeview only grows the Champagne grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier and only produces sparkling wines. The delight is the fact that each one of these wines is distinct, personable and vastly enjoyable. Equally delightful, as well as intriguing, is the fact that they prefer to keep their technical details an industry secret, even to journalists … which makes me want to know which wine-making practices go on behind those doors that are so vastly unique that they need to be guarded!

Mike Roberts, Ridgeview Estate

2009 GROSVENOR Blanc de blancs

100% Chardonnay. Nose is lovely… clean, elegant, honeyed. On the palate we meet a well-structured and lively body with tropical fruit, notes of toasted almonds and a touch of sweetness but not too much.  The finish is short but clean, no bitterness. 

2009 KNIGHTSBRIDGE Blanc de Noirs
Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. This is really nice: toasty nose, full palate, light and lively body with fruity flavours as opposed to savoury and a solid, persistent finish.

2009 CAVENDISH 
Predominantly Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier with some Chardonnay. Really refreshing and seductively appealing: You want to go back to it again and again.

2009 FITZROVIA Rosé

Their rose, which is uniquely, Chardonnay dominant, makes for a fresh and elegant wine. Nice nose, nice palate... bubbles are creamy.

2009 RIDGEVIEW VICTORIA rosé 
This was my least favourite wine. For me, it lacked interest and extracts/weight. But I still enjoyed it!

2009 PIMLICO
Sparkling red made from Pinots – it changes every year. I love this. It has so much personality and vivacity. The oak works, the fruit works … it is tightly structured, balanced and restrained, but very perfumed with hints of peppery spices.

Ridgeview Estate Winery

Fragbarrow Lane

Ditching Common

Sussex BN68TP

Tel: 0845 345 7292

www.ridgeview.co.uk

BOLNEY WINE ESTATE, SUSSEX

I visited this winery in May of 2012 with my colleagues from the British Circle of Wine Writers. We were met and guided by Samantha Linter (owner and winemaker) and Stuart Barford (Sales). They were in the middle of building a new café and visiting/tasting centre which I now know to be completed. This is a modest, family-run operation that has a great mind-set. They are doing everything right: tours, tastings, tea room, café, gift shop, events and more.

Bolney is a 40-acre estate near Cowfold, Sussex. It is 150m above sea level with south-facing, sandstone slopes and surrounded by ancient woodland. The estate is located on a hill that was part of the Butting Hill One Hundred, listed in the Doomsday Book and they have two special parcels called Foxhole Vineyards that are reserved for Pinot Noir, Bacchus and Pinot Grigio – these are the varieties they are focusing on for their high-end wines. And this makes sense: they are not situated on the chalky Kimmeridgian Ridge that stretches from Burgundy, through Champagne and to the Downs. They are situated on another ridge, composed primarily of sandstone, the main soil type in Kitterlé, Alsace, home to steely Rieslings, fragrant Pinot Noirs and crisp Pinot Gris -  so the potential is there, if the climate cooperates …

Bolney began in 1972 as Bookers Vineyards with 3 acres. Today it has 39 acres and grows 11 grape varieties, specialising in red wines – which is forward-thinking … Sam points out that if climate change moves or halts the Gulf Stream, then the English wine trade is finished. But if not, then the future will feature reds. I agree completely – she’s getting ahead of the curve.

They produce 4 still and 4 sparkling wines with both traditional and non-traditional grapes. Below are the wines they showed us that day – and I shall be returning to fill up the boot.

2011 Lychgate White

Reichensteiner, Schönburger and Wurzer grapes. The nose is yeasty and clean with a crisp, refreshing palate that takes you for a stroll in a fragrant English orchard …. all apples and pears with a touch of the tropical lychee. And it is only 11%, which is what it should be – wines of 13,5˚ and more, don’t taste of anything. It’s the New World climates that have forced the trend for baked wines upon us.

2011 Pinot Grigio

Clean, crisp, appealingly tart – a slight lack of body/texture, but a refreshing and original “English” version of this variety.

2010 Bolney rose

50/50 Rondo and Dornfelder. A lovely savoury nose followed by a palate of stewed rhubarb. Rondo was introduced to England in 1983 and is a very early ripening variety with skins that can be a bit odd-tasting, which is why it is preferred to be used in rosés than reds (less skin contact on the jus) and in blends.

2011 Bolney rosé

A year younger …and still too young. A nose of redcurrants, but it was overall lacking structure and extracts. Would like to go back to this and taste it again in a few months.

2009 Lychgate red

80% Rondo and 20% Dornfelder. This has a lovely fresh, stony and herby nose. 12.5% - refreshing and pleasant to drink. Yields are 2.5-3 tons to the acre and the planting density is really low (as opposed to the higher the better). The plants are really spread out because of the humidity – this protects vines from disease. But it will also encourage the roots to remain on the surface and not be forced to dig down into the soil, where the nutrients and varietal character are found.

2011 Pinot Noir

Aged in ¾ French and ¼ American oak. 13% alcohol.  Served a bit too cold so was not showing at its best that day: a bit diluted and unfocused. More of a light Alsatian version of Pinot Noir and I’d expect a more Alto Adige weight.

2007 Blanc de Blancs

100% Chardonnay. Nicely made – original varietal expression. Crisp, clean and biscuity. Very enjoyable.

2008 Cuvée rosé

100% Pinot Noir. 18 months sur lees. Nice nose and refreshing, clean body with tight structure and lively bubbles. Great.

2009 Cuvee Noir

100% Dornfelder. Nicely perfumed … strawberries. Pleasing texture. Well-made.

2009 Bolney Bubbly

Muller-Thurgau and Chardonnay blend. The nose is really nicely crisp and dances you straight into a complex and textured body, finishing off with a clean, solid finish.

Café open Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturdays from 8-4pm

Call or visit web-site to book tastings or a tour.

Foxhole Lane, BOlney, Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH17 5NB, 01444 881 575

www.bolneywineesate.co.uk

English Wineries CWW Trip

Last week I visited some stunning wineries in Kent and Sussex with my fellow members of the British Circle of Wine Writers and  Julia Trustran-Eve of the English Wine Producers ... see more photos and get tasting notes in my DIARY ...

English Wine Producers Trade & Press Tasting - 2011

Thursday 5^th May 2011

Thames & Chilterns Vineyards Association

2010 Bothy Oxford Dry

Grapes: Findling, Kerner, Huxelrebe, Solaris, Bacchus

This is meant to be a dry white and is not dry enough, really. Has a touch of bitterness and a very odd finish. Unfocused and lacking identity - too many grapes in the mix. Good wine-making, though.

2010 Bothy

100% Bacchus. Picked too young? Formaldehyde-green "freshness", very “chimique”. Good acidity.

2006 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Brut NV (sparkling)

Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. No dosage. Not bad.

2009 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Pinot Blush

Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and 2 others. Yes, it should be blushing, with embarrassment.

2009 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Madeleine

This is a nice, “understandable” grape. It has personality and the wine is well-made and expresses the grape in a focused and clear fashion.

2009 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Bacchus

This is a clear expression of Bacchus: solid, dry almost in a Pinot Grigio style but with its own personality. Good.

SPARKLING WHITES

Chapel Down Vintage Reserve Brut NV

Grapes: Reichensteiner, Müller-Thurgau, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay.

Les boules sont trop mousseaux en bouche. Inélégant et lourdes.

Three Choirs Classic Cuvee NV

(85% Seyval Blanc, 15% Pinot Noir)

Sal au nez et en bouche

2007 Brightwell Sparkling Chardonnay

Savonneuse et sal. Pas bien.

2003 Nyetimber Blancs de Blancs

100% Chardonnay. It’s ok> but boring and lacking any complexity. Very one-dimensional.

2006 Nyetimber Classic Cuvee

55% Chardonnay, 24% Pinot Noir, 16% Pinot Meunier. Not bad, well-made.

2006 Chapel Down

50% Pinot Noir, 25% Chardonnay. Trop de dosage : too dosed, too sweet.

Stanlake Park Wine Estate Stanlake Brut NV

Had this at earlier and liked it. It’s tight, correct, good.

2004 Chapel Down Pinot Reserve

70% Pinot Noir, 30% Pinot blanc. Well-made, correct, but no more than that.

2009 Three Choirs Blanc de Noirs

100% Pinot Noir. Une manque de parfum, aucun nez ou bouche (lack of aromas or taste – nothing there.)

2006 Denbies Cubitt Sparkling Cuvee

100% Pinot Noir – ok, but again, these wine are lacking complexity, movement, texture.

2008 Ridgeview Knightsbridge Blanc de Noirs

63% Pinot Noir, 37% Pinot Meunier. This is interesting, has some personality.

STILL DRY WHITE

2010 Chapel Down Flint Dry

(Chardonnay, Baccus, Huxelrube, Pinot Blanc) There is nothing either dry nor flinty about this wine. Unfocused.

2009 Three Choirs The English House Dry

(40% Seyval Blanc, 20% Huxelrube, 20% Phoenix, 20% Madeleine Angevine) Nice.

2009 Three Choirs Midsummer Hill

(35% Seyval Blanc, 30% Madeleine Angevine, 15% Orion, 15% Muller-Thurgau)

Yes. This estate is doing something right.

2009 Three Choirs Estate Reserve Coleridge Hill

(40% Phoenix, 30% Madeleine Angevine, 15% Orion, 15% Muller-Thurgau)

Nice. I am enjoying these, but is that simply because they are the best of a boring bunch ?

2009 Brightwell Oxford Flint

100% Huxelrube. Nice.

2008 Brightwell Crispin

100% Reichensteiner. Better, it is interesting to get a chance to taste this grape on its own. I do not know it well at all. Dry, tight, focused.

2009 Chapel Down Chardonnay

Gross

2009 Chapel Down Pinot Blanc

Ok, harmless enough.

2009 Three Choirs Cellar Door Bacchus

Gross

2009 Brightwell Bacchus

Nicely done – lovely acidity.

2007 Stanlake Park Wine Estate Kings Fumé

100% Ortega. All goes terribly wrong here. The fault of the grape or the fault o the oak programme ? It is over-oaked, diluted and disguting. Is it a variety that can take oak if done properly ? This is a mess.

2009 Astley Veritas

100% Kerner. Interesting. Liked this.Unchaptalised.

2009 Biddenden Gribble Bridge Dornfelder

Not as nice as Brightwell’s. Has a very bon-bon cherry medicinal taste.

2010 Bolney Estate Pinot Noir

Nice, but no varietal character, at least not what one would expect. I’m all for variations on a theme, but show me a theme.

2009 Chapel Down Trinity

Pinot Noir, Rondo, Pinot Noir Precoce. Hideous. A dirty, diluted soup of smoked bacon.

2008 Bolney Wine estate Lynchgate red (Dark Harvest)

Rondo, Dornfelder, Triomphe. Austere, bitter, unyielding and non-interestring. Again, it these wines are not saying anything or communicating clearly … all gibberish and confused.