But the French pioneer from the Champagne region is no longer the only leader. The market produces many other quality sparkling wines such as Winzersekt, Cava and Franciacorta. The neighbouring British island that is attracting more and more attention in terms of wine should also not be forgotten.
You can already see them, the white chalk cliffs of Dover, when you cross the English Channel on the old-fashioned ferry. This soil structure can be found in the subsoil all over southwest England – just like in the Champagne region. It therefore goes without saying that it is going to create its own great sparkling wine and emulate the French model.
In 1966, Pilton Manor in Somerset was the first commercial producer to produce a bottle-fermented sparkling wine from the Müller-Thurgau and Seyval Blanc grape varieties commonly used at the time. The grape varieties have changed since then but not the willingness of the winegrowers to take risks to establish themselves on the market. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier were planted later and the wines were vinified traditionally according to the traditional method.
The big names here are Nyetimber (Hall 13, Stand B 48) and Ridgeview Estate (Hall 13, C 45), both located in Sussex. Smaller ones, however, are Chapel Down (Hall 13, Stand C 45) and Gusborne in Kent. As a shareholder in the wineries, you can indirectly participate in the success story of this development and promote their projects. In the meantime, a patriotic vision has turned into a quite realistic plan to produce and successfully market English sparkling wine.