Driven to drink
The Times reports that Chapel Down sold a million bottles of English sparkling wine ‘for the first time last year’ and hopes to capture ‘1 per cent of the global champagne market by 2035’.
I can’t remember when I first discovered Chapel Down wines but my interest in English wines began about ten years ago. It may have been driven in part by patriotism, but I’m not stupid. I wouldn’t buy something I didn’t like just because it’s manufactured or produced in the UK.
No, I genuinely enjoy many English wines, especially the sparkling variety. Today my favourite Chapel Down wine is the Grand Reserve 2019, closely followed by the award-winning Rosé. The company also produces a lovely sparkling wine called A Touch of Sparkle. If you can get past the terrible name, it’s a terrific alternative to Prosecco, albeit significantly more expensive.
This time last year we visited the Chapel Down Winery near Tenterden in Kent. Following lunch in the restaurant, we had a tour of the vineyard and a ‘tutored tasting’ session. You could therefore describe me as a Chapel Down aficionado, but I enjoy other English sparkling wines as well – Nyetimber, for example, or Gusbourne, Balfour and Chalkdown.
Chalkdown is a small independent winemaker in Hampshire. I’d never heard of it until late last year when someone gave me a bottle of the company’s Classic Cuvée and I enjoyed it so much I ordered several more. It’s clearly at the smaller end of the winemaking market because when I had a minor issue with delivery I found myself communicating directly with Piotr, the actual winemaker, who was very helpful. (A further three bottles of Chalkdown arrived today, via courier, just as I was writing this.)
But how does the best English sparkling wine match up to champagne? I’m no expert but in my opinion I think it’s right up there and I know the best English sparkling wines are winning international awards. In any case, champagne varies enormously and whether you like it depends on your personal taste. I prefer a very dry champagne, like Taittinger (which is probably my favourite sparkling wine), but Chapel Down Grand Reserve (or the slightly cheaper Brut) isn’t far off. Likewise Nyetimber, which is produced in Sussex.
But here’s the thing. A few years ago Taittinger purchased some land in Kent with a view to producing their own sparkling wine in England. (I think the first fruits of their labour are due next year, or maybe it’s the year after.) They won’t be able to call it champagne, of course, but what’s in a name? As long as it tastes nice, and doesn’t break the bank, who cares?
Either way, one of the great champagne houses has seen and tasted enough to know that it’s possible to produce sparkling wines in England that are almost if not as good as the best sparkling wines produced in the Champagne region of France, which is quite something.
In the meantime, my wife and I have a bucket list of things we want to do and one of them is visit the Taittinger Champagne House in Reims. It’s a six-hour drive from Cambridge (via Eurotunnel), which is no different from driving to Glasgow, and less time than it takes to drive to Dundee, so that should be one of the easier boxes to tick. Watch this space.
