There's no denying that our climate has become more like the continent's over the past decade. Our South Downs have the same geography as some of France's great wine regions. So why not? The only thing missing is vines with some venerable age. And it turns out we have that, too, as many of the vines in Chapel Down's 100 Kentish acres are older than the winery itself. Founded in 2001, they're now the leaders in English wine production, fighting an impressive battle on both quality and PR fronts.
On the first, Chapel Down produces a variety of wines that would compare favourably with their French cousins. Their Bacchus, a native English grape, would be indistinguishable by even most experts from a continental Sauvignon Blanc. Their sparkling wines are directly comparable to Champagne, and their Pinot Noir reminded me of a Beaujolais. I would be happy to serve any of these at a dinner party to wine-afficianado friends. But Chapel Down knows that reputation may be English wine's biggest problem, so they're on the offensive. Most impressively, they've embedded their wines in prestigious locations like The Royal Opera House, The Donmar Warehouse and Gordon Ramsay restaurants. And their operation at headquarters sends a clear message that they're as good at this wine thing as any foreign brand.
At their main site just outside of Tenterden, they do a vineyard tour that's perhaps the most informative I've ever been on, followed by a guided tasting matching wines to local cheeses. Our guide managed to seamlessly mix the history of wine in England (right back to the Romans) with specifics about Chapel Down, horticultural lore, insight into which grape varieties do best in England and, of course, a thorough tour of the production facilities. We learned to be wary of labels: British wine means wine made in this country from imported fruit or juice; English wine means it's local from vine through to bottle.
Regular vineyard visitors will be intrigued by the way the vines are pruned. The vines are allowed to grow much higher than I've seen elsewhere before their flowering stems are spread horizontally. This creates more air flow, discouraging mildew. (Roses are planted throughout as early warning detectors of that pernicious danger.) Blooms are only allowed to develop on the lowest line and the leaves above are pruned judiciously to allow as much sun as possible to pour onto the fruit. Crazy English weather is still quite a variable. Our record heat burst in July saw the quickest flowering to fruit setting in production history, but abnormally cold weather has followed since and late August brought a month's worth of rain in one day. Who knows? Assuming we get a long and clement autumn, all the fruit we saw will ripen and be harvested by hand; one vine roughly equates to one bottle.Chapel Down is the giant of English production, responsible for 1/6 of the roughly six million bottles we produce each year. Which sounds like a lot ... until you realise that the French match us with six to seven billion. Which points to Chapel Down's biggest challenge, in my opinion. Their wines are comparable to French offerings, but they can't match the French economies of scale. Which means that, as impressive as our award-winning local wines are becoming, what we tasted was roughly 30% more expensive than a comparable foreign wine, and at a price point where you could get something more special for the same money. But you're not going to be buying Chapel Down if you're making a cost-based decision. This choice plays to novelty, patriotism and local sourcing.
The vineyard has a restaurant and an upscale farm shop to make a day of it. The Swan serves traditional British favourites (of course) and seasonal produce; their signature dish is Yorkshire Pudding the size of a deflated football. My crab salad starter was excellent and the roast pork solid if unremarkable. Deserts were, sadly, disappointing, but a three-course Sunday lunch for £24.50 makes it tough to complain. Especially when you have the novelty of local wine matching, and views over picturesque vineyards. Modern and purpose-built, the restaurant is above the shop, with big windows taking in expansive views. I wouldn't go out of my way for the restaurant alone, but it's an excellent conclusion to a tour and tasting. Make sure you make reservations, however, with only 80 covers the tables here go quickly.
What we thought worth buying
Blanc de Blancs 2010 - Sparkling wine with aromas of fresh and baked apples on the nose; intense fruit characteristic of chardonnay grown on chalk soil. A special occasion bubbly on par with anything from Champagne. £26.99
Pinot Noir 2013 - A warm and sunny growing season yielded a wine light in colour and low in tannin. Delicate red fruit and violet on the nose; strawberry, cranberry, subtle oak and liquorice edge in on the palate. £13.99
Nectar 2013 - We found their dessert wine to be the stand out of the day, and the one thing we tasted that was better than continental or Australian competitors. Jasmine, rose and honeysuckle aromas with lychee and gooseberry coming in on the palate. Pleasantly sweet but not sickly, will work as well as an aperitif as with dessert and should be stunning with foie gras. This is going to see a lot of action at Christmas time. £13.99 (for 50 cl)
Honorable mention must go to the English Rose 2014. Probably the best rosé we've tasted this season but, sadly, it's for drinking now. The Bencard cellar has enough rosé to get us to the first frost, so we had to pass on this one.
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