The rise in popularity of English wine is such that a staggering 12 million bottles are expected to be produced across the country by 2020

There used to be a joke popular among English wine producers: “How do you make a small fortune? Start with a large fortune and then open a vineyard.” But if that was once painfully accurate, the burgeoning industry now appears to be on a roll.



After years as the butt of cruel jokes because of its questionable sweet taste, and thanks perhaps to temperatures raised by global warming, quality has improved in leaps and bounds and sales volumes have soared.

With the vast majority of wine still imported, a burgeoning UK sector offers a boost to local and rural economies - as well as much reduced transport footprint.

It was significant that Buckingham Palace officials chose Ridgeview’s Grosvenor 2009 brut from the South Downs in East Sussex as a sparkling aperitif for the state dinner for Chinese President Xi Jinping, hosted by the Queen, during his visit in October.

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The family-owned Ridgeview vineyard lies in the Sussex Downs, an area where the climate and chalky, clay soil is remarkably similar to that of the Champagne region. Dedicated solely to the production of sparkling wines, Ridgeview has won medal after medal (many international) for the quality of its wines and is leading the drive to promote English wine production.

But new entrants are also thick on the ground. The soaring popularity of English wine has fuelled a rush to develop UK vineyards, with applications rising by more than 40% in the past year, according to new figures. As producers must pay wine duty, they need a licence from HM Revenue and Customs. Last year, HMRC received 65 applications from new entrants, up from 46 in the previous year, according to the accountancy group UHY Hacker Young.



Experts estimate that an additional 75,000 acres of land across the country – roughly equivalent to the Champagne region in France – is prime for grape growing and could be exploited by newcomers seeking to join the award-winning ranks of the likes of Ridgeview Wine and Bolney.

UK producers have struggled in the past with an inconsistent climate and higher production costs than continental rivals. But last year domestic vineyards – now numbering nearly 500 in England and Wales consisting of 4,500 acres – enjoyed a long, warm spring and summer, bringing high-quality grapes in large volumes.

And English wine – produced and bottled at home with much reduced food miles compared with imported alternatives – is clearly being seen as a positive sustainable option for both retailers and consumers. Simon Woodhead, who started the Stopham vineyard in West Sussex in 2007, says sustainability is at the heart of his business: “It’s important, not just from an ethical perspective, but also to maintain a natural ecosystem that is best for our vines and, ultimately, our wine. Working in the South Downs National Park, we can’t miss the daily reminder of how important it is to respect and protect the environment on which we depend.”



Many of our English wines are only stocked in branches within a 30 mile radius of the vineyard Rebecca Hull, Waitrose

There are an estimated 20-30 vineyards in England that have gone a step further on sustainability and become organically-certified, according producer groups. As well as the benefits of producing grapes without using pesticides, organic wine also contains less sulphur dioxide. “Crucially, sulphur dioxide (as well as the input and residues of other chemicals often found in non-organic wine) can cause a reaction in many people which feels like a hangover,” said Lee Holdstock, from the Soil Association. “Some people say they don’t get hangovers with organic wine - though there hasn’t been any official research into this.”

Booming UK wine

At the close of the UK’s National Wine Week – a showcase of the best of British production – Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, gave a useful summary of the state of the industry, while suggesting that many consumers may be unaware of its good health.



“The production of English wine has seen record vintages in the last two years with 4.5m bottles in 2013 and 6.3m bottles in 2014. Based on the latest growth figures, this is set to double, with a staggering 12m bottles of English wine per year expected by 2020.”

Sam Linter, head wine maker of family business Bolney Estates, which occupies 39 acres just outside Haywards Heath, admits that weather is still one of the biggest challenges for English growers. “We had a fantastic year in 2014 but this year has been wetter and we lost some of the crop,” she said, adding that there is still a strong collaborative spirit within the industry. “We are not competing with each other. The main competition is from imported wines, as less than 2% of what is drunk in the UK is produced here.”

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Strong support from supermarkets has helped to raise the profile of English wine and make it a mainstream, rather than a niche, product. Marks & Spencer has just added significantly to its range, introducing wines from vineyards across the UK and recently launching its first Welsh wine: the Tintern Parva bacchus from Parva Farm Vineyards in Monmouthshire. For Christmas, M&S is selling its first magnum of English sparkling wine: the 2010 Ridgeview Blanc de Blancs Magnum

Waitrose, which stocks more than 100 English and Welsh wines, has reported a 95% increase in the sales of domestic brands in 2014. Rebecca Hull, wine buyer for English and Welsh wine at Waitrose, said there was “real momentum” in the English wine industry: “The success of English wine is a culmination of dedication and effort from some talented winemakers across the country who have gradually built the reputation of our wines from the ground up.”

Sustainability was an important consideration for shoppers, she added: “Our customers are interested in the provenance of their food and drink, and enjoy the connection of buying wines made on their own doorstep. Many of our English wines are only stocked in branches within a 30 mile radius of the vineyard, and are personally delivered direct to our shops by the producer, saving extra miles.”