Chris Cooper and Rob Saunders, vine specialists in the Hutchinsons Horticultural team, discuss the season to date in vineyards. Continue reading “Thinking ahead”
Leveraging a French connection
After purchasing two plots of arable land on the outskirts of Barham, Kent, in 2013, this year was the third harvest for Simpsons Wine Estate’s Roman Road vineyard and the first harvest for half of its Railway Hill site. Continue reading “Leveraging a French connection”
Champagne and Sparkling Wine World Championships 2018
The roof was raised at the 2018 Champagne and Sparkling Wine World Championships (CSWWC) awards dinner on 24 October as Royal Warrant holders Camel Valley were presented with the trophy for Best English Sparkling Wine for its 2015 Pinot Noir Rosé Brut. Continue reading “Champagne and Sparkling Wine World Championships 2018”
Welsh Vineyard Association Wine Competition 2018
33 wines from seven producers were tasted in this year’s annual Welsh Vineyard Association (WVA) competition, held at Llanerch Vineyard in the Vale of Glamorgan on 6 November 2018. Continue reading “Welsh Vineyard Association Wine Competition 2018”
Vineyard expansion
For an existing vineyard looking to expand its growing operations, especially here in the South East, the options can initially appear limited. Having acted for Champagne Tattinger and its UK agency, Hatch Mansfield, to find a suitable site in Kent, we spent over a year searching on their behalf before introducing their new site at Chilham. Domaine Evremond, which was planted in 2017, promises to introduce 300,000 bottles per year of premium English sparkling wine. Continue reading “Vineyard expansion”
Meet the manager: Adrian Pike
How did you get into wine?
Previously I worked in music but after 20 years, I had all but stopped listening to music and needed to find a new passion. Continue reading “Meet the manager: Adrian Pike”
Are you winter ready?
Taking a few hours to properly prepare your sprayer for winter storage is essential to avoid costly frost damage and can add years to its life, says agricultural engineer Ben Strathern. Continue reading “Are you winter ready?”
Success across the whole USA
The multi-awarded Classic Reserve sparkling white wine from Hampshire-based Hattingley Valley has been chosen by American retail giant, Whole Foods Market, to become one of only nine sparkling wines in its Holiday Wine Programme. Continue reading “Success across the whole USA”
The vine post
The growth of UK viticulture has been rapid in the past decade. But a large percentage of the new producers don’t come from a traditional farming background, many are from IT or the financial sector. Consequently these new entrants to wine production don’t have the skillset for the day to day tasks in the vineyard. Also, many of these new ventures are large scale commercial acreage (it’s pretty unlikely that any MD’s are going to be out pruning). So vineyard teams are essential to ensure viticultural tasks are completed to a professional standard. In addition, there is also a continuing lack of skilled and experienced domestic workers to keep pace with the increasing acreage of vineyards. Continue reading “The vine post”
Importing concrete advice
In 2008, Christian Seely received a phone call from a good friend, and soon to be business partner, Nick Coates, who, after months’ geologically mapping England in search of a suitable chalk site, had stumbled across the perfect place to plant a vineyard just two miles from his house near Overton, Hampshire. Continue reading “Importing concrete advice”