{"id":16350,"date":"2022-05-06T12:36:33","date_gmt":"2022-05-06T10:36:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.countryfile.com\/?p=113330"},"modified":"2022-05-06T13:07:16","modified_gmt":"2022-05-06T11:07:16","slug":"best-english-white-wines-2022","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/rss_feed\/best-english-white-wines-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"Best English white wines 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Tanya Jackson\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Friday, 06 May 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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It\u2019s fair to say that English sparkling wine, with its international recognition, originally paved the way for still English whites. However, these wines are beginning to blossom into their own little scene, with Norfolk vineyard Winbirri scooping a platinum Decanter award in 2017 and in 2021, Kent vineyard Chapel Down picking up a gold.<\/p>\n

English white wine is less divisive than the red, having a naturally clean and fresh taste that matches existing market demands. It is still early days, and as new grapes such as Madeleine Angevine, Chasselas and Reichensteiner begin to arrive on vineyards, we\u2019re expecting some exciting and inventive blends to emerge across the next few years. This is a glorious time to get into English wine<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Vineyard and wine estate, Dorking, Surrey, England.\/Credit: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

What does English white wine taste like?<\/h2>\n

English white wines tend to be at the lighter end of white wine due to our cooler climate \u2013 there\u2019s no over-ripening, with a healthy variety of flavour profiles within that. In general, English white wine is fresh and medium dry, with a few drier exceptions.\u00a0The two rising stars of the scene are Bacchus and Chardonnay, both with characteristics unique to our growing conditions:<\/p>\n

Bacchus<\/h3>\n

The bigger buzz on the English white wine scene is about the Bacchus grape. Named for the Roman god of wine, it was bred in the 1930s and has primarily been used in Germany where Riesling grapes don\u2019t ripen fully. Grown in the German terroir and climate, its low acidity means it\u2019s more often mixed into other blends to bulk out the flavour. However, in England, our cooler conditions mean the grapes can reach a higher acidity, albeit with a lower yield than in warmer countries, which is how we get the dry, gooseberry and kiwi flavours akin to a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.<\/p>\n

Chardonnay<\/h3>\n

Poor Chardonnay. It was once a respectable wine, before Bridget Jones, Alanis Morrisette and Footballers\u2019 Wives came along. US wine producers of the 1990s didn\u2019t help either, with the trend for highly oaked, overripe Chardonnays that were high in alcohol. For a long time, Burgundy was the only part of the world that had the knowledge and experience to know how to produce quality Chardonnay wine, so much so that it is the only varietal (ie grape used to make a single variety of wine) that they\u2019re allowed to grow in its northern wine region, Chablis.<\/p>\n

But Chardonnay\u2019s reputation is set to change. We\u2019ve been planting more and more vines in the UK, as it\u2019s one of the three traditional grapes used in sparkling wine \u2013 and now makes up a third of plantings. In our cooler climate, this highly versatile grape produces wine with a medium to light body and takes on flavours of apple, quince and pear, instead of the heavy, marigold-coloured Chardonnays we\u2019ve been used to. Expect a leaner, more subtle palate, with fresh acidity.<\/p>\n

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