Vintage year for English wine as 80 more vineyards open

EIGHTY new English vineyards opened last year, driven by growing demand and funded by bankers’ bonuses.

The figure was a record for a single year and up by 25 per cent on the year before. It was also more than double the 36 that opened five years ago, research shows.

Investment from City bankers and hedge fund managers is funding the planting of vineyards in the south of England. English sparkling wine is in the vanguard of this growth as many examples have beaten rivals, including champagne, in blind taste tests.

Earlier this year, English wines were awarded 128 medals at the International Wine Challenge, putting us among the top ten wine producing nations. There were 12 golds, 58 silvers and 58 bronzes. Among the gold winners was a £16.69 chardonnay from the Lyme Bay Winery in Devon.

‘Vineyards within the UK have become increasingly fashionable among City workers looking to invest their bonuses,’ said UHY Hacker Young, the accountancy group which carried out the study. ‘English wine continues to be popular due to its high quality. UK vineyard owners typically aim for quality rather than volume when producing wine as British weather does not allow the growth of large yields.’

The pricing of English wine has also helped its popularity as the recent fall in the pound made it more competitive with wines imported from the Continent.

The findings come after Wetherspoon announced it is to stop selling wine and beer from France and Germany ahead of Brexit. The pub chain will offer more drinks from UK producers from July 9.