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‘The best English still wine I have ever tasted!’

Article written by Mark Banham.

My experience of English Wine is longer than most. As a 15 year old boy I worked at the Priory Vineyard in Little Dunmow in rural Essex where I grew up. The wines from Germanic hybrid varieties were fruity & clean but the acidity was bracing to say the least! Over the intervening 35 years I have tasted wines from just about every region & vineyard that England has to offer; the good and bad, sublime to ridiculous! This is how I know that the Bride Valley Chardonnay (2020) is so good.

From a beautiful vineyard just a corks pop from the Jurassic Coast, Steven & Bella Spurrier have fashioned a wonderland of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir & Pinot Meunier on lean chalk soils. Vineyard Manager Graham Fisher has created a bond with the soils, working thoughtfully in harmony with the existing flora & fauna and eschewing harmful short cuts. Careful viticulture, selective harvesting & fine winemaking have all contributed to make the Bride Valley Chardonnay (2020) the excellent wine it is!

Bride Valley, Dorset Chardonnay, 2020 – £25.00 – BUY HERE Tasting Note: The best vintage to date of this wonderful Chardonnay from Dorset’s Bride Valley Vineyard. An excellent bright, pale yellow appearance with a precise, elegant nose of lemon peel, floral notes and minerality. The palate is delicious; ripe and rounded citrus fruit with honeyed, Burgundian style depth & weight all balanced by crisp, mineral acidity. In all my previous write-ups, I have brought wines to your attention and gently suggested that you might consider them. I really do think you should buy a case or two of the Bride Valley Chardonnay (2020). With best wishes, Mark