Family owned and operated for two generations, Ridgeview Wine Estate is one of the oldest and most predominant producers of English sparkling wine in the UK. Their wines are produced in the traditional method from noble Champagne varietals, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir & Pinot Meunier from vineyards located just 40 miles south of London, in a range of chalky hillsides known as South Downs. The soil make-up here is similar to key areas of Champagne.
Seven Sisters chalk cliffs in East Sussex. Image source: Wikipedia, Public Domain. Stephen Dawson, 26 May 2003.
While there are similarities between English sparkling wines and Champagne, a crucial difference is the effect of climate.
“England is a difficult place to grow grapes” noted Brandon Barnham who joined us this week from Ridgeview Wine Estate. South Downs is situated in Southern England where the culmination of a very long, yet cool growing season is grapes with ample aromatics and assertive acidity; fruit with an ideal coalescence for the production of sparkling wines. “We aim to produce a style of traditional sparkling wine representative of the English climate: bright, lively, and fruit-driven with exceptional balance,” adds Barnham.
Ridgeview’s winemaking philosophy is to beget wines that are as pure as possible, with as little interference as necessary. Overseeing their vineyard for more than 15 years, a singular manager whose key focus is sustainability, implementing cover crop bio-diversity, solar power, and wastewater treatment practices.
With Ridgeview looking toward opening a winery yet this year and ramping up production from 2018’s bountiful crop, we look forward to bringing more of their incredible wines to the market!
We aim to produce a style of traditional sparkling wine representative of the English climate: bright, lively, and fruit-driven with exceptional balance.