Ridgeview Grosvenor Blanc de Blancs 2006, produced from grapes grown in Sussex, picked up the Decanter international trophy for sparkling wine over £10, according to the results announced on Wednesday, beating more than 700 labels of Italian Proseccos, Californian and Australian bubblies as well as popular champagnes from Charles Heidsieck, Taittinger and Moët & Chandon, reports Telegraph.
The wine retailing for under £22 was voted for higher quality than champagnes costing nearly three times as much. English wines have been winning several awards and much applause in recent years, but this is the first time that any vintage from England has won a Decanter International Trophy.
As is customary in such competitions, the judges who always taste them blind are encouraged to give their comments about the wine they are scoring, especially those with high quality. They described the wine having floral nose which is elegant, discreet, biscuity and youthful. The found the refined and refreshing palate, with lemon rind, vivacious acidity, minerality, precision of flavour and plenty of élan simply stunning.
Ridgeview Estate is a family business with a 16-acre vineyard on the South Downs. Set up husband and wife team of Michael and Christine Roberts in 1995, it is now a fully-fledged family business with their daughter, son and daughter-in-law all working in the winery.
Though Ridgeview is relatively unknown outside of the wine world, it has been steadily winning accolades. Last year it beat its better known English rivals such as Nyetimber, Chapel Down and Balfour to be crowned as the ‘Best Wine in England’ in the English & Welsh Wine of the Year Awards. Wine shops like Waitrose and Oddbins have been selling their wines for a number of years.
International competitions like Decanter in London and MUNDUSvini being currently conducted in Neustadt on the Winestrasse are important international platforms to have the quality judged by independent, international panels of experts. DelWine is a strong advocate for Indian producers to take part in such competitions.
Who knows, a Marquis de Pompadour, Omar Khayyam or Sula Brut may soon find itself in a similar news report?
Subhash Arora |