English Wine

2022 may be an exceptional vintage for English wines.  2018 was the best year so far but this harvest may match or even surpass it.  The reason, of course, was the long hot summer; indeed the extent of climate change is gradually turning the UK into a primary wine producing country with success in international competition.

            We have come a long way in thirty years.  It was thought that growing grapes in this country was a risky business because of the threat of late frosts and cool damp summers, ideal for the spread of mildew.  The varieties grown thirty years ago were mostly German style varieties, the most popular grown in 1990 was Müller-Thurgau.  But the warming climate has allowed more French style varieties to be grown, this year the most popular are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, best known as the blend for champagne.

            A recent paper has predicted that average temperatures in the growing season will increase by 1.4°C by 2040.  This will expand the range of vineyards further north and west and allow other varieties to be grown including Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and more disease resistant varieties that are hardly grown here at present, such as Solaris.  At present the three popular varieties are largely used to make sparkling white wine, the quality of which has improved so much that it rivals the best in France and the world.

            But with a warmer climate, we could produce still red wines from Pinot Noir, the variety most widely used in red Burgundies.  Grapes contain sugars and acid, the balance of which is critical.  Sparkling wines need a high acid content as well as sugars, whilst red wines have a lower acid content.  In cooler climates the acid content tends to be higher whilst the best red wines come from a warmer climate.  The inclusion of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon will also expand the range of still whites.

            The vendange or grape harvest in France is largely over by now, ten to fifteen days earlier than usual.  There was a poor harvest in 2021 due to late frosts but this year is expected to be at or above the five year average.  The exception is Bordeaux which bore the brunt of the intense heatwave.  It used to be prohibited to irrigate vines in France, and it is still heavily restricted, but a derogation was allowed in certain areas of Bordeaux to allow the grapes to survive.  There were also late frosts and hailstorms in the region which have reduced yield.  Conventional wisdom has it that a hot dry summer will reduce grape yield but increase the concentration of sugars and thus the quality of the wine.

            If the prospects for the 2022 vintage in France are good, they are excellent in England.  Gareth Capner, who has a small vineyard near Whitchurch, whose grapes I have helped to pick and press in the past, says his grapes look as well as in 2018 and expects a bumper year.  Tom Newey of Alder Ridge vineyard thinks that yield may be a little lower but the quality should be excellent.  The area of vines grown in this country has expanded rapidly, up 400% from 761 hectares in 2004 to 3,800 last year, but the winery capacity has lagged behind.  Many vineyards are small and it is very difficult to find a winery to make wine for them as 1,500 bottles is said to be the absolute minimum that a processor will take.

            There is currently huge investment in both vineyards and winery capacity.  Many of the great French houses are buying vineyards in Kent and Sussex or taking interests in others.  Tattinger, for example has bought in Kent, whilst Pommery has a partnership with Hattingley Valley.  In 2020 Itasca built a 600 tonne capacity winery at Crondall in Hampshire to process its own grapes and to make wines for other vineyards, whilst Freedom of the Press has built a winery at Minster Lovell in the Cotswolds.  One consequence of the increased capacity has been an increase in the value of grapes.  Historically, vineyards might sell grapes for £1,750 to £2,000 per tonne which barely covered the cost of production, but the price today is £2,800 to £3,000.

            But is this huge enthusiasm for English wine production justified?  Most wineries are not making money as the costs of labour and energy escalate.  The market for English wine at home and abroad is still small, growing but not as fast as supply.  The Government takes a large slice, almost £3 duty per bottle with VAT on top.  This is potentially a significant industry for the UK economy and it would be very helpful if the Government were to promote it, perhaps with a graded duty regime, as exists for breweries where the level is determined by the scale of production.

The average temperature during the growing season may be rising but there is still the risk of late frost and cool damp summers.  The frost threat can be mitigated by spraying a fine mist of water on the grapes throughout a frost but that requires vast amounts of water so a borehole and reservoir are almost essential as at Alder Ridge.  New techniques include ropes of tubing that contain infra-red bulbs, but that is very energy intensive.  The control of disease, particularly mildew, can require repeated application of fungicide but this may reduce with newer varieties and hotter drier summers.

We may be entering a golden age for British vineyards spurred on by climate change.  The quantity and quality of English wines has improved dramatically over the past thirty years and investors obviously believe prospects for the future are excellent.  There is a certain satisfaction when our wines beat the French and the rest of the world in international competition!