Did you know that the British Isles have provided two millennia of optimal wine growing conditions? Even despite the recent resurgence of British Wine, this fact is often a surprise to people. Whilst it’s true that the Roman’s efforts weren’t always successful – they attempt growth as far north as Lincolnshire – the tradition survived long enough that when the Doomsday book was written, 40 vineyards were known to exist. Five centuries later, 139 vineyards were recorded, but between 1860 and 1914, the domestic wine industry declined. Lord Palmerstone was the first to topple the industry: he championed ‘free-trade’ and made it cheap to buy merlot and other continental wines and the industry was eventually halted altogether by the need for staple crops in the Great War.
The popular perception ever since is that wine is a popular imported commodity and always has been historically. However, stretching back to the 1930s, a tradition of homebrewing has flourished with successes inevitably blossoming into enterprises and international businesses. With the advent of the internet, the ability to buy wine online cheaply has driven the growth of many new vineyards and Wine brands in Britain.
The UK is one of the furthest northern points where viticulture has been successful, though vineyards are concentrated in the South East of England with crops only recently spreading to the Southwest and midlands. Wine in the UK is almost always ‘English wine’ and is labelled accordingly. This labelling is also due to the fact that ‘British Wine’ usually describes the fermentation of foreign grape juices, and is rarely accepted as wine. The warm if inconsistent summers of the last decade have resulted in some bumper crops and market success for English wine..
So, how good does it taste? English wines are repeatedly receiving brilliant press with many estates turning out award winning bottles that are competitively priced against their continental cousins. But the best way to tell if English wine is for your is to try it. Buy English Wine online today, and see how the rainy isle has produced a smashing range of tastes.
Posted in 
