With thoughts turning towards Christmas, New Year and the festive period, it feels like the perfect time of year to reflect on some of the most prominent styles of English Wine. In something of a GBW Round-up double header, this week I am posting a piece looking at some of my greatest discoveries in English Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (plus a more than noteworthy rosé), and I’ll follow up next week with some of the top tier examples of the pinnacle of English Sparkling Wine.

The fruits of the warm 2022 vintage in English Pinot Noir are really starting to show. Danbury Ridge’s 2022 vintage (£39.99) continues to be the benchmark, but hotly following in its footsteps are the maiden Flint Vineyard Pinot Noir 2022 (£35.00) and Riverview Pinot Noir 2022 (£40). Both demonstrate a ripeness and confidence that was previously hard to find in English red wine. Meanwhile, Lympstone Manor Pinot Noir 2020 (£65) exhibits a more restrained charm and Woodchester Valley’s early ripening Pinot Précoce 2022 (£25) offers a more accessible price point while still delivering on concentration and depth.

Whilst the reds really impressed me this month, Chardonnay continues to be one of England’s most exciting varieties. Here I’ve selected three wines that really demonstrate how the category has matured and diversified. Once again, Danbury Ridge lead the way with their Chardonnay 2022 (£37.99), and the wine’s immense fruit concentration and New World depth. Chapel Down Kit’s Coty Chardonnay 2022 (£36), English Chardonnay’s very first definitively great wine, impresses once again with its composure. And Flint’s second brand new release, their inaugural varietal Chardonnay 2022 (£35), demonstrates the estate’s ambition to explore the resourceful use of new oak with super ripe fruit sourced from Essex. I end on a playful though serious rosé, perhaps the most complex and diverse English rosé wine on the market right now: the skin-contact Artelium Artefact #8 Skinny Gris (£30) is screaming for festive fare or fireside sipping, and is one of the surprise hits of the year.

Danbury Ridge Pinot Noir 2022

When Danbury Ridge arrived on the English Wine scene with their 2018 vintage, it was a game-changing moment for English still wine. At the time, nothing had come close to the concentration and sophistication of Danbury, but how is the estate faring some five vintages on? These 2022 vintage wines suggest they are still leading the way.

This is a supercharged expression of Pinot Noir; the fruit concentration here is again astounding, as indicated by the wine’s deeper colour. There are aromas of black cherry, blackberry and almost winter berry richness, as well as a beautiful floral perfume.

The darker fruit profile manifests nicely on the palate as well –there’s lots of red and black cherry, with both tang and softness that deliver a pleasing juxtaposition. There’s also a plummy warmth and a more pronounced tannin, all underpinned by a generous spiciness.

This will only get better with a bit more time in bottle.

Flint Vineyard Pinot Noir 2022

I have been waiting patiently for the release of this superb Pinot from Flint Vineyard since previewing it earlier in the year.

The first of a duo of exciting new wines from Flint, this Pinot Noir was sourced from two sites: Flint Vineyard’s own in Norfolk and Martin’s Lane Vineyard in Essex. The grapes were crushed, destemmed and fermented on skins before being aged in new French oak for 16 months. The wine has aged a further six months in bottle before release.

With smoky black cherry on the nose, raspberry, red rose petal and forest floor, this is classic Pinot Noir with a pleasing nod to Burgundian elegance.

The palate is beautiful with a really concentrated ripe cherry as well as a savoury almost gamey meat richness. There’s a lovely silky warmth to this wine, with soft vanilla and toasted spices that make it incredibly moreish. A real triumph, this has got to be one of my favourites from Flint yet.

Riverview Pinot Noir 2022

This is the second vintage of Pinot Noir from Riverview, and is a blend of Spätburgunder and Geisenheim clones: FR1801, F105(s), WeM171 and GM1. There’s a 30% imprint of new oak on this, with the wine having gone through Malolactic Fermentation and twelve months ageing in barrel before bottling.

Ruby red with hues of red brick, this wine has classic welcoming Pinot Noir aromas of cherry, raspberry and vanilla, with a pronounced peppery note and autumnal hints of dried leaf.

The palate is soft and lush, with ample ripe red berries, plums and deeper earthy notes. This is very composed, with a pleasing softness and very light tannin, as well as a real hit of cracked black pepper and a touch of cinnamon.

This is not quite as concentrated as some of the other 2022 Pinots tasted, but this has a softness that makes it immediately delicious to drink without the need for further ageing.

Lympstone Manor Estate Triassic Pinot Noir 2020

This is the first wine from the first harvest at Michael Caines’ Lympstone Manor Estate vineyard. It’s made from Spätburgunder clone Pinot, and was aged for 18 months in a mix of new (30%) and second and third-year French oak barriques. Winemaking is handled by James Lambert and Sarah Massey at nearby Lyme Bay Winery.

The resulting wine is not as intense as some of the other reds featured here, but this Pinot does have an endearing delicacy. On the nose this had quite an interesting fragrant nose of raspberry, bramble fruit and blackcurrant pastille.

Again, the palate is on the delicate side, with a modest presence of red and black fruit supported by vanilla and a light plum character, whilst greener leafy hints have a slightly grippy presence on the finish.

Of all the Pinots tasted for this article, this is the most delicate whilst also being the most expensive. However, it does demonstrate that the site definitely has potential, and I’m sure the 2022 vintage will be one to look out for.

Woodchester Valley Pinot Précoce 2022

If you’re looking for a Pinot with a little more concentration, but without the punchier price of the classic Essex Pinots, Woodchester Valley’s latest red offering might suit you.

It’s made from the early ripening Pinot Noir Précoce variant which ripens up to two weeks earlier than traditional Pinot Noir. 68% of the blend is Précoce with the remaining 38% made from Pinot Noir. The resulting wine was aged for one year in a combination of new (30%) and old (70%) oak.

This is a spicy little number, with aromas of dark cherry, winter berry, cocoa and toasted spices thanks to the oak usage.

The palate is juicy, with ripe cherries and a slightly jammy richness, with black fruits and vanilla backed by deep woody cinnamon spice. This is a bold and potent Pinot that could more than stand up to roast duck or red meats.

Danbury Ridge Chardonnay 2022

This is the estate that put Essex on the map as a serious player in the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir world, and this 2022 vintage has got to be one of the ripest and most extravagant English Chardonnays to date.

The nose promises the exotic warmth of pineapple, peach and clementine, with toasted spices and a hint of vanilla.

The stone fruits dance on the palate between vibrant acidity and tangy pineapple. The lingering hint of smoky oak and torched tangerine peel add complexity, but it’s really the depth and breadth of the fruit that stands out here.

This is positively new world in style – think more Aussie or South African Chardonnay than Burgundy. Wow.

Chapel Down Kit’s Coty Chardonnay 2022

Chapel Down’s Kit’s Coty has been the standard bearer of quality English Chardonnay for some time. Indeed, it was my first taste of fascinating Chardonnay at the start of Great British Wine back in 2015.

There have been some ups and downs in quality, largely thanks to vintage variation as covered in my Vertical Tasting, but this 2022 vintage is another superb offering following much in the footsteps of the 2020 vintage.

The oak on these more recent vintages is a lot more subtle than it used to be, letting the fruit sing with its radiant red apple, lemon and peach aromas, as well as hints of chalk and light vanilla spiced notes.

The palate is bright and clean, leading with crunchy orchard fruit flavour, whilst peach, hints of apricot and citrus fruits add further layers. There’s an understated charm to this wine – it’s not as big and bold as the Essex-grown Chardonnays can be, but then I don’t think it’s trying to be.

Flint Vineyard Chardonnay 2022

Not resting on their laurels after producing a top-tier Pinot Noir, also new to Flint’s range is their Chardonnay. Like the red, this was fermented and aged in new oak (for 17 months) and comes from the exceptional 2022 vintage. Fruit was sourced from Martin’s Lane Vineyard in Crouch Valley, Essex.

The lovely golden hue in the glass represents the stamp of the time in oak, as does the nose, which is a evocative fusion of peach melba, grilled pineapple and lime ,with butterscotch, vanilla and woody spice.

The palate has a brilliant energy to it, exploding onto the tastebuds with intense lemon and green apple crispness. That’s supported by the promised butterscotch and tropical fruit richness.

This is an intense Chardonnay – and certainly not for those that shy away from oaked wines. Yet due to its power and prowess, I think this could be an excellent choice for pairing with turkey on the big day!

Artelium Artefact #8 Skinny Gris

I’m a huge lover of riper style of rosés, such as those oaked, nuanced, textural styles that can be found in Rioja. Wines such as Viña Tondonia Rosado and the more accessible José Luis Ripa’s Ripa Rosado spring to mind, but what does all this have to do with English Wine?

Enter Artelium Artefact #8 ‘Skinny Gris’. It is it a dark rosé, or an orange wine, or perhaps a bit of both? Whatever it is, it is up there with the most textural and outstanding English rosé/orange wines I’ve ever had. It’s made from Pinot Gris, as the name suggests, and it was fermented on its skins.

If the striking colour doesn’t grab your attention, then the nose will! There are deep red fruit aromas of dried cranberry, cherry and ripe strawberry, with orange and lemon peel, potpourri and winter berry hints.

The palate is pleasingly taut, with redcurrant and cranberry flavours, together with a pithy citrus and black tea tannin. There’s ripe red apple in there too, and a brisk acidity running through it all.

Don’t serve this too cold – Skinny Gris can be enjoyed as a winter rosé in front of an open fire, paired with festive fare such as charcuterie or with a Boxing Day gammon joint.