Exploring Pinot Noir with Oastbook

I first met America and Nick Brewer in early 2019 when their first wine, a sparkling Auxerrois and Pinot Noir blend, was turning heads. America’s infectious personality made an instant impression, as did her passion and energy for English Wine. Some seven years on, Oastbrook Estate has flourished into one of the most exciting still English Wine producers in Sussex, with award-winning expressions of Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, amongst others.

It’s their wonderful Rosé Reserve, a 100% Pinot Noir rosé which is as confident and expressive as America, that has made the biggest impression on me. Full of ripe red fruit, and balanced with complex savoury textures and hints of winter spice, it’s been one of my top English rosé wine picks year on year. But a recent visit to Oastbrook reminded me of their diverse expressions of Pinot Noir, from that brilliant, bold rosé, to an elegant, complex Red Pinot and then a captivating, mysterious white Pinot Noir.

I decided it was high time to put Oastbrook’s trio of Pinot Noir in focus, and so recently tasted through the three wines, together with a brief discussion with America on her journey so far, English still wine and, of course, Pinot Noir.

John: Hello America! We’ve known each other since pretty much the beginning of your adventure as an English winemaker. For those who haven’t followed your journey so far, please give us a brief overview of your background and your arrival on the English Wine scene.

America: “My journey into wine probably started much earlier than I realised. I grew up in Bahia in the north-east of Brazil, and there was an old vine growing up the side of our family home. I have very vivid memories of climbing through it and eating the grapes. My family would make wine from the grapes, so perhaps the seed was planted there without me knowing it.

I moved to London because I wanted to explore the world and experience something completely different. I eventually met my husband Nick, and our life took us to Geneva and then Hong Kong. We travelled extensively during that time, and wine and vineyards increasingly became part of our lives.

When we came back to England in 2013, we wanted a different lifestyle and a place where we could bring up our daughter surrounded by nature. We found the old farm and oast house near Bodiam, beside the River Rother, and slowly the idea of planting vines began to take hold.

I had already planted a few vines around the house and was fascinated by how well they grew. I went to a neighbouring vineyard looking for work, and they suggested I study viticulture and winemaking at Plumpton College.

That was the real beginning. While I was studying, we started planting our own vineyard, and in 2018 those first vines went into the ground. We were building everything from scratch, learning every day and taking a huge leap of faith. Oastbrook has grown from that very small beginning into the estate and winery we have today.”

John: Still English wine has been an increasingly strong focus for Oastbrook, at a time when still wines are becoming more and more relevant and successful in England. Was this always the vision you had for Oastbrook Estate wines?

America: “Yes, it was. When we started, sparkling wine would have been the obvious direction for an English vineyard. The climate, and the success of English sparkling wine, made that seem like the natural path.

But we always wanted to challenge the status quo, and so we went down the path of concentrating more on still wine. England is a very young wine-producing country compared with somewhere like Burgundy, and that is actually one of the things I love about it. We aren’t constrained by hundreds of years of tradition telling us what we should or shouldn’t do.

As we learned more about our own site, we became increasingly interested in what the Rother Valley could produce as still wine. Our terroir is quite special, with the sandstone ridge, clay and silt soils and the summer warmth and dryness that we get in the valley. We started to see that we could ripen grapes beautifully and make wines with real personality.

For me, English Wine is now entering a very exciting phase. We have proved that we can make exceptional sparkling wine, and I think the next chapter is about showing the world just how diverse and good English still wine can be.

At Oastbrook, experimentation has always been part of our DNA. We don’t want simply to make a version of something that already exists. We want to understand our land and see what it can give us. That is why still wine has become such an important part of our future.”

John: Let’s focus specifically on Pinot Noir. You produce multiple expressions of the grape in white, rosé and red hues. What prompted you to explore Pinot Noir as a variety so thoroughly?

America: “Pinot Noir is fascinating because it is incredibly expressive and versatile whilst being incredibly demanding at the same time.

From the beginning, we knew Pinot Noir had a natural affinity with our site. It is a variety that can show enormous differences depending on how you grow it and what you do with it in the winery. That gives us the opportunity to tell different stories from essentially the same grape.

I also love the idea that one variety can take you on such a journey. With Pinot Noir you can have the delicacy and freshness of a white expression, the beautiful fruit and texture of a rosé, and then the depth, structure and complexity of a red. They can all be recognisably Pinot Noir, but they speak in completely different voices.

For us, it has also been a wonderful way of exploring what is possible with English grapes. We don’t want to be told that English Wine has to fit into one particular style. We want to experiment, to push boundaries and to discover what our vineyard is capable of.

And Pinot Noir is particularly exciting because it responds so strongly to the vintage. Every year teaches us something different. That is one of the things that keeps me completely hooked on it.”

John: Which is your favourite of the Pinot Noir wines that you have produced so far?

America: “That is a very difficult question because they are all like children — you aren’t supposed to have a favourite!

But if I really have to choose, I would say the red Pinot Noir from 2022, although the 2025 has perhaps even greater promise. There is something incredibly satisfying about seeing Pinot Noir ripen here in Sussex and turning it into a red wine with genuine character.

When we started, people were very quick to say that England could make sparkling wine, but that red wine was going to be much more difficult. I actually find that challenge incredibly exciting.

Our red Pinot Noir isn’t trying to imitate Burgundy or anywhere else. It is Oastbrook, from our vineyard, in our valley, in our English climate. It has its own personality — bright red fruit, freshness and elegance, but with enough structure to make it a serious food wine.

That, for me, is what English still wine is all about: not trying to pretend we are somewhere else, but celebrating exactly where we are.”

John: What else can we expect from Oastbrook still wines in the coming months?

America: “More experimentation — definitely!

We are still a young vineyard, and that means we are constantly learning. Every vintage gives us another opportunity to understand our land and our grapes a little better.

Still wines are going to remain a major focus for us, particularly Pinot Noir, but also the other varieties that perform well on our site. We want to continue exploring different expressions and styles rather than simply making the same wine year after year.

There is also a real sense of excitement around English Wine generally. I think we are moving beyond the idea that English Wine is simply an alternative to Champagne. We are developing our own identity, and still wines are a very important part of that.

So expect wines that are a little unexpected, wines that reflect the vintage and the vineyard, and probably a few surprises along the way. That has always been the Oastbrook way.

For me, the most exciting thing is that we are still at the beginning of the story. The vines we planted in 2018 are only just beginning to show us what they can really do. I can’t wait to see where they take us next.

In particular, watch out for the launch of Insurgence, our new 3 year barrel-aged Chardonnay with a tiny production of only 500 bottles. It’s quite an extraordinary wine.”