Kerry Vale Vineyard - revisit - 14th November, 2015

Having tasted a really good red at Llaethlliw, we were ready to check if the Red Kite at Kerry Vale was ready yet! Geoff had told us it was nearly ready on our visit last time. And it is already on the website so we decided we had to go and try! If you remember this too had been oaked so we were eager to try it particularly as we had just sampled arguably the best red so far!
Again poor little Sassy had to stay at home - the weather not clement, storm Abigail being about, and anyway she was in the garage having a pre-winter check.

 We had a wonderful lunch at Kerry Vale chatting to June Ferguson. The parsnip and honey soup was delicious so she shared the recipe! And accompanied the lunch with Red Kite Red! An oaked Rondo. We liked it very much - the oak tannins definitely adding to the fruitiness really well. Lovely.

So bottles were taken home and further samplings were needed!

What an interesting task we have given ourselves! We tasted the Llaethliw and the Red Kite. It is so hard to judge but then it is a subjective choice - in this case, Chris preferred the Llaethlliw and my first preference was the Red Kite. Maybe tomorrow it may change.....and we haven't done this tasting comparison yet with the Poldoon and the Hush Heath.

Many more to try too so which will be our favourite??

Llaethlliw Vineyard, Neuaddlwyd, Aberaeron - 10th November, 2015

This was very exciting for us as really it was our first visit to a Welsh vineyard. Kerry Vale is very close to the border, literally a stone's throw from Offa's Dyke so has a foot in both countries more or less but Llaethlliw is really Welsh, as its name suggests! The name actually means the colour of milk and as we have found on each visit, there is more history to discover as well as good wine.

 So first the history ...the stream at the bottom of the fields on the estate does run a milky colour so as well as giving the estate its name, it is also believed that the title of Dylan Thomas's famous - and wonderful - play, Under Milk Wood, may have an origin from this name.

 The estate and original farm of Llaethlliw has been here since the 18th century and one of the owners of the estate in 1864, had a schooner built in nearby New Quay and named it Llaethlliw. This is a painting the owners have of this schooner and so they decided to use this as a basis of their logo which you will see later - a splendid idea!

 And the final bit of interesting history, is that the last duel fought in Wales was between a son of one of the owners of the estate - who didn't fight fairly and so had to disappear, to America it is thought! You can read the whole story on the website: Llaethlliw Estate
And so to the modern era....Siwsan and Richard Evans bought the farm and land here in 2008 and after an idea from Richard, decided to plant vines - so many British vineyards seem to have appeared almost by accident! The original vines planted in 2009 were 6,500 - as you may have read in the Walton Brook entry, this was just before the Germans had a bad accident as they left Wales on the way to Leicestershire. The crurrent vines cover about 6 acres and the grapes are Solaris, Orion, Rondo and Regent.

 As you can see from this early picture, the planting doesn't only mean investment in plants, but also in wood and wire - and a lot of it!
The first harvest was 2014 and again much has been learned. The decision was made by the family that they would be an organic grower which then enables their wine to be marketed as Quality Wine. Their experience in achieving this has been very good. Siwsan and Richard have a son, Jac who gave us a lot of interesting information. He has worked very hard and has been to Plumpton College to achieve a degree in viticulture so has many ideas to take the vineyard forward.

Again their experience of Solaris has been alarming! Its growth such that at one point it had grown across to the next row! It sounds like very hard work to keep the Solaris vines in order but it has the benefit of being an early ripener.

This year a tasting and presentation cabin has been built and opened so that visitors can now also have a presentation on a screen in there in comfortable surroundings.

The next step will be to open their own winery for which works have started. At the moment their wine is bottled at Halfpenny Green Vineyard near Worcester, the same one used by Kerry Vale too. Plans are also underway for a shop and café.
So much has already been achieved in a short time and this year, just recently, their first red wine has been released! It has been aged in oak for a short while so we were eagerly awaiting the tasting!

First we tried the Solaris...very good too. Interesting that we had only a few days before tried this at Walton Brook too. Both had that grapefruity taste, dry but not too dry.

..then the rosé..a blend of Orion and Regent.. a very pleasant and fruity rosé but not too sweet...

...and so to the red! An oaked Rondo....and it didn't disappoint. It is a really good flavour and quite full bodied, not at all the sweet fruity drink that some English reds have. We were very impressed.

We had had another really interesting visit - thank you Siwsan and Jac. We look forward to another visit very soon. And they also have plans to expand into a further 15 acres with 10,000 vines - wonder which varieties they will choose?

 And as an added bonus, Llaethlliw is very near to the sea - only a couple of miles out of Aberaeron so the day can be completed by a walk on the seafront

- memories once more of the Coastal Path walk!

Walton Brook Vineyard, Burton on the Wolds, near Loughborough, Leicestershire - 7th November, 2015

We had a visit planned to our friend, Janette's for the weekend. A visit we always look forward to as we enjoy a good old chat and visit good restaurants each evening. Normally we also visit the local towns and sample their wares - like Melton Mowbray pies and lots of lovely Stilton, so this time we investigated the possibility of Leicestershire vineyards. There are quite a few in the Midlands as it turns out but at this time of year they are not all open. I contacted Ceri at Walton Brook..

and he kindly said we could visit - we were very excited to see another vineyard in a new area!

The vineyard has quite a history. It has been farmed by the same family since the 1890's and during the Great War, the fields here were used by the Royal Flying Corps, the forerunner of the RAF, to protect the Midlands from zeppelin attack. The squadron based here was commanded in 1916 by Captain A T Harris - later in the second World War, known as Bomber Harris.

So in 2008, Ceri, Trevor Eggleston's son-in-law (Trevor being the farmer-in-law!), suggested that as part of their diversification, they should try planting vines - his original idea had been to try a couple of vines in his garden so it kind of escalated!

To begin with 2,500 vines were planted: Seyval Blanc, Solaris, Regent and Madeline Angevine. Another story is linked here as the German group who were coming to plant had first of all been to plant the first vines for Llaethlliw vineyard - where we had a visit planned for the following week! Very sadly, one of the vehicles used for the planting was involved in quite a serious accident as it left Wales and as a result these first vines had to be planted by hand!
The following year several hundred more were planted: Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay - planning for sparkling! There were problems here in the first winter as the field which drops down to the Walton Brook, turned out to be a frost pocket. As Trevor and Ceri told us - it is a steep learning curve and every area is different. Certainly for the more northern vineyards, they are all favouring Solaris.

This grape is an early ripener so can be picked early - but its downside which we have heard about a lot now, is its rate of growth! It is a true vigorous grower it seems! Even now in the autumn, the Solaris vines are full of vigour..

Trevor and Ceri told us so much about their growing experiences - it was very interesting and worthwhile - and very kind of them to give up their time (although they were glad of a break from pressing I think!)

Their planting to date was completed in 2010 with a further 6,000 vines of: Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris (or Pinot Grigio in Italy) and Bacchus. There is much more possibility of expanding further although their next plan is to have their own winery, at the moment their grapes are taken to Eglantine Vineyard near Nottingham for bottling. Still on the vines were some Seyval Blanc, the latest to ripen here...

We tasted some though and the decision was to pick - they were sweet and ripe! Think they'll be gone by now!
And great excitement is in the air as they await their soon to be released first sparkling wine - a white and a rosé, the rosé having exclusively used the Pinot Noir grapes and the white using only the Pinot Gris grapes. The sparkling wines in each vineyard we have seen so far are all made using the méthode champenoise, the traditional champagne method but it seems with better results than the French version! We hope to hear from Ceri when this is ready which should be in time for Christmas we all hope!
And so to the tasting! This is always an exciting moment. We tried a little of each of their current wines...Solaris, Seyval Blanc, Bacchus and the Rosé

Although Bacchus is apparently the usual favourite, Chris preferred the Seyval Blanc which had an elderberry type flavour and was very nice, whereas Janette and I preferred the Solaris which was to me delicious - very crisp and citrussy but fruity too. Ceri is very doubtful of a good English red and so they don't have one planned - we said we would let him know when we find a good one and will take a bottle for him!

We had spent a wonderful time with Trevor and Ceri. Ceri was very informative not only about the vines but also with his tasting detail. As he said - in the end it is always a question of taste. Walton Brook wines tasted good to us - so hope we'll be back again soon! Thank you both!

Hush Heath Estate and Winery, Staplehurst near Tonbridge, Kent - 2nd November, 2015

We were visiting our middle daughter and family - now increased with the birth of a new little girl on the 14th October. We are so lucky! It was the occasion of the 8th birthday of our eldest granddaughter and so we were pleased to see them all. We had had a busy time at the horse riding party on the 1st November and as the 2 school going girls had an inset day on the Monday, we were only too pleased to take them out for a few hours. It just so happened that we also knew of a vineyard not too far from them....

It was a beautiful autumnal day.....and driving through the Kentish lanes is a delight. Bit of a shame we weren't in Sassy but as we explained to the girls, we wouldn't have all fitted in!

Hush Heath is based around a stunning manor house dating back to 1503 which was bought and restored by the Balfour-Lynn family in the 1980's. They have 37 acres of vines, a mix of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier - the 3 main champagne grapes and these vines were planted in 2000, and there are also 30 acres of apples. Kent really is the garden of England. We could smell the recently picked apples as we arrived...

The winery and bottling plant was built in 2010 and this is also where the shop and tasting room is.....

We had planned a walk around the extensive woodlands on the estate but sadly were thwarted as they were busy picking and so it was not possible to have a walk today since the vehicles were busy rushing up and down. So a return will once more be necessary! You can usually walk here on a self guided walk or you can organise a group tour and tasting. The shop though is open 7 days a week from 11 - 5pm.

The red sparkling wine here is named after the family itself and the Manor house, Balfour 1503 and the rose sparkling is again named after the family, Balfour.

We tasted the 3 still wines. The white Chardonnay, which we liked very much. This is named Skyes's Chardonnay, named after one of the Balfour daughters. We seem to be growing into white wine lovers!

The rosé, which is a mix of Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay. This is named after the other daughter, Nanette and is a very pale rosé, not entirely to our taste.

And then the red, Hush Heath red. Originally they were growing the red here for the sparkling wines but have now produced this good English red for the past 2 years. It compared favourably to us against the other reds we have tried so far. This was maybe Chris's favourite red to date - I think mine is still the Polgoon one to date..

As I said, there are also apples here and so the girls chose to try the apple juice!

They also make lots of ciders and all of the apple products are named after their son, Jake.

It was a lovely afternoon as we left looking across the fields of the estate..

The pot planted vines at the entrance still had their fruit....

maybe that grape was a bit on the tart side....

...but Abigail would have tried more!!

It had been another successful tasting - the first in the south east and so many more to go!!!

Kerry Vale Vineyard, Churchstoke, Shropshire - 25th October, 2015

With autumn rich in colour now, our days of touring vineyards are numbered as a lot of them close for the grape picking and subsequent winter months. And we had spotted that the very last day for a tour at very probably our nearest vineyard was TODAY! Even better, the weather was perfect for a spin in Sassy. Sadly I was unable to drive her today due to falling down on Friday so causing a painful arm. Nonetheless it was a lovely drive and the autumn colours are so much better when you feel part of the landscape ..

Kerry Vale is situated about 30 miles from us and is literally alongside Offa's Dyke, just down the road from Brompton Crossroads for those of you who have read my Offa's Dyke blog! And as such is only just in England ... and steeped in much history. A perfect day out for us - wine and history!

The vineyard is very new, started in 2010 again as a family run business, Geoff and June Ferguson and family who having bought an old farm here and knocked it down, decided over a glass of wine one evening that it was worth finding out if the ground was good for vines - and it was! Think they have been on a steep learning and hard working curve ever since - but boy have they learned! 

 Both Chris and Sassy were quite at home amidst the vines...

 They planted 6,000 vines in 2010 - 33% of them were Rondo, the red grape and the 2 white are Phoenix and Solaris. Phoenix grapes are used for their sparkling wine. All of their wines are produced and bottled at the winery at Halfpenny Green Vineyard near Wolverhampton, a 30 year old vineyard which will be a winter visit. It only offers a few public tours but its shop is open all year with many tempting local delicacies as well as its wines!

The Rondo harvest is already over here - only a few withering grapes remain which had been left as of not good enough quality.

 The whites however are waiting their harvest.... (and are actually much more sweet tasting than I expected - sshhh!). Geoff thought they may well be picked this next weekend.

There are lots of volunteers who come along and help at harvest time so maybe next year with a stronger picking arm, I may be tempted!

 The vineyard is in a beautiful place. Not only alongside the Dyke but with the lovely Shropshire hills as a backdrop..

This part of the vineyard was also on what was a Roman fort here - Pentreheyling fort and 2 Roman marching camps! As part of the new build here, there had to be an archaeological dig which uncovered a lot of Roman artefacts now displayed... a really interesting story...

..and one piece of Roman samian ware, below has a picture of a hare which the Fergusons have developed into a bit of a "brand" - strangely they had done that before they found the pot as they had seen hares playing in their fields!

Once we had looked around the vines we went upstairs to a state of the art presentation room and heard more about the history and experiences - with the view over the vineyard to the hills beyond.

 The tasting took place here and was very professional. Not only did we learn about the vines and how to grow them in a very fun way......they do take a lot of pruning... and would reach the sun if not stopped it seems!

But we also had suggestions of how best to taste - really impressed. We tasted 4 wines:  Summer Days 2014 - a medium dry white,  Seren Star 2014 - a medium white, Rare Hare 2013 - a medium dry rose and Red Denarii 2013 - a dry red.

Of those my favourite on the day was Summer Days - a really crisp and refreshing white. The red was fruity and tasty but not full bodied. However, in December, they are releasing a new red which has been oaked - Red Kite so we are now excited to go back in December and get a couple of bottles!!

All in all this was a really exceptional tour - Geoff also had the odd quote of note, for example: You have to let red wine breath but if there are any problems with it, just give it mouth-to-mouth.....Bit silly but fun!

We returned home armed with further "samples": Red Denarii, Summer Days and a bottle of sparkling Offa's Choice - a must for Christmas we thought having walked the Path this year - as good a reason as any!

It was a wonderful drive home through the autumn countryside..

 ..and hoping we can fit in a few more Sassy trips like this before the year is over!

 Watch this space..