Latest News on What's Happening over English Wine Week
New British Restaurant supporting English Wine Week
Opened just this year, London Restaurant The Penny Black on the Fulham Road in Chelsea is promising a feast of seasonal British ingredients in their lunch and dinner menus, devised to complement the wines that will be offered to accompany each course.
Lunch menu (£24): Two courses with a matching glass of English wine per course: Biddenden Bacchus 2009 and Chapel Down Flint Dry 2009
Dinner menu (£58): Four specially created courses to match a glass each of Nyetimber Premiere Cuvee Blanc de Blancs 2001, Chapel Down Tenterden Estate Bacchus 2009, Biddenden Vineyards Ortega Gribble Bridge 2009 and Chapel Down English Rose 2010 - £58
The menus will be published soon so watch this space, but you will be in for a treat - how about these to tantalise the tastebuds:
Duo of seared asparagus, asparagus mousse
Poached fillet of halibut, sautéed cabbage, new potatoes, horseradish sauce
Strawberry, port, English wine crumble
Tel:
0845 838 8998
Celebrating English Wine MONTH at Bumpkin
Bumpkin restaurants, based in Notting Hill and South Kensington, have extended their English Wine focus to English Wine Month, up until 30th June. Over the month, 10 English wines will be promoted by the glass or bottle, all of which have been specially selected to accompany their menu of seasonal British ingredients.
Lower Loxley Wine and English Wine Week Celebrations on 'The Archers'
Officionados of BBC Radio 4's popular programme 'The Archers' is getting involved in English Wine Week. The local stately home, Lower Loxley produces wine from its own vineyard and now they are planning to mark the Week with picnics and visits to the vineyard! The Archers are keen supporters of regional food and drink through a number of their storylines. The English wine story has been running for a number of years now.
Tune in to The Archers on www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/features/the-archers/
Waitrose supports English Wine Week
With over 30 English wines listed, Waitrose is well ahead of the game in offering a broad range of styles from vineyards across the country. Regional stores look to stock more locally produced wines and waitrosewine.com has the full range online for you to select your favourites. For English Wine Week, Waitrosewine have added some extra informative pages, giving lots of background information on English wines generally and their supplying vineyards as well as a listing of events taking place during the Week.
Art, Wine and Cheese at Sharpham - the perfect combination
Throughout English Wine Week, Sharpham Vineyard in Devon will be converting their winery in to an art gallery, displaying art from a raft of talent from local galleries. You can enjoy a tour and tasting of Sharpham's wines and cheeses, then wander around the winery gallery. The Sharpham restaurant will be open for the season, serving delicious meals made from locally-sourced ingredients.
Mercure Hotels UK Celebrate English Wine Week
Visitors to a number England's Mercure Hotels during English Wine Week will have a chance to enjoy a glass of local wine when they dine. Mercure hotels are located throughout in different parts of the country and each hotel will be sourcing wine from a vineyard located nearby, or at least in the same county or region. Additionally five of their key hotels are hosting a wnie tasting evening on Thursday 2nd June, where visitors can enjoy a tasting of locally produced wines presented by representatives from the participating vineyards. The participating hotels are listed within each regional section on this website.
Mercure, which is part of the Accor group, is known for its individually styled hotels,
each with their own character. Hotels range from those in city centres to country
manors, in key provincial locations.
Jonathan Sheard, Director of Operations, Mercure UK and Ireland, said: “English Wine
Week is an excellent way to highlight the quality and variety of English wine, alongside
Mercure’s quality service. Mercure restaurant menus will be perfectly complemented by
the English wine offered. This week is a fantastic way to remind ourselves that great
tasting wine can be found on our doorstep, which is why we are offering diners a
complimentary glass of English wine for the week.”
Calfs Head Continues its successful English wine listings
Last year, The Calfs Head, a hotel restaurant based near Clitheroe took the bold decision to serve only English wines from their list during English Wine Week. The result was overwhelming and response exceeding all expectations.
On Friday 13th May this year the Calf’s Head launched this year’s edition of their all English Wine list. Patrick O’Reilly who produced the list says:
“Looking back over our success with English wines, it has been phenomenal despite having a more conventional list of wines from Spain, France and New World running alongside.
In the first twelve months we sold almost three thousand bottles of English wine. That is over fifty bottles a week.
Always having a selection of English wines available by the glass and being able to offer the opportunity to “try before you buy” has enabled us to enlighten not only Lancashire and even Yorkshire customers but many from farther afield. In fact many thousands have had the opportunity in the first year.
Despite knowing the quality and potential of the English wines even we have been surprised at the immense demand in our restaurant. With six times our original forecast, more than one in every four wines we sell is English.”
This year the list has grown to include more suppliers such as Strawberry Hill Vineyard, Gloucestershire, Brightwell Vineyard, Oxfordshire, Wickham Vineyard, Hampshire and also a Yorkshire wine from the Summerhouse vineyard. "With long standing traditional ‘rivalry’ between Lancashire and Yorkshire, our opening gambit in the description reads “Yorkshire wine sold in Lancashire!”, adds Patrick. Favourites from last year, Biddenden, The Furleigh Estate, Carr Taylor, Denbies, and Stanlake Park remain firmly established in what the Lancashire Life magazine called “the premier destination for English wine”. Sixteen listed wines and the promise of several more as “guests” re-enforce that statement and certainly give enthusiasts something to embrace.
East Anglian vineyards at the Suffolk Show
If you are heading for East Anglia, be sure to visit the Suffolk Show, taking place on Wednesday 1st and Thursday 2nd June. A number of East Anglia’s vineyards will be on show, where you can taste and buy from a large range of styles. More information on the Suffolk Show please press here.
English asparagus and English wine … the essence of England
 Don't foget that English Wine Week falls in the middle of the English asparagus season. The pairing of English-grown asparagus and a wine from the UK is so quintessentially English, not so much screaming as quietly emphasising this green and pleasant land …
The intense grassy flavours from English asparagus can test many wines, but the crisp zinginess of an English wine, with its bright, fresh acidity and delicate aromatic fruit can complement its vegetable partner impeccably. An English Bacchus, for example, can provide a perfect accompaniment to lightly grilled asparagus with hollandaise sauce.
There are further suggestions of what to pair asparagus with on their website www.british-asparagus.co.uk. The website contains lots of information on asparagus: where to buy, asparagus festivals taking place around the country and some mouthwatering recipes as well. |
