Althorne Estate, top English wines

Meet winemaker Louise Brown

It's hard to keep up with the dizzying pace of change in the English wine industry. One of the newest hotbeds for high-quality English viticulture is the Crouch Valley, in Essex, which regularly enjoys England's warmest temperatures and lowest rainfall. Just outside Burnham-on-Crouch, the Althorne Estate vineyard was for many years an apple orchard, but in 2017 it was planted to vines. On a south-facing slope looking down to the River Crouch, on clay soils, with a warm micro-climate, it looked ideal.

And it was! We're quite hard to impress at Uncorked. So many samples cross our tasting tables, and we can get quite dismissive, but a sample of the 2021 Althorne Estate Chardonnay stopped us in our tracks. The original intention at Althorne was to focus on sparkling wine, but it soon became clear to winemaker Louise Brown that the quality of their grapes would also allow them to make great still wines.

Louise learned her craft working at some top addresses in California: Williams Selyem, Rochioli and DuMol. We're delighted that she'll be joining us on Copthall Avenue tomorrow, from noon to 2:30pm. So come along and taste a selection of Althorne wines, and quiz Louise about how she made the transition from winemaking in California to England. She'll be showing the sparkling 2020 Classic Cuvée as well as a selection of still wines: 2021 and 2022 Chardonnay, 2020 Pinot Noir, and possibly another secret treat. Louise will be here from noon to 2:30, and the wines will be available for tasting all afternoon. /NT

Offered subject to remaining unsold. Wines available immediately.To place an order, click on the wines below or call 020 7638 5998