Rathfinny Blanc de Blancs 2019
£35.25
The wine
Pale lemon with flecks of gold, characterised by orange blossom and citrus aromas.
Blanc de Blancs is Chardonnay alone, which gives the leanest and longest-lived sparkling wine and shows the chalk most directly. English sparkling wine works because the South Downs sit on the same band of chalk that runs under Champagne, and a warming climate has brought ripening within reach. The maritime influence gives the acidity its cut. Rathfinny planted its first vines in April 2012 and the estate now extends to more than 93 hectares on a south-facing slope of the South Downs, three miles from the English Channel.
The producer
Rathfinny Wine Estate
View all Rathfinny Wine Estate winesRathfinny Wine Estate is one of the leading lights of the English sparkling wine revolution, a large, ambitious estate set in the South Downs of Sussex just a few miles from the sea. In little more than a decade it has become a benchmark for the category.
The chalk soils and cool maritime climate are a mirror of Champagne, ideal for growing Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Meunier for traditional-method sparkling. Sustainable farming and precise winemaking bring freshness, finesse and a distinct sense of place.
The range spans the crisp Classic Cuvée, an elegant Rosé Brut, a mineral Blanc de Blancs and a richer Blanc de Noirs, each a poised, food-friendly expression of English terroir.
Fresh, refined and genuinely world-class, Rathfinny proves that England can produce sparkling wine to rival the very best.
