For proof of English wine’s inexorable rise, just look to Fortnum & Mason. The archetypal British department store has championed domestic for decades, but now boasts three own-label expressions and a range representing more than 50 English producers – making it one of the most extensive portfolios of English wine in the world.
Still, the English wine scene remains in its infancy, which is precisely what makes it so exciting, says Fortnum’s senior wine buyer Edwina Watson, who joins host David Kermode for episode 275 of The Drinking Hour. In mere decades, quality has grown from ‘patchy’ at best, to the epitome of ‘precision and fresh crispness’, and that’s just when it comes to fizz.
Discussion turns to the ongoing evolution of still whites, which occupy a growing spot on Fortnum’s shelves, and the shift away from what Kermode dubs ‘slightly batty Germanic hybrids’, the likes of Bacchus and Seyval Blanc. The pair talk English wine’s hefty price tag and how today’s expressions justify their position in the fine wine world, posing the question: can they ever rival Burgundy?
The episode also touches on UK spirits, from Scotch and English whisky to gin and aperitif, considering how home-grown drinks can help champion local farming and the good and the great from Britain’s ‘green and pleasant land’.
Discover more episodes of The Drinking Hour with David Kermode here.
