Best in show
It’s English Wine Week from 15th to 22nd June – the perfect excuse to spotlight some of our award-winning wines.
Here, we’ve picked five wines which claimed glittering awards last year. These bottlings range from our classic still Chardonnay to fascinating single-vineyard expressions from our Kent and Sussex sites.
Below, Mary Bridges, Head Winemaker, shares just enough technical info to take you behind the scenes, while Laura Rhys, Master Sommelier, brings each wine to life with tasting notes and serving suggestions.
Gusbourne Chardonnay Guinevere 2021
Top Still Wine – WineGB Awards 2023; Gold medal winner – Decanter 2023 and WineGB 2023
“This is a beautiful, elegant Chardonnay with lots of zesty citrus and orchard fruit notes, hints of soft spice and buttered toast with a striking minerality on the finish,” says Laura Rhys, Master Sommelier.
“It matches brilliantly with seared scallops, or a fresh seafood platter and some crusty bread and butter on a sunny terrace.”
Mary Bridges, Head Winemaker adds a little detail about how her team craft this wine. “We used fruit from the ripest parcels of our Burgundian-clone Chardonnay; these are grown in two of our Kent vineyards, Boot Hill and Commanders,” says Mary. “The grapes were gently pressed in whole bunches before being cold settled for 24 hours.
“The juice was fermented in 80% old and 20% new French barriques and puncheons where it was then aged for ten months. We then aged it on lees for a further five months in stainless steel to enhance the body and texture.”
Gusbourne Brut Reserve Late Disgorged 2015
Gold medal winner – WineGB 2023
“This is such an intense, complex and elegant wine,” says Laura Rhys, Master Sommelier. “It has lovely aromas of pure citrus peel, green apple and stone fruits, leading to much more evolved notes of toasted nuts and brioche and subtle spice, with hints of ginger. The wine still shows a real brightness and freshness on the finish and such length in the palate.
“I love to match this wine with fish such as halibut – and maybe add a luxurious citrus butter sauce or a lighter stock-based butterbean broth. It’s also a lovely choice for a lemon and herb-roasted chicken.”
Mary Bridges, Head Winemaker, shares some detail of the winemaking behind this bottling. “It’s a blend of 37% Pinot Noir and 63% Chardonnay from our Kent and Sussex sites,” she says. “We fermented it in stainless steel, with 7.1% old French oak. The cooler season meant that the grapes retained a beautiful freshness which means that this wine is still perfectly balanced after an extended time (67 months) on lees.”
Gusbourne Blanc de Noirs 2019
Gold medal winner – CSWWC 2023
“This is a beautiful expression of a cooler season Blanc de Noirs,” says Mary Bridges, Head Winemaker. “It was made from the most expressive Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier parcels from across our Kent and Sussex sites, with a small percentage of Chardonnay.
“We aged this wine for 31 months on lees. To taste, it strikes a perfect balance between generous red fruit and toasty, spicy characters.”
Laura Rhys, Master Sommelier, agrees: “There’s a really beautiful balance between richness and freshness in this wine,” she says. “There’s lots of bright red cherry, ripe strawberry and white peach notes alongside a darker, spicier note and a rich, toasted character.”
“I really enjoy pairing the Blanc de Noirs with soft, creamy or rind-washed cheeses; it works both texturally and from a flavour perspective. It’s also great with a fish stew.”
Gusbourne Blanc de Noirs, Heartbreak Vineyard, 2018
Gold medal winner – CSWWC 2023
“I had this recently with langoustines from the barbeque and it was a fabulous match,” says Laura Rhys, Master Sommelier. “It’s a rich, ripe Pinot Noir, showing beautiful intensity and length.
“There’s lots of red fruit notes, darker berries and blue fruits too, with some delicate sweet spice and toasted nuts. This wine is generous, both texturally and in flavour profile, yet there’s amazing purity and elegance too.”
Mary Bridges, Head Winemaker, shares some detail on how this was crafted: “We chose to make this 100% Pinot Noir Blanc de Noirs from grapes grown in Heartbreak Vineyard in Kent,” says Mary. “We decided that it would only be fermented in stainless steel to preserve the unique fruit character.
“It spent 47 months ageing on lees before release; it’s a beautiful expression of single-site generosity and intensity.”
Gusbourne Blanc de Blancs, Selhurst Park, 2018
Gold medal winner – CSWWC 2023 and WineGB 2023
“This is such a bright, focused, elegant wine. I can’t drink this wine and not think of a sunny spot and a few oysters,” says Laura Rhys, Master Sommelier. “I’ve also tried with lemon sole and it was beautiful too.”
“It’s full of intense, bright citrus and orchard fruits, with hints of riper melon and pineapple, alongside shortbread, fresh pastry and a striking mineral note on the finish.”
“This Blanc de Blancs is 100% Chardonnay; the fruit was grown on one of our chalky sites in Sussex,” says Mary Bridges, Head Winemaker. “We chose to ferment this in stainless steel to preserve the unique fruit character. It spent 47 months ageing on lees and is a beautiful expression of single-site precision and elegance.”
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