An elegant bronze gold colour with lemon pith, nougat and zesty citrus on the nose. A delicate, light honey note to the palate with juicy acidity and vibrant orchard fruits. Conference pears, a hint of nuts with a complex finish.
Vinification Details
The hand-harvested grapes were whole bunch pressed to extract top quality juice. 15% of the total blend was barrel fermented in old white Burgundy barrels & partial malolactic fermentation took place in order to soften the wine's natural acidity. To ensure the consistency and continuity of our signature style, 37% of reserve wines (that had naturally softened and developed over time in oak barrels & stainless steel tanks) were added to the blend before secondary fermentation. The wine then spent a minimum of 3 years ageing on lees in bottle to add roundness and complexity.
History
Hattingley Valley is a family-owned wine producer founded by Simon Robinson in 2008. Their winery sits in the heart of rural Hampshire, near Winchester. Initially started as a farm diversification project, they have since gone on to become one of the most established and awarded wine producers in England. The wines are crafted under the stewardship of Rob MacCulloch MW out of their 600 tonne, eco-friendly winery. The distinct barrel-aged fermentation gives the richer, distinctive house style for which Hattingley's English sparkling wines are now famed.
Regional Information
At Hattingley we have always used fruit from a wide range of England's regions. Although England is a small country, there is a multitude of soil types and microclimates, which make all the difference in a cool and marginal climate. Frost can be a major problem, so being able to spread the risk across a variety of areas is very useful. The variety in the sites also allows the winemaking team a vast array of options for blending the finished wines. Over the past few years, we have worked with a number of established farmers who either had vineyards already or who wished to diversify from other types of farming. Growing grapes successfully is tremendously difficult in the UK, so we only choose sites that have true potential. The old adage of ‘you can make bad wine from good grapes, but it is impossible to make good wine from bad grapes' remains true, meaning we work very hard to ensure that we work with only the very best fruit possible.
