I am an avid wine drinker,and I like to visit wineries and taste new wines. I also enjoy reading about all things related to the wine business.Anyway, i hear that winemaking has been revived in England-there are now several small, but serious vineyards in SW England.
Historians relate that in the Roman period, Britain had thriving vineyards, and in fact exported wine. Later, English winegrowing declined, due to two major problems:
(1) the Norman Invasion of 1066: the new Norman nobility preferred French wines, so the British vineyards declined
(2) the deterioration of the climate (the so-called “Little Ice Age”) of ca 1300-1600 AD, made winegrowing impossible in Britain.
Since the 1960’s , there have been serious attempts to revive British winemaking…sofor you British Dopers, how are your wines?
I’m curious-areyou making any good reds?
Reds ? In the conventional sense, not to my knowledge, though I have enjoyed several ‘pudding wines’ from the West Country - I do tend to think ‘we’re’ rather good at the pudding end of the meal.
Just one limited opinion.
I have heard that we have produced some reasonable wines in recent years but they are just that: reasonable. And apperently very expensive, so if you like buying plonk at vastly inflated prices then Englands your place. Personally i’d stick to our beers and ciders.
Beware:
English Wine - made from English grapes - fair to good but a less good value than most other countries- a novelty only.
British Wine - made from imported grapes - foul tasting and inexpensive - not really fit to drink.
No. Vines need sun.
BTW, I was just reading a review by the Washington Post of 2001 Spanish wines and the author says:
My personal choice would be Marqués de Griñón Rioja and at $11 it is among the lower priced so it is doubly attractive.
You can find the page at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60994-2003Jul29.html
Pudding wine?
Dessert wine. Botrytis-affected riesling, sauternes, and suchlike. In England “pudding” is often a synonym for “dessert”.
Moderator’s Note: Cafe Society is now our forum for matters culinary, so I’ll move this thread over to there.
I just want to second what pjen said, if that’s OK.