Gusbourne making extra-aged prestige cuvée

English sparkling wine estate Gusbourne in Kent is developing a top-end prestige cuvée that will be aged on its lees for at least six years.

Gasbourne’s chief winemaker Charlie Holland

Signaling the next stage of development for the English sparkling wine industry, CEO Ben Walgate revealed that the Chardonnay/Pinot Noir blend won’t be released until “at least 2020”.

“The wine has a higher acidity than our other blends – I made it with the deliberate intention of it being able to age – I’m going for both complexity and purity,” chief winemaker Charlie Holland told db.

Holland set about developing the sparkler when arrived at the estate from Ridgeview in 2013, using the best fruit available to him that year rather than sourcing from a specific plot.

Gusbourne Pinot Noir

While the majority of Holland’s time is dedicated to sparkling wine, he revealed how much he enjoys the challenge of making small amounts of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay at the estate.

“You have to be all in with the still wines as you can’t do them half-heartedly. Our 2011 Guinevere Chardonnay was a game changer. People don’t think so but Chardonnay is harder to make than Pinot Noir year on year.

“We haven’t made any this year because the acidity of the grapes was too high and we didn’t make any in 2012,” he said.

“As for the Pinot Noir, I don’t want to make a big, bold, Central Otago style, I’m looking more for a light, perfumed, fruit-driven Pinot,” he added.

Despite being priced highly at £21.99 each, Walgate reports that both the Chardonnay and Pinot sell themselves. “We don’t have to push them too much,” he said.

Moving back to the estate’s three sparkling wines, Holland stressed the importance of ageing the wines after disgorgement and prior to release.

“We rest our wines for a further six months after disgorgement as we think that time is really important for the wine.

“It’s like baking – the sparklers take on more bready, brioche notes after they’ve been disgorged and it keeps evolving in the bottle,” he said.

As to what makes English sparkling wine unique compared to Champagne, Holland believes acidity is key.

“We’ve got acidity in spades, which is our trump card. It’s a very positive thing because it gives the wines vibrancy and freshness. We have an extra month in the growing season on Champagne to allow the grapes to reach phenolic ripeness,” he said.

Keen on innovation, Gusbourne donates some of its wine to local vermouth production and is in talks about using its yeast to make craft beer. Holland has also made a ratafia-style sweet wine, which is currently resting in barrel for a future limited edition release.