Fortnum & Mason releases own-label English Bacchus

Luxury department store Fortnum & Mason has struck a deal with Tyneside’s only urban winery, Laneberg, to produce its first own-label English still white wine.

The London-based retailer made the decision after blind tasting over 40 sample wines. The Bacchus was made by head winemaker and CEO of Laneberg Elise Lane, a Plumpton College and University of Oxford chemistry graduate.

Laneberg produced its first wines from the 2018 vintage and is based in the outskirts of Gateshead, making it one of the most northerly wineries in the UK.

It sources grapes from around England to make its range, which includes a white sparkling made from Seyval Blanc called Mortal Angel, a still rosé made from Regent and Madeleine Angevine and three single varietal whites made from Bacchus, Pinot Gris and Solaris.

The grapes used to make the 2019 Bacchus were sourced from Poulton Hill Vineyard in Gloucestershire. The grapes were crushed and destemmed before being put into a hydraulic basket press along with a macerating enzyme to maximise phenolic extraction. The wine was then fermented for 12 days at 16 degrees before being racked three times, filtered and then bottled.

According to Fortnums, the wine has fresh and herbaceous flavours of elderflower, apple and cucumber.

Fortnum & Mason’s wine buyer, Jamie Waugh, said: “We are very excited to launch the Fortnum & Mason Bacchus. We cast our net far and wide, tasting over 40 different wines blind. We then concluded that we wanted a distinctly English wine, and Bacchus fits this description perfectly with its potential to become the flagship varietal in the UK.”

“We’re confident our customers will love the 2019 vintage of our new Bacchus, a welcome addition to our extensive portfolio of still, sparkling, sweet and fortified wines.”

Fortnum’s Bacchus (11% ABV) will retail for £15.95. The department store already has its own English sparkler, which is made by Cornwall’s Camel Valley.