Happy Valley

Simon Stabler visits a vineyard that's already going grape guns

With a history stretching back to the Roman occupation, English winemaking has had its fair share of ups and downs. Although climate change means that we now have summers warm enough to grow a wider variety of good-quality grapes, heavy rains and mildew remain a threat, meaning that location is important.

The majority of English wine is produced in the south-east, especially in Kent and Sussex, where limestone soil not only provides good drainage but acts as a sponge, providing water to the vines when needed.

Although a good 150 miles from Kent and Sussex, Rutland - historically England's smallest county - was, 160 million years ago, part of the south coast and so shares many geographical characteristics, making it perfect for growing vines.

Since 2021, it's been home to the Rutland Vineyard, a collection of 16,000 vines planted on a south-facing slope on a narrow ridge between the rivers Chater and Welland.

"I've been farming for 25 years almost now," explains the vineyard's Tim Beaver, "it's a family farm rented off Burghley Estates but this field we own.

"We grow wheat for Weetabix, barley for beer, which ends up at Black Sheep or Carling. We grow sugar beet for Silver Spoon as well. So, it wasn't that big a jump to go into vines. We thought we'd give it a go and then back in 2021 we turned up an arable field we've been producing food from for the last 20, 30, 40 years into a vineyard."