The rise of English sparkling wine
To receive praise from Robert Parker, the world’s leading wine critic, is one thing. But to be labelled “a revelation” is something of a revelation in itself. This is how the oenophile described Nyetimber sparkling wine in a tweet, after visiting London as part of his world wine tour.
And the man at the helm of this English vineyard is Eric Heerema. “I became a wine enthusiast when I was about 17 years old, living in Holland. My parents weren’t keen on wine at all, but when I discovered it I soon found myself wanting to learn more. So I bought books, went to tastings and became very enthusiastic. I formed an idea that one day I would love to own a vineyard.”
On moving to England, Eric bought a house on the South Downs and soon had the soil tested. It looked promising, so he set about planting his own vines and establishing something really professional. This passion matured, and before long he had developed the idea of acquiring an existing sparkling wine brand. Nyetimber was the closest and most obvious choice, so he got in touch with the then second owner (in terms of the vineyard, as the house dates back to the early 1800s).
“I took over in March 2006 and got straight to work, growing the teams, planting new vineyards and expanding the winery activities. I wanted to improve the quality of our wine, and improve the consistency as well from vintage to vintage, which is quite a challenge in a cold climate.”
He also set out boosting the brand’s name, improving the sales and marketing departments. And the success the vineyard has enjoyed in recent years proves testament to the sedulous efforts.
“We’ve reached a point where there is so much demand. The big change was 4 years ago, in 2012 – the patriotic year – when Nyetimber was selected by total surprise as the wine for the Royal Barge during the Diamond Jubilee Pageant. There were no other champagnes or sparkling wines, just us. That was a big step forward.”
This coincided with the worst possible summer for viticulture, and at the end of September, Eric and his team took the decision to not harvest the grapes as their quality was so poor. It was a bold move, but one that showed the vineyard’s unwavering dedication to quality – only the best. It gained the brand a huge amount of publicity.
But Eric is realistic in his approach. “If you look at the whole industry, English wine is still in its infancy, but it is constantly developing and improving. There is a long to go to catch up with Champagne where they have been producing sparkling wines for about 150 years, but in many aspects we are able to match and even beat them.
“The qualities are here; that’s the soil and climate. They are preeminent, but the other important aspect is the team, and we have a wonderful team who are extremely passionate and quality driven. When I came to Nyetimber there was still a lot of scepticism about English sparkling wine, but we are hearing this less and less. Enthusiasm is growing.
“Nyetimber are the pioneers to many of our peers here in the South of England – it’s a privileged role, and one I thoroughly enjoy.”
For more information, visit nyetimber.com
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