Gusbourne Estate, makers of exceptional still and sparkling English wine have announced the launch of their Blanc de Blancs 2016, a vintage English sparkling wine.
Gusbourne Blanc de Blancs 2016 is softly rounded, pure and elegant, fruity and fresh. It has all of the characteristics of Gusbourne’s best-selling and award-winning Blanc de Blancs, made from 100% Chardonnay grapes and with natural minerality on the palate. It’s style is favoured by wine enthusiasts and purists, wine lovers and wine professionals.
With a nose of ripe citrus, pink grapefruit and pear, the Blanc de Blancs 2016 has hints of lemon, nectarine and green apple on the palate, alongside a flinty, saline minerality. You might also experience further notes of toasted brioche, shortbread and hazelnut when you are tasting it, which adds to the complexity and elegance of the wine.
Blanc de Blancs 2016 was aged for a minimum of 42 months, after being pressed and fermented in stainless steel tanks and a small amount in oak barrels to add complexity and depth to the wine.
Gusbourne Head Winemaker Charlie Holland commented: “Our Blanc de Blancs 2016 has a delicious roundness, making it one of my favourite wines that we have produced at Gusbourne. It’s a brooding, fuller, intellectual wine.” He notes it would pair well with a range of seafood, from lobster to fish and chips, as well as new season asparagus and goats cheese tart.
The year of 2016 saw a mild spring and a warm, dry summer, which meant that Gusbourne Estate produced a generous abundance of grapes by early August. The Gusbourne vineyard team then dropped around half of the grapes - a technique that intensifies the flavour and concentration of the remaining grapes in the run up to the Harvest, which began in early October.
2016 was quietly acknowledged as a strong vintage year for English sparkling wine and will be remembered for its warm, sun-filled summer and early autumn days. The warm conditions were ideal for producing grapes of outstanding quality at Gusbourne’s vineyards in Kent and West Sussex and a truly exceptional Blanc de Blancs.
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