5th September 2005

ENGLISH WINE FESTIVAL CELEBRATES RETURN TO ITS ROOTS

The 31st English Wine and Regional Food Festival celebrated a successful move back to its roots in Alfriston.

More than 1,500 wine enthusiasts flocked to the English Wine Centre for last weekend’s festival, which is the country's longest running event of its kind and the showcase for the English wine industry.

Nearly 20 vineyards, with more than 100 wines for tasting, were represented at the event and the wine exhibiters were joined by a wide range of English food producers. 

On Saturday the chairman of the judges, Sky TV wine correspondent Martyn Doubleday and his judging team picked this year’s winners. Biddenden Vineyards, from Ashford in Kent, scooped the Wine of the Show award with its 2004 Gribble Bridge Ortega dry white wine.

Sussex winners included Ridgeview Wine Estate, at Ditchling, which won first and joint second prize in the sparkling section. The vineyard recently hit the headlines when it won the Arden Trophy for the best sparkling wine at the International Wine and Spirit Competition 2005 held at Vinexpo, the world’s largest wine fair.

For the first time members of the public were invited to pick out their personal favourite from nearly 40 wines entered for this year’s competition and their vote went to Ridgeview’s Merret Belgravia.

English Wine Centre owner Christopher Ann, who originally launched the festival at the wine centre, said: “We had a wonderful weekend, with the bonus of glorious weather, and many people came up and said how pleased they were to see the festival back in its original setting.

“In the very early years it is fair to say that some English wines were seriously individual and probably best consumed by the producer. But all that has changed and now we have stunning wines that are beating the rest of the world in international competitions.”

In addition to festival favourites such as grape treading and live jazz, other new initiatives introduced at this year included a bubby stand and a stall selling churdles, a 17th century Sussex pie recreated by Steve Mitchell, who runs the catering operating at the English Wine Centre and organised this year’s festival.

He said: “The bubbly went down really well, plenty of people enjoying trying churdles for the first time and they had fun pitting their skills against the judges and voting for the public wine of the show. We are glad to many people welcomed the festival back to Alfriston and we look forward to building on that success next year.”

For the last three years the popular festival was held at Bentley Wildfowl & Motor Museum, near Lewes, but a new venue had to be found when East Sussex County Council decided to sell the attraction.

A full list of the Festival's competition winners is available from English Wine Producers

For further information contact:

Jeannine Williamson                  or                         Steve Mitchell

Motcombe Media                                                  English Wine Centre

Tel: 01323 641078 or 07710 858493                 Tel: 01323 871123