insideSUSSEX Magazine Issue 19 - September 2016 | Page 41

FOOD+DRINK

BOTTOMS UP!
The incredible rise of Sussex wine

Possibly even as little as 15 years ago, anyone worth their weight in Beaujolais heard praising
the virtues of wine in Sussex would’ve been laughed out of the bar. Not so now. With more
than four million bottles being produced across the UK annually, wines from all over the
country are triumphing at blind tastings and gracing the wine lists of top European eateries.
We spoke to some local experts in the field to find out why Sussex wine really is sparkling.

Sussex wine is so good right now, in fact, that
everyone from casual Friday night drinkers to
veritable wine buffs are flocking to tastings and
tutorials to learn more about it.
“Sussex has seen dozens of new vineyards
and wineries open up in the last 30 years since
Nyetimber and Ridgeview set the ball rolling in
the 1980s, and it now has more of both than
any other county in England,” says Jonathan
Gibson, owner and tutor at the Sussex Wine
School. “The climate and soil in Sussex is
helpful, and, as vines become older and wine
making techniques improve, so we have started
to enjoy an ever increasing range of better
quality sparkling and still wines on our doorstep.
What began as a trickle of awards has become
a flood and not a month goes by without
a Sussex wine estate celebrating another
international success or high profile listing. More
recently, as reserve stocks have built up, we are
now seeing the launch of several non-vintage
rather than single vintage sparkling wines. There
is a more interesting choice of still white wines
than ever before and rosé wines and red wines
are improving in quality with every vintage.”

“At Sussex Wine School, we help people
learn about wine by tasting it in a fun and
relaxed way. We run tastings and courses for
wine lovers in Brighton, Lewes and Tunbridge
Wells, as well as regular private and corporate
tastings,” explains Jonathan. “Our tutors are
professionally qualified to WSET (Wine and
Spirit Education Trust) Level 3 or WSET Diploma
level and have all been chosen for their great
communication skills. Beginners can choose
from a Saturday ‘Introduction to Wine’ course
with lunch; an ‘Introduction to Wine’ evening; or
an eight-week ‘World of Wine’ course.”
“More in-depth four-week courses on a country
or region will take your knowledge up a level
and there are plenty of food and wine pairing
tastings to choose from too including cheese
and wine, chocolate and wine, tapas and
Spanish wines, or steak and wine. Experts and
wine enthusiasts can enjoy specialist fine wine,
or region-specific tastings, or join one of the
internationally recognised professional wine
courses that we run - WSET Level 2 and Level
3 courses, and Wine Scholar Guild's French
Wine Scholar courses.”

“We have lots of courses to suit all levels of wine
enthusiast happening throughout the year at
Sussex Wine School and have noticed a marked
increase in the amount of people – in Sussex
and beyond – who have shown an interest in
learning more about the fantastic array of wines
on their doorstep,” adds Jonathan. “WSET are
the world's leading wine and spirit courses and
over 72,000 students took a WSET course in
2015 in over 60 countries. Sussex Wine School
is the local approved programme provider (APP)
in the Brighton area and we run the Level 1, 2
and 3 courses regularly throughout the year.
Local Wine School, of which we are a part, won
the WSET 2015 ‘Riedel Wine Educator of the
Year’ award in recognition of its excellence in
delivering WSET courses and our courses are
well taught and good fun, plus you don’t have to
travel to London to take part.”
Sussex Wine School
Brighton, Lewes, Tunbridge Wells
01435 884271
www.sussexwineschool.com
/SussexWineSchool

41