Albury Estate Blanc de Blancs

Albury Organic Vineyard (just 12 acres of vines) is situated on the southern slopes of the North Downs in the beautiful Surrey Hills, just outside Guildford on the A25 towards Dorking. The vines are the traditional Champagne varieties of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, as well as some Seyval and Pinot Gris. The focus is on crafting organic English wines of the highest quality, in particular a fine rosé and exemplary sparkling wines, the first of which was released in May 2015. The vineyard is privately owned by Nick Wenman who lives in Shere near to the vineyard. Nick worked for 30 years in the IT business, which he retired from in 2006. He founded Albury Organic Vineyard in 2008 and now spends most of his time on the vineyard and managing the business, which has become his passion. Nick Wenman and his team are committed to producing organic and biodynamic fruit without the use of chemicals such as herbicides and fungicides. Whilst copper and sulphur are permitted in organic vineyards they minimise their use. They also use compost "teas", which improve the biology of the soil, as well as using biodynamic preparations. The belief is that this approach will produce premium fruit and therefore great wine. The vineyard is managed by Alex who achieved a doctorate in Horticultire at Milan University in 1996. Following several years of practical experience working on vineyards in Italy and New Zealand, she joined RHS Wisley, responsible for the Orchard, Nursery, Model Fruit Area and the Vineyard which she planted. Albury currently produce three organic sparkling wines, Albury Estate Classic Cuvée, Albury Estate Blanc de Blancs and Albury Estate Sparkling Rosé. They have so far won Gold, Silver and Bronze awards in the International Organic Wine Awards 2016, Decanter, the International Wine Competition and UKVA. Their first rosé appeared back in 2011, a still wine made exclusively from hand picked organic Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grapes. This first vintage was served on board the Royal barge to celebrate the diamond jubilee, and the 2014 vintage won a gold award in the UKVA Wine of the Year competition.