Wine expertise
Our wine consultant has professional experience as Head Sommelier, Director of wines, Wine Consultant and Food & Beverage Manager in Michelin star restaurants, five star hotels and the wine trade in Italy and the UK.
English wine - discovery is sweet!
In 2024 we are excited to share with you the
first release of our first local English wine, ‘Ortega’ Late Harvest NV made by
the Linden Estate,
Boxford. This delicate, slightly sweet local English wine
is named after the main grape
variety, produced using 85%
Ortega and 15% Pinot Blanc.
The Linden Estate, Boxford
The Linden Estate vineyard is situated on the south-facing chalk downland of the Lambourn valley in Berkshire taking advantage of the fertile soils along the banks of the River Lambourn. Planted in 2018 the Linden Estate vineyard consists of 19 Hectares of vines.
The vineyard is
fortunate to sit around an archeologically significant Roman Villa that has
inspired the brand. Linden’s ethos is to take a lute raisonée approach
to managing the vines using only organic fertilisers and focusing on stewarding
the ecologically sensitive area around the vineyard by encouraging as much
biodiversity as possible.
Grape varieties
The grape varieties grown at Linden Estate are Ortega and Pinot Blanc for the ‘Ortega' Late Harvest wine and Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier for future sparkling wines.
The grapes for this first release of 'Ortega' were grown from the first and second harvests from 2020 and 2021. Both years provided the conditions for noble rot to occur which affected 80% of the grapes. These two years were distinctly different with the summer of 2020 being long and hot providing excellent natural sugar levels whereas the summer of 2021 was much cooler with higher natural acidity levels. The grapes were hand-picked at the very end of October when they are as ripe as possible at a yield of 2.5 tonnes per hectare.
‘Ortega’ Late Harvest NV
Tasting notes
Delicately sweet and elegant, this stunning aromatic wine displays fresh aromas and flavours of tropical fruit, peach and apricot with subtle hints of honey. Well balanced with a long, clean and crisp finish.
Try
with savoury dishes such as ham hock terrine, liver pate, savoury snacks, medium-flavoured cheese or delicate desserts and pastries.