Hopes high for an outstanding 2022 GB vintage
Expectationsof a special 2022 vintage for UK sparkling and still wines have risen following promising signs during harvest. Optimism was high as picking got underway. ‘So far quality has been excellent,’ said Simon Roberts, head winemaker at Ridgeview in Sussex.
‘We are heading for one of Ridgeview’s biggest harvests ever, possibly topping the record 2018 vintage. The fruit is tasting exceptional,’ he added. ‘Excitingly it looks like a particularly good year for Chardonnay.’
In terms of mean temperature, England’s summer was the joint-hottest since 1884, according to provisional Met Office data. England and Wales both saw more than double the average sunshine hours and it has been unusually dry.
Several wineries said a long, warm growing season largely benefited vintage quality, even if heatwaves and drought in some areas required flexibility, particularly when managing acidity, sugar and overall ripeness.
‘Yields are looking good, and sugars and acids are looking good, so we’re very excited about the potential,’ said Charlie Holland, chief
