Langham Culver NV, Dorset

A Pinot Noir driven English Sparkling wine with a pale golden colour and a fine stream of steady bubbles. The aromas are of peach, strawberry leaf, English hedgerow, pecan and buttered toast. The palate shows lemon posset, shortbread, white strawberry, rhubarb and a hint of salinity. There is a long finish which leaves you wanting more.

All fruit for this wine was sourced from the Crawthorne vineyard which consists of 12 hectares planted with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. It is located on a sheltered south facing slope at 80-100 metres above sea level. The soil consists of a shallow clay loam, containing flint, over deep Cretaceous chalk.

The grapes for the base vintage were picked in October 2019 and gently pressed, whole bunch. Press fractions were carefully separated and left to naturally settle for 24 hours. Primary fermentation, with indigenous yeasts, took place in a combination of stainless-steel tanks and used oak barrels, followed by complete malolactic fermentation.  Following 7 months of élevage, the final blend, complete with reserve wine from 4000 L concrete tanks, was bottled and left to age on lees for a minimum of 14 months. At disgorgement the wine received 1 g/L dosage and was aged for a minimum of 3 months under cork.