A sun-drenched vineyard is what we might associate with the rolling Tuscan hills or the wine regions of the south of France and the Côte d’Azur, not with the UK or London. But contrary to what you might think you don’t have to leave the UK to taste quality wines in their natural habitat.
Warmer temperatures and more sophisticated wine making expertise means British vineyards are thriving with the English wine scene blossoming over the past decade, with greater quality and variety to choose from than ever before. Some might be surprised to hear that London has its very own vineyard, just inside the M25, with Enfield being the slightly unexpected spot for award-winning organic winemaking. Admittedly it’s not always sun-drenched.
The 10-acre Forty Hall Vineyard is the capital’s first and only commercial scale vineyard producing organic whites and a sparkling wine with volunteers picking chardonnay and pinot noir grape varieties. The grapes grown here are sent to winemaker Will Davenport in Sussex, who works the magic and makes the wine which is available in venues across London and beyond.
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(Image: Forty Hall)
Forty Hall’s 2015 ortega wine was selected by wine critic Matthew Jukes in his 2016 Compendium of the Best English Wines and its wine also won an award at the Soil Association 2017 BOOM awards. The vineyard is located within the grounds of the Forty Hall Estate against the backdrop of a stunning Grade I-listed manor house, which is now a museum, and the hidden remains of a former Tudor palace.
The Forty Hall Farm next door holds a monthly market and sells the farm’s own organic produce plus beer brewed in Edmonton, gin distilled in Palmers Green and wine produced from the grapes grown on the vineyard. And it functions as a social enterprise, largely looked after by local volunteers and boasting inhouse eco-therapy to promote grape-picking to boost wellbeing. Charlotte Antoniou, one of three eco-therapists at the farm, said: “It does things to people that they don’t expect it to, and enables them to open up.”
(Image: Forty Hall)
As for visiting the vineyard, there are regular tours and wine tasting events during the summer months, or you can visit on a self-guided tour on days when Forty Hall Farm is open to the public.
Getting there: London bus routes 191 or W10 go to within a 10-minute walk of the vineyard or it’s a 20-minute walk from Turkey Street overground station.
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