With temperatures soaring around the UK, it is shaping up to be a great year for English wine.
Being one of the pioneers at the edge of the grape-growing world, Nottinghamshire’s family-run Wolds Wine Estate is calling 2025 a “near-perfect” start to the year for the vineyard.
Last year was disastrously wet, with many UK vineyards having to abandon their harvests due to very low yields.
But with the weather this year being hotter than in Europe, we could all be raising a glass of English fizz rather than Champagne.
Wolds Wine Estate owner and founder Rob Kalisiak says: “In 2024, we were lucky and managed to bring in a small harvest when many others didn’t. This year, if things continue, we could be in for an exceptional vintage. We are keeping our fingers crossed for a bumper crop and some fantastic wines.”
“It hasn’t been totally perfect, though. We had a very late frost on 23rd May, which nearly caught us out. Never have we known a frost to hit that late in the year, and if we hadn’t gone out and lit the frost candles in the night, it could have wiped out any chance of a harvest. Thankfully, though, we survived and the vines are now flourishing.”
The vineyard at Wolds Wine Estate is now in flower and the start of fruit set is underway. This is when the flowers start to turn into mini grapes, which will develop through the summer. Harvest then starts in September and usually runs all the way to the end of October. The harvest date will depend on the sugar levels of the grapes, and the more sugar, the more alcoholic the wines will be.
“We are very excited to see what the rest of the year brings.”
“We want to build on the success of our first wines, which were recognised by The Standard as ‘one of the best English wines to drink’, and make some more absolute smashers. We are hoping 2025 will be a vintage to remember.”
With the vineyard in tip-top condition and it being English Wine Week at the end of June, it is a great time to visit your local vineyard. Wolds Wine Estate runs public tours and tastings every Saturday, and there are glamping pods if you fancy a staycation amongst the vines.
The English wine scene is really taking off, and Nottingham is proving it can have its own taste of the good stuff.
