England’s White Gold
Hundred Hills is the passion project of Stephen and Fiona Duckett. With the help of the Dr Michel Salgues (Roederer Estate’s winemaker for 19 years), they set out in 2009 to find the best spot in England to plant a vineyard. With the lore of the land for English vineyards centring on the south coast, they did not expect to end up in the bucolic Stonor Valley, but here they are, up by Henley, with the data having revealed that they had struck sparkling wine’s white gold – chalk.
In the hundred-odd samples of soil sent to Champagne for analysis, it was the Stonor Valley sample which was met with the question: ‘where specifically in the Cotes des Blancs is this from?’ In their amphitheatre location, Hundred Hill’s 84,000 vines cover 17 hectares of land atop a mass of chalk which runs 160m deep. The resulting drainage and composition is perfect for low-yielding Chardonnay and Pinot Noir clones to extend their roots deep into the soil. The wines are all single vintage, and offer pure expressions of the Estate’s unique terroir. With Hundred Hills being served in more than 30 Michelin starred restaurants across the UK, it would appear that Sommeliers agree too! And as there are only 3,500 cases made; there isn’t a huge amount to go around.
The 2018 Preamble is Pinot Noir led and undergoes gentle exposure to oak casks, regular bâtonnage and 30 months on the lees. It is a great introduction to the range. The 2018 Blancs de Blancs comes from a single parcel at the top of the valley; aged in oak and with 36 months on the lees, this is a wine of remarkable complexity. The 2019 Hillside No. 3 is a rare wine, created from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grown on south-facing slopes. The grapes here were picked on a third pass of the vineyard, so this wine expresses the very best of a long, cool growing season. The 2019 Blanc de Noirs is a very limited released cuvée crafted from a single clone, single parcel site. It is a gastronomic wine, with the grapes having spent an unusually long 110 days on the vine. Finally, there is the 2018 Signature Rosé. A delicious rosé which Alain Ducasse pairs with lobster medallions, chicken quenelles and Périgord truffles. /TH
Offered subject to remaining unsold
