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Chapel Down

Chapel Down Tenterden Vineyard Chapel Down, as part of the English Wines Group, is one of the better known names on the English wine scene. This is the United Kingdom's largest winery, sourcing fruit from vineyards all over the south of England, as well as vinifying grapes from the 10 hectare Tenterden vineyard. The varieties utilised include Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, a nod in the direction of England's apparent success producing sparkling wine, led by trailblazers such as Nyetimber and Ridgeview. But otherwise, the wines emanating from this winery under the Tenterden, Curious Grape and Chapel Down labels include the usual culprits of English wine; Dornfelder and Rondo for reds, Ortega, Schönberger, Huxelrebe, Muller-Thurgau and Reichensteiner for whites.

My previous experiences of English wines have not all been thoroughly enjoyable. I was glad, therefore, to update my knowledge of English wine, aided by the arrival of some samples under the Chapel Down label. I found the sparkling wine, a Pinot Noir cuvée, to have some promise. The samples also included Chapel Down's latest project, some Curious Brew beers, which I won't review here, although they all seemed decent enough to me. I particularly noted that the Brut was refermented using yeast from a 'well-known sparkling wine region in France'. That's what has to be done to avoid litigation by overly-wealthy well-known French sparkling winemakers, I suppose. (5/4/06)

Contact details:
Address: Tenterden Vineyard, Small Hythe, Tenterden, Kent, TN30 7NG
Telephone: +44 1580 763033
Internet: www.englishwinesgroup.com

Chapel Down - Tasting Notes

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2004

Chapel Down Bacchus 2004: A very pale hue. An appealing pear, lychee and apple fruit nose, just showing little nuances of perfumed talcum powder. All rather overblown on the palate, though, which shows blowsy Turkish Delight, rose petals and soapy perfume. There is a fresh, tingling acidity, but it can't cope with this tart's boudoir style. 13/20 (April 2006)

Chapel Down English Rosé 2004: A very deep, smoked salmon hue. Strawberries and cream on the nose, with a twist of raspberry leaf. Vibrant acidity which is welcomed on the palate, firm and vivacious character, then settling to a creamy midpalate spiced with liquorice. This has considerable appeal, despite a short finish. 14.5/20 (April 2006)

2001

Chapel Down Pinot Noir Reserve 2001: A very pale lemon-gold hue, and a very vigorous bead, quite fat at first, settling down to a fine but persistent bubble. The nose offers up green apples, spiced with a very faint biscuit edge. On the palate, a very fresh character, with appealingly sour green apple peel, with a gentle but precise, lifting mousse. This is markedly better than the last sparkler I tasted under the Chapel Down label. Good. 16+/20 (April 2006)

2000

Tenterden Vineyard 'Curious Grape Aromatic' 2000: Some bottle age adds some interest to this blend of Huxelrebe, Schönberger, Seyval Blanc and Riechtensteiner. Naturally a very pale hue. Good complex aromatics on the nose, with stony mineral nuances. It has promise. On the palate it has a full richness rather like a Kabinett, with high acidity. Grapefruit peel flavour, which doesn't provide the level of interest the nose suggested, nor does it really match the texture and acidity. Very good taking into account it's origins. Drink now. 14.5+/20 (September 2004)

1995

Chapel Down Epoch V 1995: A pale lemon yellow hue with a hint of green. The nose is sugary-sweet, with some dessert grape aromas, reminiscent of supermarket own-label Hock. Not surprising, considering the grapes used are Reichensteiner, Müller-Thurgau and Huxelrebe, three unexciting Germanic crossings. The palate is undistinguished, and the finish has an unpleasant twist of poorly integrated, bitter oak. Here's a wine that went down the sink. Not rated. (May 2000)