March 20, 2025
Today we are back at Danbury Ridge Winery in Essex with Richard Bampfield MW and winemaker Liam Idzikowski tasting their latest release from their Octagon Block, Chardonnay 2022. Danbury Ridge Pinot Noir 2022
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Danbury Ridge was founded by two generations of the Bunker family: Michael and Heather Bunker and, their daughters Janine and Sophie. While walking with friends on the estate it was suggested that some of the agricultural land owned by the Bunker family may prove an ideal location for growing vines. The fields had long been scorned by local farmers for being lean and arid - a good training ground for racehorses over wet winters, but far from ideal for summer cereal crops. A detailed feasibility study was undertaken, and the conclusions formed the outline of a plan that the family expanded upon over the following years. The first vines were planted in 2014 with a focus on identifying Pinot Noir and Chardonnay clones which could best exploit the unique mesoclimate. After just a few seasons the vines were producing grapes of a quality and ripeness previously unseen in the UK; surely England's finest Pinot Noir producer.
Vinification: After handpicking and sorting, the fruit was gently destemmed without crushing to maintain whole berries. The grapes were then gravity-fed into open-top oak and concrete fermenters for 3 to 5 days cold soak. Temperatures were allowed to increase naturally, and the cap received just one to two punch downs per day. Some vats also received extended skin maceration. The wine was transferred to French oak barrels for MLF, battonage and 12 months ageing, before being bottled unfined and unfiltered.
The Vineyards: Grapes were carefully selected from across the estate. Glaciofluvial deposits of sandy gravel dominate the easterly Polo Field while loamy, carbonate rich clay of the estate’s Sleipnir Block dominates to the west. Select parcels were sourced from the Blackwater estuary and the river Crouch, which have significant influence over the favourable climate for winegrowing enjoyed in the region.
Weather: 2022 was a vintage of anomalies. A maximum temperature of 41.43°C was recorded in the Polo Field on the 19th July, whilst cumulative precipitation for the three summer months, June - August, was a miserly 10mm. Temperatures in September and October fell back to normal values, slowing ripening. Rainfall remained low across September and October. We saw zero botrytis and the bunches and berries for both Chardonnay and Pinot were small. The team had it easy on the sorting table, but the punch downs were brutal given the high percentage of solids. Pump overs and délestage were a salve for aching harvest limbs. Climate is delivering a crammer course. It feels like we’ve experienced a lifetime of meteorological possibilities since our first vintage in 2016. The memory of 2022’s long hot summer will live long in the wines.
Technical Information:
Region: Crouch Valley, Essex
Sub Region: Danbury
Grape Varieties: 100% Pinot Noir
pH: 3.35
TA: 6.1g/L
ABV: 13%
Production: 42 Barrels
Drink: Now to 2032
Tasting Note: The 2022 Pinot Noir has more concentration that the previous vintage. It shows a mixture of red and black fruit and veins of blue fruit that I have not noticed in previous vintages. It’s riper but still very well-defined. The palate is medium-bodied with juicy, ripe black fruit, perhaps a little more New World influenced than Burgundy. Grainy tannins are well integrated with impressive grip towards the finish, with a touch of white pepper on the aftertaste. - Tasted by Neal Martin
Vinification: After handpicking and sorting, the fruit was gently destemmed without crushing to maintain whole berries. The grapes were then gravity-fed into open-top oak and concrete fermenters for 3 to 5 days cold soak. Temperatures were allowed to increase naturally, and the cap received just one to two punch downs per day. Some vats also received extended skin maceration. The wine was transferred to French oak barrels for MLF, battonage and 12 months ageing, before being bottled unfined and unfiltered.
The Vineyards: Grapes were carefully selected from across the estate. Glaciofluvial deposits of sandy gravel dominate the easterly Polo Field while loamy, carbonate rich clay of the estate’s Sleipnir Block dominates to the west. Select parcels were sourced from the Blackwater estuary and the river Crouch, which have significant influence over the favourable climate for winegrowing enjoyed in the region.
Weather: 2022 was a vintage of anomalies. A maximum temperature of 41.43°C was recorded in the Polo Field on the 19th July, whilst cumulative precipitation for the three summer months, June - August, was a miserly 10mm. Temperatures in September and October fell back to normal values, slowing ripening. Rainfall remained low across September and October. We saw zero botrytis and the bunches and berries for both Chardonnay and Pinot were small. The team had it easy on the sorting table, but the punch downs were brutal given the high percentage of solids. Pump overs and délestage were a salve for aching harvest limbs. Climate is delivering a crammer course. It feels like we’ve experienced a lifetime of meteorological possibilities since our first vintage in 2016. The memory of 2022’s long hot summer will live long in the wines.
Technical Information:
Region: Crouch Valley, Essex
Sub Region: Danbury
Grape Varieties: 100% Pinot Noir
pH: 3.35
TA: 6.1g/L
ABV: 13%
Production: 42 Barrels
Drink: Now to 2032
Tasting Note: The 2022 Pinot Noir has more concentration that the previous vintage. It shows a mixture of red and black fruit and veins of blue fruit that I have not noticed in previous vintages. It’s riper but still very well-defined. The palate is medium-bodied with juicy, ripe black fruit, perhaps a little more New World influenced than Burgundy. Grainy tannins are well integrated with impressive grip towards the finish, with a touch of white pepper on the aftertaste. - Tasted by Neal Martin
