Even a few years ago, the idea of wine lovers buying a still English Pinot Noir by the case before they'd even tasted the new vintage would have seemed extraordinary. Now we're seeing exactly that. It's pretty mind-blowing.
In mid-October, we released our new Crouch Valley Pinot Noir 2024, and within days had sold over 80% of the 5,000 bottles produced. More than 2,500 bottles had already been pre-ordered through an advance allocation offered to our mailing list and visitors to the winery over the summer. A further 1,500 bottles have since been snapped up by our trade customers, leaving just 1,000 bottles available.
Of course, there's nothing particularly new about this idea. It echoes the traditional en primeur model associated with Bordeaux and Burgundy, where customers commit to buying wines well ahead of their general release. But for English still wine? It's a rather remarkable development.
It follows the extraordinary success of our inaugural 2022 Crouch Valley Pinot Noir, all 1,000 bottles of which sold out in just three hours last year. Clearly, there's a growing appetite for serious English Pinot Noir.
A Remarkable Vintage from the Crouch Valley
While the 2024 growing season proved challenging across much of England, Essex's Crouch Valley – one of the warmest and driest regions for grape growing in the country – enjoyed comparatively favourable conditions.
A long, slow ripening period culminated in a remarkably late harvest in mid-November, with our partner growers delivering beautifully ripe Pinot Noir fruit.
Back at our winery in East Sussex, we fully destemmed the grapes before fermentation, using gentle extraction to preserve the delicate aromatics and texture of the fruit. One-third of the wine was matured in new French oak barriques, with the remaining two-thirds aged in a seasoned oak foudre from Tonnellerie Rousseau in Gevrey-Chambertin, Burgundy.
After two winters in barrel, the wine was finally bottled in 2026.
The result is a Pinot Noir that combines the perfume, freshness and elegance we love about the variety with a depth and structure that should reward a few years in the cellar. Although, frankly, it's rather delicious already.
And we're not the only ones who think so. Writing for Vinous, Anne Krebiehl MW awarded the wine 93 points, describing it as "flinty and sexy on the nose", with notes of cranberry, redcurrant and white pepper.
From Essex to Some of the UK's Finest Tables
Unlike our inaugural 2022 release, which was available exclusively through our website, the 2024 vintage is finding its way into a select number of independent wine merchants, restaurants and hotels. You'll find it on the shelves of Berry Bros. & Rudd, Lea & Sandeman, Hedonism Wines and Hennings, among others.
It's also heading to some rather wonderful restaurant cellars, including Heston Blumenthal's three-Michelin-starred The Fat Duck, Chez Bruce, Angela Hartnett's Café Muranos and Lime Wood in the New Forest.
And beyond the UK, our distribution partners in Ireland and Norway will be introducing the wine to their customers, too. For a wine that didn't exist until a couple of years ago, it's all rather exciting.
The remaining bottles are available through our website while stocks last. If you'd like to discover what all the fuss is about, you can find the wine on our website while stocks last.