August 26, 2016

WISTON ESTATE Blanc de Blancs 2010

(South Downs, United Kingdom) $59.99

Britain’s sparkling wine vineyards sit in the same limestone soils, in the same geological strata, from the same era, as do the vineyards of Champagne. No surprise then, that the best UK sparklers are immaculate wines of finesse and precision. The utterly delicious Wiston Estate 2010 Blanc de Blancs has a wonderful “starched” crispness, and aromas reminiscent of seashells and lemon meringue. It’s delicate and pure. It feels like one is drinking snowflakes.

93 points

Available at Union Square Wines

The acreage dedicated to vines in the Bordeaux region of France is larger than the combined vineyard acreage in all of Germany.

Answer: True.

The single region of Bordeaux—the largest Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée in France—covers more territory than all of the vineyard areas of Germany put together, and is nearly three times larger than the vineyard acreage of New Zealand. Even after a six-year effort to pare back acreage, Bordeaux has 279,000 acres (112,891 hectares) of vineyards planted compared to 252,000 acres (102,000 hectares) in Germany. In Bordeaux, some 6,100 growers produce some 450 to 650 million bottles of wine every year.

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WISTON ESTATE Blanc de Blancs 2010

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