The Lyme Bay Brut Reserve is sadly coming to an end (it’s been very successful!). However, there is the new vntage to look forward to, but not until March 2019. In the meantime I was advised to taste their English Sparkling Rosé Brut as an alternative. So when the occasion came to taste it, the expectation was that a friend and I would have just one glass before going out. My assumption being that it would be a bit too Champagne-y as I knew it was fermented for longer than the white Brut Reserve (at least 18 months) so it may not be to my taste.
Upon tasting, it well and truly blew my assumption out of the water! On the nose, it does have some yeasty notes, but they are not overpowering, as it is mixed with wonderful red fruit aromas too. On the palate, it’s just incredible and completely stunning - so beautiful and so elegant. It has subtle red fruits and a perfect balance of acidity and sugar, with a soft creamy finish. It’s a dry Brut style with 10.2g residual sugar made wSoith 100% Pinot Noir grapes and has a ABV of 12%.
So the ‘just one glass’ lead to ‘just another’, and then ‘perhaps a little bit more’ just to be sure it really was THAT good. It certainly is one of those wines you just desire another glass but at the same time you don’t want the bottle to end. All good things come to an end as they say, but luckily there is a bit more stock of this one!
I’m not the only one who thinks this wine is amazing. It was won many awards, namely:
Great British Food Awards 2017: BEST ENGLISH WINE
International Wine Challenge 2017: BRONZE
Decanter World Wine Awards 2017: BRONZE
International Wine & Spirits Competition 2017: SILVER
UKVA Wine Awards 2017: SILVER
And given the reaction from my customers whilst at the Stone Food and Drink Festival this month where I had this wine on taste as a trial, every customer I served that tasted it ended up buying a bottle! And at £27, it's not bought on price.....
The Lyme Bay Sparkling Rosé Brut English Sparkling Wine.
Julia Phillips
Just Perfect Wines
14 October 2018