For years, there has been chatter about the Champenois investing in English sparkling wine; now, for the first time, we have the liquid proof.
Vranken Pommery (makers of Vranken, Pommery, Charles Lafitte and Heidsieck Monopole champagnes) is the first champagne house to release an English sparkling wine (ESW) with its own name on the label, although as the photograph illustrates, the two wines are branded quite differently.
I bought a bottle of each to see if the insides were as different as the outsides, and additionally to cast a critical eye, nose and palate over the first ESW that is publicly endorsed by the motherland of sparkling wine.
Firstly, some technical information. This inaugural release of Louis Pommery NV England has been made in conjunction with Hattingley Valley, a well-established English wine producer that makes wine for several other brands, including their own. The fruit has been bought in, mostly from Hampshire, and comprises 'mainly red varieties and a good proportion of Chardonnay', according to chef de cave Clément Pierlot. (Pommery have also been busy planting a 30-hectare/75-acre site in Hampshire with the wonderfully British name of Pinglestone, but this is not expected to bear fruit until 2021.) Around 13,000 bottles have been made and the full price is £39.99 from online food and drink retailer Ocado (although I bought my bottle on offer at £29.99), and £34.95 at Lea & Sandeman.
Its big sister Pommery, Royal Brut NV Champagne contains one third each of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, has a dosage of 9 g/l and spends 36 months on lees. Reserve wines account for at least 30% of the blend and the base vintage is 2013. The price of my bottle was £41.49 from Ocado (it's £35.95 at Lea & Sandeman), but it is widely available around the world and four million bottles are produced annually.
So with my Pom-Poms at the ready, I opened both, poured and tasted. The difference between them was immediately obvious, with the English version being almost colourless while the champagne was the classic 'pale lemon' colour so beloved of the WSET systematic approach. (I've still never encountered a pale lemon myself.)
This immediately suggests less maturity in the ESW, which was confirmed by a nose which displayed basic pear and apple fruit but no discernible autolytic character. (I did request lees ageing and dosage figures, but answers were not forthcoming.) On the palate, the bubbles, acid and dosage were cohabiting peacefully enough, but the flavours were unremarkable apart from perhaps a slight creaminess on the short finish.
That dairy character was much more apparent in the champagne, which also had more distinct yeasty aromas, although they were perhaps more reminiscent of sliced white bread than the posh bakery delicacies that are usually evoked. But overall, all the classic hallmarks of champagne were present, and the finish had pretty good length and salinity.
Under any normal quality criteria, Pommery's champagne was the much better wine (I scored it 16.5 against the ESW's 15.5) – which is perhaps exactly how they would like it. In its simple drinkability, the Louis Pommery was much more like a regional Crémant – which I would intend as nothing but a compliment were it not for one problem: the price.
Sparkling wine is an expensive thing to make, especially in England. But our shelves are groaning with good-quality fizz from all around the world for much less than £40 per bottle (including plenty from Champagne itself). The ESW category has never been cheap, but as new brands continue to appear, all of which inevitably want to occupy the top end of the market, quality must keep pace.
I repeat that Louis Pommery English fizz is a perfectly pleasant and well-made wine but when it costs the same as its champagne stablemate, it must stand up to scrutiny. I suspect that short lees ageing and a lack of reserve wines explains the relative weakness of the English version. I hope future releases will improve on what is a disappointing inaugural release. For now, if you want something with Pommery on the label, the champagne version is the better buy.
