Chapel Down shows English wine still has its fizz with bumper results
The world is waking up to sparkling wine from England, new results from flagship brand Chapel Down suggest.
A new trading update from the Kent-based wine producer reports a 164 per cent increase in exports, indicating a growing market for English sparkling wine overseas.
Domestic revenues paint a similarly rosy picture, with off-trade sparkling wine revenues growing 69 per cent from 2021 to 2022 and overall on-brand revenues growing 34 per cent.
The company credits its recent focus on “premiumisation” for this success, allowing it to increase prices by 19% whilst still selling a record 790,000 bottles of sparkling wine.
On-trade has grown in importance for the sector as more bars and restaurants feel obliged to put English sparkling on their lists.
This success puts the winemaker in a favourable position in the sparkling wine market, growing 23 per cent over the course of the year, compared to the wider industry which grew just 9 per cent.
Chapel Down grows its wine near Tenterden, Kent, where it also welcomes guests for tours, wine tasting and dining as part of its increasing focus on “premiumisation”.
Andrew Carter, Chapel Down CEO, said: “This performance, and the excellent harvest we enjoyed in 2022, means we carry momentum into 2023 and are on track to meet our target of doubling the size of our business by 2026”.
The English sparkling wine industry is on the rise, with French competitor Taittinger preparing to begin selling a range of both sparkling and non-sparkling wines from next year, all from its own 69-hectare vineyard in Kent.