Simpsons Wine Estate 'Railway Hill' Rose, Kent

This delicate and fruity Pinot Noir rosé has fresh aromas of watermelon and lychee, with peachy, strawberry flavours and a delightfully smooth texture.

Producer Note 

Charles and Ruth Simpson have been making award-winning wines in the South of France since 2002. In 2012, attracted by the quality of the terroir and the opportunity to become part of one of the most dynamic wine producing regions in the world, they brought their expertise back to the UK, establishing Simpsons Wine Estate. Aspiring to produce the finest quality English wine, they planted 30 hectares of vineyards on the iconic chalk terroir of the North Downs and built a state-of-the-art gravity fed winery. In 2016, the Simpsons saw their first harvest. With a strong focus on provenance, they produce a highly-acclaimed range of exclusively estate-grown still and sparkling wines, including the Chalklands Classic Cuvée 2016, which won a gold medal in the 2019 Champagne & Sparkling Wine World Championships.

Vintage

2020 saw a bright and sunny start to the growing season in late March and early April that augured well, but unfortunately it was followed by a series of frosts that ultimately reduced the crop. On the positive side, the remainder of the summer was relatively sunny and warm with occasional rain. By harvest, the smaller crop levels and favourable conditions resulted in high quality fruit that was bursting with intense flavours.

Vineyard

Simpsons Wine Estate is situated in the Elham Valley; an unspoilt seam in the North Downs of Kent where the contours of the land, the climate and the soil are excellent for viticulture. The intensely lime-rich chalk soil forms part of the same chalk ridge that stretches from southern England to Burgundy. The Guyot trained vines are trained on vertical foliage wires to help with canopy management. The vines are planted at a density of 4,200 vines per hectare with a range of Burgundian clones on either Fercal or 41B rootstocks. They are grown on south facing slopes, ensuring heat accumulation in the day and cold air drainage at night. The vineyard is less than eight miles from the coast, providing a crucial maritime influence insulating the fruit against intense temperature variations. Grass cover crops between the rows encourage biodiversity within the vineyard. Pruning and harvesting takes place by hand and they are signed up to the WineGB’s Sustainability Scheme.

Winemaking

Made with as little intervention as possible. The hand-picked grapes were whole bunch pressed and cold settled for 48 hours prior to racking. The must underwent a long and slow fermentation in stainless tanks with wild and selected aromatic yeasts at controlled temperatures of 14 to 16°C. This wine did not go through malolactic conversion, retaining a crisp and vibrant character, but spent time on fine yeast lees to build palate weight, before being bottled in spring 2021.

Tasting Note

This delicate Pinot Noir rosé has fresh aromas of watermelon and lychee, with peachy, stone-fruit flavours and a delightfully smooth texture and mouth-feel.

Grape

Pinot Noir 100%