“A Vintage Defined by Timing, Precision and Quality”
An interview with Sergio Verrillo
How much fruit did you bring in this year?
We brought in around 14/15 tonnes, roughly half of last year's volume. But I wouldn't read too much into that figure in terms of availability. It's not a reflection of how much fruit was out there; this year it's much more about being selective, focusing on exciting grower relationships and continually improving our overall quality.
Around 75% of the crop was Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, alongside roughly 1.2 tonnes of Sauvignac and 2.2 tonnes of Pinot Gris.
Where does this year’s fruit come from?
Everything this year came from Essex, from three vineyards specifically: Clayhill, Southbank and Martin’s Lane - from three different growers.
It's important to us to build relationships with growers whose approach and attention to detail align with ours. The quality of those relationships is a big part of what makes the wines.
And what will the fruit become?
We'll be making our Astroplane Pinot Gris and Fragments of time Sauvignanc on the experimental range front, alongside our core range Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs. There's some particularly exciting red fruit this year, so I'm looking forward to seeing how that develops.
What was the atmosphere like in the winery during harvest?
It was a really calm, collected harvest. We brought fruit in over four or five weeks, generally processing between two and six tonnes a week. That gave us the capacity to concentrate on each parcel, give the grapes and juice the attention they deserved, and make decisions accordingly.
From a logistical, quality and capacity standpoint, it was a really good harvest. The smaller volume made a difference: we weren't under the same pressure, either in terms of weather or disease. In many ways, it was pretty idyllic.
What were the highlights?
Honestly, just getting the fruit over the line. Seeing every vineyard arrive at the winery, looking at the quality of the grapes and seeing how each grower had fared over the course of the year.
Harvest is the culmination of so much work, both in the vineyard and in the winery. Seeing that come together in the fruit is always exciting. You get a real sense of the growing season and the decisions that have been made along the way.
What were the biggest challenges?
Picking dates were probably the biggest challenge, particularly when it came to achieving phenolic ripeness.
We had a very hot, dry summer, and that created some interesting issues around sugar development and flavour ripeness, especially with the reds. Sugars were climbing very quickly and acids were dropping, but the flavour ripeness wasn't necessarily keeping pace. In some cases, the fruit had the numbers but hadn't quite developed the flavour profile we were looking for.
It meant we had to be really considered about when to pick. This was a vintage where timing could make or break the result. You couldn't simply wait for the numbers to tell you everything; you had to taste the fruit and make a judgement.
Were there any standout parcels?
The Chardonnay from Southbank was perfect. And the Clayhill vineyard Pinot Noir is going to be great. In particular, I think the Clayhill Nightjar is going to be the star of the vintage. Everything about those grapes was right.
How would you typify the overall vintage?
It's a red vintage. Definitely a great year for reds.
The key was getting the picking dates right. We had a growing season here this year that you might otherwise typically associate with California: a hot, dry summer on a scale that you don't normally see in England. If you're working on the Sonoma Coast, those conditions are much more familiar. Here, they're unusual.
That meant we had to think carefully about our usual approach to picking. We're often advocates of a later harvest philosophy, but this year there wasn't necessarily a benefit in leaving the grapes hanging for longer. With sugars developing so quickly, waiting could have meant losing freshness without gaining the flavour ripeness we were looking for.
Did the conditions change your approach in the winery?
They certainly informed how we worked with the wines. We're looking at a little more batonnage across both the reds and whites, to help build weight and length and add a bit of viscosity.
We're also interested in long lees ageing, allowing the wines time to develop texture and complexity. The aim is always to build dimension without losing the character and energy of the fruit.
How does this fit with your wider winemaking philosophy?
For me, it's about making wines that I like to drink, and that other people want to drink with us. We believe in minimal intervention, but that doesn't mean being passive. You have to be attentive and make the right decisions at the right time.
This year, in particular, it's been about focusing on acidity rather than alcohol. With such a warm, dry growing season, managing that balance was really important. We want wines with freshness, drinkability and a sense of place, rather than simply chasing ripeness or concentration.
Ultimately, the smaller harvest gave us the opportunity to be more focused. We could spend more time with each parcel, make considered decisions and really concentrate on quality. That's what I'm most excited about with this vintage
