“Bacchus will do for English wine what Sauvignon Blanc did for New Zealand.” There’s a lot of positivity in this statement and I think it’s meant to suggest that given its flavour profile it will become the volume driver for English wine sales. Of course it may be intended to suggest something else. But I’ll take that definition for the purposes of this piece. I personally think that the wine that will do for England as SB did for NZ is sparkling. Yeah I know, what a huge insight that is for you.
Bacchus is the second most planted white variety in England and Wales; Chardonnay leads plantings, followed by Pinot Noir (which includes Ferg’s favourite variant, Précoce) and Pinot Meunier. These 3 make up 71% of England and Wales not quite 4,000 hectares. Bacchus accounts for 264 hectares. Kent has the most plantings with 85 of these. Almost double second placed Essex.
Back to Bacchus being out saviour/leader/door opener. There is sense in the opening statement (and please don’t think I am trying to disagree with it). Sauvignon Blanc is the most consumed variety in the UK, with 1,041k hectolitres being consumed in the 12 months to June ’22. A lot of that is from New Zealand, which also commands the second highest average bottle spend of countries consumed here. No prizes for guessing that France is number 1. Some pricey kit out there.
Bacchus has a reasonably similar profile to NZ SB; it’s floral, aromatic, has a punch of citrusy fruit. It’s perhaps slightly greener generally, but it’s filled with that racy, refreshing acidity that drinkers love so much. Has it taken off and captured consumers’ hearts? I don’t think it has yet. But that’s not the variety’s fault, there are multiple blockers to English wine going fully mainstream. Production volumes and pricing being the major factors. Bacchus can however be something that is very much English and help to define and refine English wine’s personality.
I generally don’t go for NZSB, simply as my palate prefers a different style. Ha, y’see…you thought I was going to make a cheap joke about Sauvignon Bland or UK drinking culture. But I haven’t. I’ve tried many Bacchus and not had many that were bad, just simply not my drinking style. My 2 standouts have been the Poynings Grange 2015, which picked up gold in the IEWA 2020 (it had aged wonderfully) and Chapel Down’s Kit’s Coty 2018 which had next level intensity and focus. Kindly sent to me my Great British Wine’s John Mobbs. If you’re reading this, stop wasting your time and head over to his far superior material.
So, the Bacchuses (Bacchii?) I have really enjoyed have been atypical of the standard English expression. That’s really exciting, because it means producers are out there trying new things and trying to find new possibilities with the variety. What can it do? What can it handle? How can we use it as a vehicle for expression of place and personality.
When my good friend, nearly England’s greatest fighter pilot, top winemaker, and The Maker And The Merchant cohost Fergus Elias told me about his new Bacchus and offered me a bottle to try, I instantly said “Yeah, alright, go on then.” But with much more élan than appears in the written form.
This is Liberty’s Bacchus 2022, named after the trusty winery pooch. Being a cricket aficionado, Ferg knows all about boundaries, and here is trying to push and break them. And succeeding. On a recent episode of TM&TM, Ferg said:
“I’m Really proud of it. I think it’s the best Bacchus I’ve ever made. I’m really, really happy with how it’s turned out. Not classic elderflower bomb full of green nettle.”
Ferg’s approach to this was to use Burgundy yeast and ferment at slightly warmer temperatures. He retained 4 barrels of Bacchus 2021 which had 16 months in oak and incorporated that into the final blend. He’s gone for a more ‘Sancerrey’ style.
So, without further ado, here is my usual pretentious stream-of-consciousness tasting note on the bottle kindly sent by Ferg.
BALFOUR LIBERTY’S BACCHUS 2022
100% Bacchus – Kent
There’s a wonderful, lifted, summery aromatic straight out of the glass. Warm summer meadow, flowers dancing in a cool breeze. Lime blossom is the main note here. It’s forward but not dominant. As you follow the sweet aromatic it leads you into a ripe orchard with green pear, quince, and apples. It’s vibrant, electric, yet still generous. Underneath these inviting aromas is just a suggestion of the classic English hedgerow. But this fresh herbaceousness soon becomes jasmine, rose petals, ginger…white peach suddenly appears and takes you on another journey. This time we walk down by the babbling brook at the edge of our fruit field. Warm stone fruit aromas float and weave around as you sit on the stony waterside, being gently washed with a yellow citrus lined spray. Despite all this, it’s precise and focused. Distinctly Bacchus, and English at that, yet not just a replica of everything that has gone before.
This bursts onto the palate with confidence. It’s both juicy and electrifying. The acid line is pure, focused, precise and is the very backbone of this wine. It brings with it the waterside spray, crushed rock minerality and refreshing saline note. Everything is built around this, and build it does. Lime blossom and bay leaf become fully ripe green limes, juicy lemons and juicy green apples. Soon it becomes a melée of ripe pear, quince, peach, almost a nectarine note joins in. This is a celebration of those wonderful English fruits we would go down to Kent to pick throughout the summer. They’re all here, but not jostling for position, rather perfectly integrated with each other. The spice from the nose returns. It’s subtle, but sophisticated. Ginger, coriander, lavender, jasmine, all overlayed with red roses. The oak comes in to play, but it’s not vanilla or toast. It’s texture. Offsetting the bright and linear acid line is a palate coating texture. It lends a supple savoury note but overall adds some weight and palate power. This is an absolute delight and hints at even greater things to come. This is a fabulous exploration as to the possibilities of Bacchus when made beyond the confines of a NZSB box. Ferg’s done it again. Just imagine those distant summers in the English countryside. Days spent rolling around the countryside in the sun. Walks by the river, skimming stones, smelling fresh meadow flowers. It’s all here. Never mind a wine transporting you to the Tuscan hills, this takes you to the heart not just of the English countryside, but to summer itself.
THREE WORDER: BOLD – SUMMERY – CONCEPTUAL
This has enough for the drinker who knows they like Bacchus (and perhaps/probably SB too) and for the one who wants to experience something new and different. Find it at Balfour’s website here.
REMEMBER: IT’S JUST GRAPES
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