Simpsons Rabbit Hole Pinot Noir

AA3301

Wine information

Country - Great Britain

Region - Kent

Grape Varieties - Pinot Noir 100%

Alcohol by volume - 12.5%

Bottle - 75cl

Producer - Simpsons Wine Estate

Tasting notes - A purple-hued wine displaying dark cherry and smoky oak aromas, with hints of mocha. The elegant tannins are complimented by tangy, black fruit flavours and undertones of freshly ground coffee.

ProducerNote

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.

Vineyard

The estate is situated in the Elham Valley; an unspoilt seam in the North Downs of Kent

where the contours of the land, climate and 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 low-yielding Burgundian

Pinot Noir clone 115 and 777, which are grown on either Fercal or 41B rootstocks.

Planted at a density of 4,200 vines per hectare 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

The grapes were carefully hand-sorted and destemmed directly into fermenters via

gravity. Fermentation took place with selected yeasts, with pumping over once a day

for two weeks. A proportion of the blend was vinified using the traditional technique of

‘pigeage’ or punching down of the cap. Once fermentation was complete, the wine

was drained off its skins into two-year old French oak barrels, where it underwent

malolactic conversion. After four months’ ageing in barrels, the wine was bottled in

spring 2021.