English wine production surged 55% in 2025 compared to the previous year, according to the Food Standards Agency, driving down prices and expanding the range of styles available. This boost in volume and quality is being celebrated during English Wine Week, as producers offer everything from crisp whites to funky pét-nat and elegant reds.
Higher Volumes, Lower Prices
The increased production has led to more affordable options at the lower end of the market. Waitrose's Blueprint English White and The Wine Society's English White, both blends from Surrey and Gloucestershire wineries, now retail for under £12, offering easy-drinking styles with hedgerow notes from the warm 2025 vintage. Aldi's Specially Selected Bowler & Brolly English White Cuvée costs just £5.99, blending nine grape varieties including bacchus and climate-proof hybrids like reichensteiner and seyval blanc. While these wines can be sharp, they appeal to fans of crisp sauvignon blanc and aperitif wines.
Diverse Styles and Low ABV Options
English winemakers are now producing a wide array of styles, often with lower alcohol by volume (ABV). Marks & Spencer's 11% English Orange Wine, made in Kent with chardonnay, pinot gris, and ortega, offers a peachy introduction to skin-contact wines. Other innovative styles include bottle-fermented col fondo, where yeast sediment ages with the wine for a cloudy, savoury finish, and rustic pét-nat from projects like Tim Wildman MW's Lost in a Field, which revives forgotten grape varieties planted in the mid-20th century.
Elegant Still Wines and Rosés
Elegant still wines are also emerging, such as Simpsons' The Roman Road Chardonnay, which rivals cool-climate burgundy, and Ben Walgate's biodynamic rosés from East Sussex. Fresh reds like Woodfine's Lost Vagus pinot noir and even dessert wines from warm years, such as Denbies' Noble Harvest Ortega, showcase the versatility of English viticulture. According to a Guardian wine writer, these wines pair well with tofu, reflecting a shift in perception.
Seven Recommended English Wines
- Waitrose Blueprint English White £10.25, 11% ABV: A light, tangy bacchus and ortega blend, ideal with English asparagus.
- M&S English Orange Wine £15 (Ocado), 11% ABV: A peachy gateway to orange wine from Kent, perfect as an aperitif or with nibbles.
- Ben Walgate Rosato 2022 £16.20 (Bottle Apostle), 10.5% ABV: A smoky, deep-hued biodynamic rosé from pinot noir and chardonnay, great for barbecues.
- Simpsons The Roman Road 2023 £29 (The Wine Society), 13% ABV: A single-vineyard chardonnay from chalky South Downs soil, with a Burgundian character.
- Ark Pinot Gris 2022 £18 (arkwines.co.uk), 12% ABV: An apricot-hued wine from a tiny Suffolk producer, blurring the line between rosé and orange.
- Berry Bros & Rudd English Sparkling Rosé £29.95, 12.5% ABV: Made by Hambledon vineyard in the South Downs, a classy crowdpleaser from nibbles to dessert.
- Domaine Hugo Botley's Col Fondo 2022 £35 (Good Wine Shop), 10.5% ABV: A cloudy, buttery unfined fizz from a top English sparkling producer.
