MORE than 1,000 people soaked up Hampshire's best wine at Fizz Fest.

The event, on Sunday, June 23 at The Grange, The Winery at Burges Field Vineyard near Alresford, was its 10th anniversary. 

A total of eight vineyards showcased their offerings, to coincide with the conclusion of English Wine Week.

People enjoyed the warm weather along with Alresford Ukulele Jam, a wide range of food and rink stalls, tasting sessions and vineyard tours. 

The vineyards at the event were: Black Chalk, Danebury Vineyards, Exton Park, The Grange, Hambledon Vineyard, Hattingley Valley, Louis Pommery and Raimes.

Fizz Fest (Image: Newsquest)

It is the main event for Vineyards of Hampshire, an association of pre-eminent wine-producing businesses that promote our county’s high-quality wines and wine tourism.

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Zam Baring, from hosts The Grange, said: “We've had a very good turnout and everyone seems to be very interested in what we're saying which is the English wine. Most of these Hampshire vines are on chalk and that is what is spectacular about it.”

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Caroline Stevens, from Danebury Vineyards based at Nether Wallop, said: “The vineyard was planted in 1988 and we produce a sparkling and still wine. We use an English heritage grape variety.”

Natasha Dochniak and Louise Harrington from Hampshire Fare (Image: Newsquest)

Caroline explained what Vineyards of Hampshire is. She said: “We are celebrating our tenth year together. The reason we got together was to promote Hampshire wines. At the moment we have eight members from across Hampshire. Ten years ago, English sparking wine was still very unknown, so we used events like this to promote our products and give people the chance to taste it. When people see an English sparking wine on a menu in a restaurant, they tend to avoid it, so this is a way to get people talking about it. 

“It has grown and grown, we started with a couple of hundred people, and there were nearly 1,000 last year. We get new people every time. In the last 10-15 years, English sparkling wine has just exploded in popularity, it's very exciting.”

Karl Mcculloch, from Exton Park, said: “We're quite unique in that we're a single vineyard produce, so we do everything ourselves on-site. We grow our own grapes from our 60-acres and we have our own winery. We hold back a lot of our wine each harvest in reserve and then we back blend everything. We think it's the best way to capture the expression of a single vineyard.”