In 1991 Will Davenport planted 5 acres of vines at Horsmonden in Kent, while simultaneously working for a Hampshire vineyard and, unintentionally, this became the beginning of a life-long business as a wine producer.
26 years later the vineyards now make up 24 acres, grown on 5 parcels of land, 9 grape varieties and a multitude of soil types and micro-climates. The vineyards are mostly at Horsmonden in Kent, with a smaller vineyard next to the winery at Rotherfield, East Sussex.
Will was always a keen supporter of organic farming and in 2000 he made the decision to convert all the vines and winery to organic systems, certified by the Soil Association.
Davenport’s ever-popular Pét Nat, a purely natural wine, is fermented by natural yeasts with no added sulphites. It is a light, refreshing, slightly cloudy sparkling wine and is absolutely the perfect summer drink. The wine is bottled during harvest while the wine was still fermenting, keeping a light fizz in the bottle. It has a slight yeast sediment adding a great yeasty edge to the fruit aromas.
This is a natural wine in every way and is difficult to make, so Davenport only use the best grapes available to them that they know will end up with the right flavours and balance in the wine. The alcohol level is low, at 8.5%.
Grape Varieties: Auxerrois (73%), Pinot Meunier (13%), Faber (14%)
Try as an aperitif or with shrimp & veggies in a light coconut green curry, charcuterie board, mature gouda style goat cheese, cured boar sausage or salty nuts
Vegan
