Sparkling future ahead for English wine

t's competing on a par with the best in the world, upmarket retailer Waitrose said sales of it are growing 120 percent a year and farmers are ripping out other crops to make...English wine.

No longer the butt of dinner party jokes, although still a minnow in a very large pond, English wine is now being taken seriously in some important quarters. In the past few years it has won international awards, mainly in the sparkling categories, with some even rivalling Champagne.

"There's certainly a real supply and demand scenario in favour of suppliers, the future is very bright," said Simon Field, Master of Wine and buyer at wine merchant Berry Bros. and Rudd.

Only a few years ago, producing wine in England was just a romantic pastime, done on a small scale by people who simply enjoyed growing grapes - those days are long gone with commercial demand for English vintages outpacing production.