Cuvée Brut Sparkling Rosé
£31.95
Soft pink and gently fragrant, with strawberry at the centre and a bright flicker of grapefruit and spice around the edges. Two years on lees bring polish without weighing down the fruit.
2019
Higham, Colchester
Higham began with a family preference rather than a marketing plan. David Alston and his family loved red Burgundy and Provence rosé, then discovered that a long-fallow patch of their Suffolk land had the aspect and soil to make Pinot Noir more than a daydream. Eight acres went in during 2019 on fields known locally as Stoney Croft, their flint and stone running down towards the Stour Valley. The first harvest in 2021 was a lesson in English patience. A difficult summer delayed ripening, but October finally delivered enough sugar for sparkling rosé, followed by a second pick for a trial barrel of red. Those two ideas still define Higham: bright pink fizz with proper lees time, and delicate Pinot Noir that prizes perfume and texture over weight. The vineyard has since grown to ten acres, adding two acres of Chardonnay to its Pinot backbone. The fruit is hand picked in Suffolk and sent to specialist partners in Kent for winemaking and bottling — a compact range rooted very clearly in one south-facing corner of Constable Country.
Higham occupies south-facing slopes on the north side of the Stour Valley, within the Dedham Vale landscape made famous by John Constable. Sunlight reaches the vines across open country, while the flint-and-stone soils of Stoney Croft provide the free-draining ground Pinot Noir prefers. The original eight-acre planting has grown to ten acres with the addition of Chardonnay. Sheep graze between the rows, the fruit is harvested by hand and the family keeps intervention in the soil deliberately low.
WINEMAKER
Higham’s family team grows and selects the fruit in Suffolk, then works with specialist winemaking partners in Kent to turn each parcel into bottle. The traditional-method rosé spends two years on its lees before disgorgement, while the estate red comes from chosen vines in rows 59–90 and rests for six months in French oak. The result is a small, focused range that keeps Pinot Noir’s fragrance and light-footed character front and centre.
The Collection
£31.95
Soft pink and gently fragrant, with strawberry at the centre and a bright flicker of grapefruit and spice around the edges. Two years on lees bring polish without weighing down the fruit.
£24.95
Pale, crisp and all about summer fruit, this estate Pinot rosé brings soft strawberry and redcurrant into a clean citrus finish. Delicate enough alone, and very happy beside grilled fish, salad or a little chilli.
£31.95 — TBC for 2024
Bramble, raspberry and a savoury whisper of cedar sit over silky tannins and fresh acidity. Light on its feet but not short on character, and well suited to a gentle chill with roast vegetables or poultry.
Other visitor facility
Other visitor facility: Working vineyard — not currently open to visitors. Opening hours are not applicable.