English wines is big news these days, especially English Sparkling Wines. Quality is way ahead of what it was and now the sparkling wines are challenging and beating the best of France.

We took a trip over to Furleigh Estate over in West Dorset when my cousin Mary and her friend Sue were over, for one of their tasting events. We have previously been to Wickham Vineyards before and that was an enjoyable little tour that was done without a guide, just with headphones. Nice weather also helped, which is never guaranteed here in the UK.

Furleigh Estate is just North of Bridport and a good hour and 20+ minutes away from Bournemouth. The large barn conversion was a nice open space and had plenty of tables for people come the tasting part. At Wickham, because you could turn up any time, the tasting was down by the sales counter when we were there because of smaller numbers.

Once everyone had arrived, we given a potted history to the family and their connection to the farm, and then it was a short stroll to the vines. There was a short talk at the top end and then a little walk later to another set of vines, there was more explanation on cultivation process. Next it was back up to the larger barn when the tanks and bottling machinery was.

In comparison to Wickham, there the self-tour took about 45 minutes and you gently meandered around the wines, down the field, to the tree at the end and back again through the winery. Here, it felt quicker, but it was nicer to be in a bit of a group.

To end it all, we sat back in the barn for a tasting of three wines. We tried the Dorset Flint, the Sea Pink and the Classic Reserve, which was a sparkling wine. The sparkling wine was surprisingly drinkable, then again how well English sparkling wines fare against the French was also new to me. We had a cheeky taster of the Cuvee when everybody else left and that was very nice as well, so we got one of each.

For £10, you get the tour and a tasting of 3 wines, plus you get to keep the sparkling wine glass etched with their logo!

Website: Furleigh Estate