New Listing. Price £59.00. Tasting Notes: Pale golden in colour, with a fine mousse. The nose is full of ripe citrus, pink grapefruit and pear, with white floral notes. On the palate, the wine shows generous fruit flavours, highlighting ripe lemon, nectarine and crunchy green apple, with a flinty, saline minerality. Toasted brioche, shortbread and hazelnut notes build layers of complexity, adding to an elegance and energy that combine to create a beautiful example of Blanc de Blancs. The Year: A mild spring resulted in a mid-April bud burst. The weather during flowering was warm and dry resulting in abundant fruit being set. Early August saw 50% of fruit dropped to intensify flavour and concentration. Harvest began in early October and resulted in fruit of exceptional quality. Location: Our own Gusbourne vineyards on a South facing ancient escarpment in Appledore, Kent and near Goodwood in West Sussex. Soils: Largely clay, with subsoils including sand and seashells in Kent, and predominantly chalk soils with flint loam in the South Downs in West Sussex. Microclimate: Warm and dry, with moderating coastal breezes due to our close proximity to the English Channel. Bottling Date: 2 – 5 May 2017 Malolactic: 100% Lees Ageing: Minimum 42 months. Grape Variety: 100% Chardonnay Residual Sugar: 8.3g/l Background Information: The original Gusbourne Estate in Appledore, Kent dates back to 1410. The de Goosebourne family crest was made up of three geese and can be found in our local parish church in Appledore – nowadays, each and every bottle of wine crafted at Gusbourne carries a contemporary goose crest in honour of our heritage. This ‘Goosemark’ is a symbol of trust, representing our pursuit of uncompromising quality. In 2004, Andrew Weeber took over the estate with a clear vision and a single goal: to create English sparkling wines that would stand up alongside the very finest offerings from across the globe. The first vines were planted that year. Our debut vintages of Gusbourne Brut Reserve 2006 and Gusbourne Blanc de Blancs 2006 were released to critical acclaim in 2010. Gusbourne quickly earned a reputation as a producer of outstanding quality wines, with accolades from some of the industry’s most exacting critics. A combination of the best age-old traditions with modern technology and cutting-edge equipment allows us to sit comfortably between old and new world winemaking, while at the same time bringing our own exacting quality standards to the process. Respect for the vineyards, the fruit and the natural elements involved in winemaking means that our approach favours minimal intervention.