What if it's better than Champagne? Taittinger snaps up site in Kent to establish new vineyard producing English sparkling wine

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A new vineyard in Kent will produce English sparkling wine under the auspices of global Champagne brand Taittinger after a deal struck today.

The upmarket French firm aims to make 300,000 bottles of English sparkling wine a year from the site near Canterbury, which it has bought in cooperation with UK wine specialist Hatch Mansfield.

It comes as Britons taste for fizz - especially Italian Prosecco - has grown prominently in the last few years, with many supermarkets reporting bumper sales of sparkling wines in the run-up to Christmas.

Cheers! Pierre Emmanuel Taittinger, president of Champagne Taittinger, and Patrick McGrath managing director of Hatch Mansfield celebrate on their newly-acquired land

English sparkling wine tends to be more expensive than Prosecco or Cava, but brands such as Chapel Down and Nyetimber have become more common place on the shelves of supermarkets and off licences across the country in recent years.

Taittinger is the first Champagne house to invest in English sparkling wine and will call it Domaine Evremond.

The firm already owns 288 hectres of vines in France - but is now looking to capitalise on the growth in the UK market.

It expects to produce its first fruit for winemaking in Kent by 2020, but it will be around eight years before the first bottle of Evremond is produced.

Taittinger has taken a 55 per cent stake in the venture, alongside Hatch Mansfield and private investors, which has purchased 69 hectares of farmland at Stone Stile Farm, Kent, close to Canterbury. 

Forty hectares of this will be planted with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier vines to produce English sparkling wine.

Kent wine: The climate in the county is similar to that of Champagne in France - the red dot is the location of the farm

Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger, president at Champagne Taittinger, said: 'We have dreamt for a number of years of working with our dear friends in the UK to create a special Franco/British project.

Built on the values of friendship, this venture will create something special to show our appreciation of the UK support for Champagne – it is Champagne Taittinger's number one export market. We are very excited that this dream is now becoming a reality.

Popular: Taittinger is a popular pick with Britons

'We believe we can produce a high quality English sparkling wine drawing on our 80 years of winemaking expertise. 

'Our aim is to make something of real excellence in the UK's increasingly temperate climate, and not to compare it with Champagne or any other sparkling wine.'

Mr Taittinger has connections with the Kent area through his father, Jean, who twinned Canterbury with Reims over 45 years ago when he was Mayor.

Domaine Evremond takes its name from Charles de Saint‐Evremond, a Frenchman and the first true ambassador for Champagne, who fueled its popularity in England during the court of Charles II.

A poet, epicurean and literary critic, he is buried in Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey.

Patrick McGrath managing director of Hatch Mansfield, said: 'We are delighted to be working with Champagne Taittinger on this project and we have a joint ambition to produce very high quality wines using our combined expertise.

'As a team, we have a real belief in the potential of English Sparkling Wine. Our aim is not just to be an English sparkling winemaker, but also to be a significant supporter of the whole English wine industry.'

Global warming means parts of England that are similar to the Champagne region of France geologically are now similar in terms of climate too.