The French invade Grape Britain! Champagne brand Taittinger has bought farmland in Kent to produce local sparkling wines

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Taittinger will become the first French champagne company to produce bubbly in the UK after buying farmland in Kent. 

The company has teamed up with British wine firm Hatch Mansfield and private investors to purchase 69 hectares of farmland at Stone Stile Farm in Kent, south east England, in the £4m investment plan.

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

President of Taittinger Champagne Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger (left) has teamed up with managing director of Hatch Mansfield Patrick McGrath (right) to produce bubbly in the UK 

The 69 hectares of farmland at Stone Stile Farm in Kent, south east England, was chosen due to a combination of soil, climate and topography. Mr Taittinger and Mr McGrath are pictured holding chalky soil at the farm 

It is the first time a French Champagne company has set up in the UK - and comes after centuries of Gallic mocking of the poor quality of British wine.

Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger, president of 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. 

'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.' 

The company said it had chosen the former apple farm, close to Canterbury, due to a combination of soil, climate and topography.

The drink can not be called Champagne, because that is exclusive to the north east French region where it is made. 

The former apple farm - known as Little Stone Stile Farm - is situated close to Canterbury (pictured on the map)

'The plots to be planted are a maximum of 80 metres above sea level, with chalk soil and south-facing slopes, creating an ideal 'terroir' to plant and grow high quality Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier vines,' it said.

The first fruit for winemaking is expected to be available in 2020 and bottled in 2021, with 300,000 bottles to be produced per year when fully operational.

Britain is second only to France in consumption of Champagne, with retailers shipping 32.7 million bottles in 2014.

It has been reported that the new wine will be named Domaine Évremond, after Charles de Saint-Évremond, who is credited with helping introduce 17th-century London to the habit of quaffing champagne (file picture of a bottle of Taittinger)

The UK is Taittinger's biggest export market, accounting for a quarter of its sales outside France. 

It has been reported that the new wine will be named Domaine Évremond, after Charles de Saint-Évremond, who is credited with helping introduce 17th-century London to the habit of quaffing champagne.

The investment comes during a boom in the consumption of English sparkling wine. 

Figures in August this year found that Prosecco had overtaken champagne for the first time in Britain. 

According to US research company IRI, sales of Prosecco had jumped 72 per cent in value in the year to mid-July, reaching £339 million, US research company IRI found.

In contrast, sales of Champagne rose just 1.2 per cent year-on-year, with total sales worth £250 million.

Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, which represents the UK industry, told the Guardian: 'You cannot get a much better seal of approval than a Champagne house as renowned as Taittinger recognising the quality of the sparkling wine we can produce on UK soil.'