Likely coal mines, that fantastic accent and Heaven 17…but would you think world class wines and wineries tours?
It turns out that the laws of wine making are all wrong especially as they claim you can’t make decent wine north of northern France.
A few years ago, some very hardy or some might say slightly “off their trolley” people started planting vines in Yorkshire even as far north as Leeds and although the wines these produce might not quite meet the approval of top London restaurants, for the rest of us who don’t want to pay £200 a bottle for vinegar (sorry, white wine), they seem to be hitting the mark.
There are two ingredients to a successful wine business – good soil and wineries tours.
Exactly whether the latter helps the grapes grow or is just an excuse for those who want a more upmarket version of brewery tours we’re not exactly sure, but whatever the reason, quite a number of the Yorkshire vineyards are including tours and tasting sessions naturally.
One such vineyard is Leventhorpe Vineyard near Leeds. If you actually listen to people like Oz Clark of BBC Food & Drink fame, then you’ll be pleased to know he has praised George Bowden and the Leventhorpe Vineyard, so now you’ve got no excuse not to go sample some true grit Yorkshire wines.
If you think about it, 20+ years ago Roy Clarke was hinting that Yorkshire would be good for wine with the title of his BBC comedy Last of the Summer Wine, and as if by magic, there’s even a vineyard in the same town that this is filmed – Holmfirth Vineyard.
For more information from someone who knows something about wine, see the Simon Burnton Guardian article all about Yorkshire vineyards.
As a sidenote – this isn’t really related to Yorkshire wine, but for those who aren’t familiar with Yorkshire, this video might help convince you:
More Yorkshire Resources:
Visitor attractions around Yorkshire
Hotels in Yorkshire
Self-catering in Yorkshire
