After a decade of development and testing, Exton Park's belief is that there is only one way to make world class sparkling wine in the UK - patience.

This iconic Blanc de Noirs masters an average of 28 Pinot Noir reserve wines from Exton Park's library, many from their very earliest plantings, to create a complex and sophisticated sparkling wine. Favoured by gourmets and gastronomes, the Blanc de Noirs is a true showcase for the precision of sparkling Pinot Noir.

Pale gold in the glass, it opens with notes of freshly baked brioche and a touch of lime tree blossom, moving to rich rounded fruit and a long, delicately spiced finish.

This famed expression is favoured by foodies. The perfect accompaniment to nuts as an aperitif, fresh or smoked trout, or sushi.

Corinne Seely, head winemaker (her experience was gained, at 24 years old with Domaine de Chevalier and a further stint at Château Lynch-Bages) says, "The possibility exists for Exton Park Vineyard to become one of the best ambassadors for English Sparking Wines in the world. Exton Park has chosen a different course that's definitely not vintage and not quite non-vintage, with an approach that puts 'reserve wines' front and centre, with the newest cuvées playing a supporting role."

"So rich on the nose that I couldn't stop inhaling it - eyes closed, my whole body drinking in the aroma. I almost forgot to taste it! Lemon crème anglaise, frangipani, fresh-out-the-oven challah bread. Heady florals, like an orchard of plum blossom and hedgerow clouds of blackthorn blossom. Lemongrass. Lemon verbena. The acidity is breath taking. It's a sherbet-shot needle through marble bones. Hazelnuts mandolined over chicory leaves. A drop of walnut oil. I know that Corinne Seely has always said she doesn't want to make champagne-like wine, she doesn't want to make a copy. But when I tasted this blind, I scrawled in my notebook, 'this tastes like champagne, a fine one, stunning'. There is such depth to this wine that it left my neck and spine tingling. Drink 2021 - 2030."
17.5 points
Tamlyn Curran, JR Purple Pages, (April 2021)