FOLLOWING Dunesforde’s success at the 2022 WineGB awards, the boutique vineyard based in North Yorkshire is delighted to announce that two of their wines have now been selected by The Box Tree restaurant in Ilkley to add to their wine list.

Restaurant guests can now choose Queen of the North, an elegant sparkling wine with broad orchard fruit notes and a wonderfully long finish, or Dunesforde Solaris which radiates finesse and is bursting with acidity and character.

Founded in 2016, Dunesforde is one of the most northerly commercial vineyards in England and its wines are now appreciated far and wide. With the first wines launching less than three years ago, Dunesforde is now a multi-award-winning vineyard where Solaris, Bacchus, Pinot Noir Précoce and Pinot Gris varieties are grown. They are fast gaining a reputation for outstanding cool climate wines, added to which their 2018 Queen of the North sparkling wine was awarded this year’s regional WineGB award for best wine from the midlands and the north by English wine champion Oz Clarke. Another fan of this classic cuvée is TV presenter and wine expert Joe Fattorini who said, “Queen of the North is a wine which I loved, blending a floral perfume with a toasty character which comes from being made exactly the same way as Champagne.”

Peter Townsend, Head of Wine Development at Dunesforde, said: “We are delighted to have been selected to supply The Box Tree with two of our wines. Given their long-standing reputation as one of Yorkshire’s most iconic restaurants, we regard this as one of our greatest achievements to date. We hope that this will be the start of a long and mutually rewarding partnership as we very much share The Box Tree’s demand for excellence in all areas of our business.”

Didier Da Costa, Head Sommelier, at The Box Tree said: “Queen of the North is a surprising English-made assemblage, combining 70% of the floral and elegant Chardonnay and 30% of the charismatic and complex Pinot Noir with only fourteen months on lees. The final result is an exceptional sparkling wine with a delicate mousse giving freshness, finesse and elegance followed by ripe fruit, light yeast aromas and a smooth, creamy complexity on the palate.

“Dunesforde Solaris brings a new flavour to the North, after the Bacchus grape. This sixty-eight-year-old grape shows great potential in this Yorkshire terroir giving a fruity and aromatic wine with balance and a refreshing gooseberry style acidity. Both wines I am delighted to add on our wine list.”