Yesterday we donned our gladrags, and caught the Golden Hind up to Paddington. Not something we do very often. We quite like it here, where shorts and t-shirt do fine! Actually it was a scramble to find suitable rags for the splendiferous Vintners Livery Hall AND the 28C forecast heat. And then, SO lucky - got seats in the Golden Hind’s fancy silver service restaurant car. Proper porridge and somerset-smoked kipper. One of the West Country’s best secrets!

It was the UKVA annual awards ceremony where the English and Welsh Wine of the Year medals and trophies are given out with due ceremony.

House of Commons last year, but the current UKVA Chair, Paul Langham of a’Beckett’s Vineyard in Wiltshire, has fostered closer relations between the UKVA and the Vintner’s Company, one of the original 12 city of London livery companies. Seems a good move and you have to admit, appropriate. And Vintner’s Hall with the Company’s 600 year history, is hugely impressive. Though, in the London sun, have to confess, did rather hanker after last year’s riverside terrace.

Only our 2nd time of going. We used to be, with a long record of international awards, maybe a bit unfairly sniffy about the UK competition. But English wines’ star has risen so far that now it really does seem worthwhile. Only have to look round the room. First person we saw was Oz Clarke. And many other household names of the wine world.

This year, a family occasion again. Elder son Ned and wife Paula came too. Here we all are. Paul Langham announced the results (above) and Rupert Clevely, Master of the Vintners (below), handed out the trophies, both with great aplomb. Food was good too.

The great excitement of the occasion is who will get the Wine of the Year trophy, and who the Winemaker of the Year, neither announced beforehand, as all the other trophies are. Wine of the Year went to a Sussex organic sparkling, Will Davenport’s Limney 2009. Winemaker of the Year was the lovely Emma Rice, winemaker at Hattingley Valley with their first vintage. Great to see newcomers in both roles!

Afterwards there was time to wander down the river path to the Embankment Gardens and brilliant Gordon’s Wine Bar for a relaxed drink with Ned and Paula.

In the vineyard the grapes are swelling and the long grass is long gone. Madeleine Angevine topped, though the later Kerning still to do. Biggest flowering since 2006. A reasonable set, though a bit uneven because of the episodes of thundery rain. And, we now realise, some of the “early bunch stem necrosis” that other vineyards have been reporting, on the first bunches of the Madeleine Angevine. Though not in the Kernling. You can see it here (right).  Some of the buds on the bottom bunch have just rotted off. But there are really big 2nd and 3rd bunches.  So, so far so good, we are still looking at a  really big potential crop.

Oh and a great WineSkills, all the way over in Sussex, about using and caring for barrels. I wrote about it on our Facebook page here>> . And we finally bashed in new chestnut posts in the narrow Kernling rows (see 4 May post), except for a very few rows we couldn’t get the machine down. Read more about that here>>