Merry Christmas from the Glorious Crouch Valley

2023 has most certainly been a year to remember, and we thank you all sincerely for your continued support, custom and great company throughout. Nothing motivates us more than producing fantastic wine for fabulous people.

Whether you’re planning a chilled, quiet Christmas, or celebrating in style with friends and family, we wish you all a very relaxing festive holiday ahead.

For now, let’s look back over the past 12 months as we round up the highlights of 2023….

Jacque and Olly arrived last Summer, and wasted no time making their mark on our Winery ahead of harvest. Despite Vintage 2023 being the Estate’s biggest harvest in recent memory, Jacque and Olly’s effortlessly cool demeanours and awesome oeno-abilities led the team flawlessly throughout.

Our resident Apprentice, Jo, hit the ground running straight into Vintage 2023! Now with 3 months of practical experience under his belt, Jo begins the Crop Protection course at Plumpton covering sustainability, environmental legislation, vineyard nutrition, and of course, machinery operations. Perhaps Jo will be operating ‘The Beast’ machine picker during Vintage 2024? Watch this space…

Our 2023 round-up wouldn’t be complete without a shout-out to everyone that supported the exceptionally bountiful 2023 harvest.

Over 300 tonnes of Estate fruit were picked and processed over the course of 4 weeks.

News of the exceptionally bountiful and quality crop gained attention from the press and we enjoyed a flurry of media attention with visits from the BBC and ITV journalists, as well as mentions on Radio 5 and The Times throughout the summer.

2023 saw unprecedented media attention for Essex wine, and in particular, the Crouch Valley Wine Region.

While we’ve always known that our microclimate is perfect for encouraging ultra-ripe fruit (low frost-risk, heavy London clay soils and low rainfall to name just three critical elements), the national recognition presents an exciting time for us all in the local winemaking community.

In fact, the Essex Wine Awards were launched last June, a testament to the county’s growing identity as a winemaking region in it’s own right.

We were thrilled to receive 5 Silver Medals, plus a Gold Medal for our Barons Lane Rose 2021.

Coming up in 2024....

2024 will see the release of new vintage wines including our hotly anticipated Barons Lane Red 2022 which is currently resting in bottle before release.

With over 175,000 litres of wine safely in tank, the Winery team certainly have a busy New Year ahead blending and filtering ahead of Springtime bottling. Join us for one of our Summer Open Days (dates will be released in January) and see the winery in action for yourselves.

There's no rest for the Vineyard Team, who will be planting New Hall's 11 acre 'Wood Field' with 11 acres of red grape varieties to keep up with the demand of our red wines!

New Hall Wine Estate will close for Christmas at 3pm on Saturday 23rd December and reopen at 9am on Tuesday 2nd January 2024.

We look forward to seeing you in the New Year!