Simpsons Wine Estate – Interview With Ruth & Charles Simpson

There is no denying that English Sparkling Wine is on the rise, becoming an undeniable contender to Traditional Method Sparkling Wines around the world. To the English, it’s becoming a fan favourite and a go-to Glass of Bubbly, its quality is improving year on year and thanks to innovators and those willing to follow their dreams, the choice of English Sparkling Wine is expanding.

In this exclusive feature we speak with Ruth & Charles Simpson, the incredible owners of Simpsons Wine Estate, in England, let’s find out a little about their lives in the English wine industry.

Can You Tell Us A Little About Yourself & How Your Incredible Journey Into The Wine Industry Began?

“Twenty-two years ago, we cast aside our respective international careers in order to establish and run a high-quality, boutique, wine business in rural France. Our passion for wine and desire to invest in an, ‘emerging’ wine-producing area, rather than an area that was already well established, led us to the exciting and highly diverse French wine region of Languedoc-Roussillon. The dream had always been to produce quality wine and the property we found, the stunningly beautiful Domaine de Sainte Rose, provided us with the perfect raw materials. With 40 hectares of vineyards now in production and a winery onsite, we have built a thriving business, with customers around the world enjoying an eclectic range of top quality, award-winning wines created from 14 different grape varieties.

In 2012, attracted by the quality of the terroir and the opportunity to become part of what is one of the most dynamic wine producing regions of the world, we brought our expertise and savoir-faire back to the UK, establishing Simpsons’ Wine Estate, on the iconic chalk soils of the North Downs of Kent, with an aspiration to produce the finest quality English wine.  With a strong focus on provenance, Simpsons Wine now produces a highly-acclaimed range of exclusively estate grown still and sparkling wines, including the Roman Road Chardonnay 2018, which won Best in Show and a Platinum Medal in the 2020 Decanter World Wine Awards and Flint Fields Blanc de Noirs, which won Best English Sparkling Wine in the 2022 Champagne and Sparkling Wine World Championships.”

Do You Remember Your First Experience With Sparkling Wine? When It Was And What Kind Of Label It Was?

“Honestly, we don’t remember our very first experience with sparkling wine. It would have been a long time ago!!! We do remember our first experience with English Sparkling wine, which was in 2010 and was a bottle of Nyetimber Classic Cuvée NV. This sparked our interest in the English industry and showed what was possible in the marginal English climate when the optimum sites are planted with the best-suited varieties, with wines crafted in styles which allow these varieties to shine.”

How Rewarding And Challenging Is Managing Your Own Winery?

“We love the variety that our job provides and the fact that no two days are the same! The best thing about wine production is that it requires a unique combination of disciplines in order to create the end product and to be successful. It begins with farming, the importance of the land, choosing the appropriate rootstock, clones and grape varieties and then meticulous viticulture. This is followed by the technical winemaking side, which in our case involves the investment and use of cutting-edge oenological equipment and applying a minimal intervention approach to maintain the purity and elegance of the fruit. Finally, there is the luxury goods sales and marketing of the finished product, the all-important presentation and positioning of the brand.”

When It Comes To Pairing Your Sparkling Wine With Food, Do You Have Any Favourite Combinations That You Would Personally Recommend?

“The biscuity autolytic notes of our Chalklands Classic Cuvée mingle with zesty citrus and green apple, making it a perfect companion to some freshly shucked East Coast Oysters or good old-fashioned fish and chips!

Or try pairing the deliciously subtle flavour profile of Canterbury Rose Sparkling Rosé with a fabulous summer fruit pavlova!”

If You Could Choose A Person In The World, Past Or Present, To Have A Glass of Bubbly With; Who Would It Be And Why? What Would You Drink And Why? What Would You Discuss And Why?

“It would be amazing to go back in time and share a glass of the original Veuve Cliquot Champagnes with the Widow Barbe Nicole Cliquot Ponsardin herself! She sounds like an incredibly determined and charismatic lady who overcame the very conservative traditions of the time to create a hugely successful business in an almost entirely male-dominated industry. It would have been great to discuss the merits of export, given she is credited with being one of the first exporters of Champagne and hear how she approached markets like Russia, (not on our export target list!), at a time when communication was so challenging.”

Can You Share With Us Some Of The Countries And Locations Around The World That You Can Enjoy A Glass Of Simpsons Wine?

“We are very excited about the opportunities for export and have launched our wines in the USA, South Korea, Lithuania and Iceland this year. This is in addition to our existing markets, which include Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Poland, Holland and Canada (Ontario and Quebec). Locations where you can enjoy a glass of Simpsons include onboard British Airways Club World flights, onboard the luxurious Belmond Pullman trains, The Pig Hotel Group, the terrace of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Knightsbridge, the Sky Garden at the top of The Shard and even in the onsite restaurants at Legoland in Denmark!”

What Future Plans Can Enthusiasts Of Simpsons Wine Look Forward To In The Coming Years?

“We are keen to continue developing our wine tourism offerings, given the demand for our experiences. This has been enhanced by the establishment of the Wine Garden of England, a dynamic group of 9 Kent producers focused on tourism collaboration. We have more and more drop-in visitors, coming past to taste or buy, so we are currently considering when and how to develop a permanent cellar door presence in order to best look after spontaneous visitors.”

Thank you Ruth & Charles, for sharing your story and experiences with us and we at Glass of Bubbly wish you the very best for the future!

Image belong to Thomas Alexander, Ruth Simpson, Charles Simpson and Simpsons Wine Estate (Ruth and Charles Simpson @ Thomas Alexander Photography 3). Glass of Bubbly was granted permission to use them.