RidgeView toasts the Queen's 80th

It was a right royal celebration for English wine company RidgeView last week when its sparkling wine was chosen to toast the Queen’s 80th birthday at a lunch at London’s Mansion House. The company’s Merret Grosvenor 2001, made from Chardonnay grapes, was selected after a blind-tasting by a panel of wine writers and Masters of Wine. Mike Roberts, RidgeView’s owner and winemaker, said, ‘The fact that we were chosen for the toast made us feel very, very honoured and special.’ But, he admitted, it was hard knowing about it for a few months and having to keep it a secret. The company is no stranger to honours. RidgeView’s Merret Bloomsbury 2002 won the International Wine and Spirit Competition’s Best Sparkling Wine, while its 2003 got a silver medal at the Effervescence du Monde, a competititon that ranks sparkling wines alongside champagne. And how would Mike describe his wine that was chosen for the toast? ‘It’s ageing like the Queen – most gracefully,’ he told ThirtyFifty.