Balfour Hush Heath Estate

Richard and Leslie Balfour-Lynn bought Hush Heath in 2002 as a weekend retreat and gradually discovered that the estate's south-facing greensand slopes, sheltered by mature woodland from the worst of the Kentish winds, were as well suited to viticulture as any in the county. The 1503 Blanc de Blancs — named for the year Hush Heath was first mentioned in historical records — demonstrates what the estate can do when it reaches for precision. The Balfour Brut Rosé, however, is the wine that has made the estate's reputation in London's restaurants.

It is an exceptionally pretty wine. Pale copper-pink, with persistent delicate bubbles and a nose of wild strawberry, red apple and cream biscuit — it is the kind of wine that causes Instagram problems and resolves dinner-party dilemmas simultaneously. Made from Pinot Noir grown on the estate's greensand soils and treated with the care that Leslie Balfour-Lynn, its dedicatee, clearly deserves, it has a genuinely charming quality that the best English sparkling wines sometimes sacrifice in their pursuit of Champagne-like gravity.

The estate's setting is among Kent's most beautiful. The 400 acres of High Weald parkland, with its oak woodland, lake, and converted oast house winery, feels like an English country estate from a novel rather than a working vineyard, and the visitor experience reflects that aesthetic. Tours are well-organised, the tasting room is convivial, and the estate's event programme — open days, harvest experiences, wine dinners — gives visitors multiple reasons to return.