In ‘Make it an English Sparkling Summer’ wine experts Oz Clarke and Tom Surgey ask “why is England now so good at making sparkling wine?”
Drawing on many years tasting sparkling wine and Champagne, talking to producers and visiting the vineyards of the world’s best sparkling wine estates, Oz explains that it’s more than just warmer temperatures that has led him to crown English Sparkling Wine as “the newest, new classic wine” in this, the final YouTube video of the 2026 WineAlive Summer Sipping series.
Watch to understand why greensand soil, found in many southern English counties, is so special. And hear why, in an eccentric turn of conversation, kale is espoused by Oz as he and Tom taste these three English Sparkling Wines, one of which was produced just miles from the set of Downton Abbey. Can an episode be more English?
“English Wine; it’s a sensational thing. It’s very modern; it’s absolutely here to stay and it’s only getting better.” Tom Surgey
‘Make it an English Sparkling Summer’ with Oz Clarke and Tom Surgey is the 7th and final episode in the WineAlive Summer Sipping Series 2026. Other blogs and videos in the series include “Celebrate English Wine Week’, ‘Reach for Cava this Summer’, ‘New Wave Summer Softs’, ‘It’s Rosé Season!’, Love Albariño with Rìas Baixas’ and ‘Smart Summer Wine-based Cocktails’; see them all here:
Catch WineAlive’s full Summer Sipping series on YouTube at @wine-alive
