When corks pop in Kent or Sussex these days it's often not champagne being drunk but the local fizz, and as often as not it's being opened to celebrate yet another major award being handed out to a nearby winery. The latest good news came earlier this month when a rosé from Denbies Estate in Sussex was honoured at the International Wine Challenge, but then most of us know by now that the English can make a decent drop. What we didn't know, perhaps, was that we can make it in Yorkshire, where decent drops tend to come in foaming nut-brown pints.
It's supposed to be too cold to grow wine grapes north of the 50th parallel, which would exclude all of Britain except the tiniest southernmost outcrop of Cornwall. But it's not just global warming that has the big champagne houses glancing nervously across La Manche. Two other factors have played a part in the current sunny state of our wine industry: the creation of new grape varieties capable of ripening in cold, wet environments, and a growing number of people crazy enough to plant them.
Nobody decides to make wine in Yorkshire without having a story to tell. This may be a good moment to hear them for yourself: May is National Wine Month (nationalwinemonth.org), and 28 May is the first day of English Wine Week (englishwineweek.co.uk), prompting many of the nation's winemakers to put on special events. Sure, Yorkshire wine is not as good as some from Chile or Chianti, but it's also not as far away. And it's not all about the produce – points should be awarded for passion and personality.
When I visited two weeks ago, buds were showing on the vines, which will soon blossom. Between now and harvest in late autumn, grapes will form, swell and sweeten. The welcome will surely be the same whenever you visit, but vines are definitely more exciting when they are laden with fruit. Most winemakers will, with a bit of forewarning, show you around the grounds, tell you as much detail as you want to hear, and then usher you into their visitor centre/winery/kitchen – facilities vary wildly – for a tasting.
From the chalky hills of Champagne to the fiery "terra rossa" of Australia's Coonawarra, the world's great wine areas often have challenging geology that these plants – capable of thriving in the most inauspicious environments – take to with gusto. As I poke around a wet vineyard near Leeds on a damp May afternoon, one word springs to mind to describe the terroir: muddy.
This is Leventhorpe, at 25 years old the grandfather of the Yorkshire wine trade. In an unprepossessing metal building at the bottom of a field off the A642, George Bowden fashions wines that have been singled out for praise by the likes of Oz Clarke and Rick Stein.
"Some people might call it a shed, some people might call it a chateau," he says, though you'd have to have had a few too many samples of his wares to choose the latter. A geologist by trade, he hunted down a spot with its own microclimate, where vines are shielded from harmful frost and excess water.
Most of Yorkshire's commercial vineyards are in the southern part of the Vale of York. Two lie further north, Yorkshire Heart (a little to the west) and Ryedale (to the north-east). At the latter I met a winemaker who has dedicated himself to the distribution and, more recently, cultivation of wines for two decades but cannot drink for medical reasons. He has to take my word for the fact that his two rosés, Yorkshire Sunset and Dark Rose, are really good. Seventy miles away on the edge of the Peak District, a vineyard just outside Holmfirth – famous for the BBC's Last of the Summer Wine – is perhaps the county's most ambitious project. While at least one of their Yorkshire rivals uses wood chips from a box to give their wines an oaky flavour – not a sin, but certainly a shortcut – at Holmfirth they use barrels bought from Château Lafite. The main crop here is solaris, a fungus-resistant German hybrid, with which the area is already seeing some impressive results.
Becky and Ian Sheveling retired to Holmfirth four years ago in their mid-30s, but failed to shake off the turbocharged ambition that put them in the position to do so in the first place. Not content with their seven hectares of vines, they are now burrowing beneath them to create five-star eco-friendly accommodation that promises to combine all the positive features of luxury hotels and rabbit warrens. And they've opened a chic visitor centre and restaurant. Last year they sold their entire product in just four months, and had to serve disappointed visitors – one of whom had apparently driven all the way from Italy – other people's wine instead.
But most Yorkshire vineyards report a bumper 2010, and the resulting wine has just been bottled. Visitors can look forward to the first of last summer's wine.
• Simon stayed at Stables Cottage, near Selby – a renovated former stable that sleeps five on an arable farm close to the Selby canal. Rent the cottage through Cottages4you (cottages4you.co.uk) – prices from £184 for a three-night stay. For more information on the area, see visityorkshire.co.uk
Holmfirth Tours at 11am daily (booking advised), restaurant and visitor centre open 9.30am-6pm, 0113-815 5588, holmfirthvineyard.com
Leventhorpe Tastings of wine and Yorkshire cheese 11am-4pm daily, 12pm-4.30pm Sundays, 0113-288 9088
Ryedale Tours and tastings 28 May and 6 June . Call in advance, 01653 658507, ryedalevineyards.co.uk
Summerhouse Vineyard open 4-5 June, 11am-5pm for tours and tastings. 01302 721688, summerhousevineyard.co.uk
Yorkshire Heart: for information phone 01423 330716
Simon Burnton's wine blog is at cellarfella.com
CHEERS! WHERE TO CELEBRATE ENGLISH WINE WEEK
As part of English Wine Week most vineyards are hosting open days, tours and tutored tastings. Here's our pick of the events or visit englishwineweek.co.uk to find one near you.
Cornwall
Camel Valley Vineyard (01208 77959, camelvalley.com) has a seafood barbecue with Michelin-starred chef Nathan Outlaw on 30 May; Polgoon Vineyard & Orchard (01736 333946, polgoon.co.uk) is offering free tastings of cider as well as wine; and Bosue Vineyard (01726 843159, cornwallwines.co.uk) has a charity open day on 30 May.
Devon
Sharpham Winery (01803 732203, sharpham.com) will be converted into a gallery for the week, showing local art and sculpture; experts from Eastcott Vineyard (01837 811012, eastcottvineyard.co.uk) are giving a talk on 29 May about how to grow vines in your garden.
Kent
Chapel Down Wines (01580 766111, englishwinesgroup.com) is running free tours three times a day and has lots of special offers. Terlingham Vineyards (07771 601736, terlinghamvineyard.co.uk) near Folkestone, which has its own winery, open for tours and tastings from 2-4pm daily all week.
Surrey
Denbies Wine Estate (01306 742002, denbies.co.uk) is running vineyard trails, a cheese- and wine-making experience and a champagne vs sparkling wine taste-off.
Midlands and the North
The Arden Hotel (01789 298682, theardenhotelstratford.com) in Stratford is hosting a trip on 3 June to the Welcombe Hills Vineyard (01789 731071, welcombehills.co.uk); and Renishaw Hall Vineyard (01246 432310, renishaw-hall.co.uk) in South Yorkshire is devoting a day to wine, cheese and chutney appreciation.
Wales
Yes, we know … but Wernddu Farm Vineyard (01600 740104, wernddu.com) is getting into the spirit from 31 May to 3 June with the launch of its 2010 organic white, plus alpaca walking and homemade cakes.
Rachel Dixon