Harpenden wine producer raises a glass to success
A SPARKLING Australian wine produced by a Harpenden resident is still bubbling away as one of the most popular bottles on the market. Islay Kennedy, from the Roundwood Park area, started producing Griffith Park sparkling rose a few years ago after spottin
A SPARKLING Australian wine produced by a Harpenden resident is still bubbling away as one of the most popular bottles on the market.
Islay Kennedy, from the Roundwood Park area, started producing Griffith Park sparkling rose a few years ago after spotting a gap in the market.
Her sparkling rose hit the supermarket shelves in 2007 and it quickly won acclaim from connoisseurs around the world for its high quality and affordable price. Off the back of its success, she then started producing a sparkling brut which won praise in equal measure.
When the Herts Advertiser first wrote about the popular bubbly a year ago, the rose had already been awarded a gold award for the second year running in the Effervescents du Monde, placing it among the top ten sparkling rose wines in the world and ahead of champagnes at more than double the price. The brut had also won a silver medal.
Since then Griffith Park has continued to fly off the shelves and has won numerous other accolades. The rose was awarded a bronze medal in the International Wine and Spirit Competition, a highly commended in the Decanter World Wine Awards and a bronze award for being the best value sparkling rose in the International Wine Challenge.
The sparkling brut has been awarded a silver medal in this year's Woman and Wines of the World International Competition.
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New Zealand-born Islay, a mother-of-two, grew up in the wine-making Barossa Valley in South Australia and studied wine at the renowned Roseworthy College in Adelaide.
She travels back to her roots four times a year to work with top wine-makers and blend the sparkling rose and brut Griffith Park wine herself.
She said: "These are top quality, bottle-fermented wines that you can be proud to serve on special occasions without breaking the bank. Tightening your belt doesn't mean you have to miss out on great sparkling wine this Christmas and New Year".
The wine is currently on special offer at Asda and Morrisons and costs just under �5 a bottle, compared to the normal price of �6.98.
For more information visit www.griffithpark.co.uk
