Berry Bros & Rudd: Summer wine picks

Founded in London in 1698, Berry Bros & Rudd is the UK’s oldest wine and spirit merchant. The business began as a grocer, located opposite St James’s Palace, owned by the Widow Bourne.

Her descendants continued to run the business through successive generations, becoming suppliers to the Royal Family under George III in 1760.

George Berry joined the company in the early 19th century, via marriage and business partnerships. He increasingly focused trade on wine sales. Under his sons George and Henry the business began trading as Berry Bros in 1845.

Hugh Rudd came on board in 1920. From a family of Norwich wine merchants, he helped to establish the firm’s vinous connections and credentials. The business was renamed Berry Bros & Rudd in the 1940s.

Scroll down to see Decanter’s picks from BBR’s summer selection

Expansion & innovation

The company remains in family hands today and despite its historic legacy, has pioneered innovations. It was the first independent wine merchant to build temperature-controlled wine cellars in 1967.

In 1994 it launched bbr.com, the very first wine merchant’s website in the UK.

Last autumn saw the first-ever Berry Bros & Rudd online fine wine auction. It featured bottles from the private cellar of Ian Mill KC, considered one of the greatest collections of Burgundy in the world, and achieved over £500,000, leading to it being hailed a ‘resounding success’.

Best value buys for summer

If you’re looking to buy now rather than bid, however, the current range has plenty of great options. As ever, the classic French regions are well represented, with choices ranging from top-end Bordeaux châteaux to the ever-dependable Good Ordinary Claret (£13.95).

The Own Selection wines always offer reliable drinking pleasure at more accessible price points. A great choice for summer is Berry Bros & Rudd Beaujolais-Villages by Louis Claude Desvignes 2023, a fruity and floral red that’s just £15.95.

Also coming in at under £20 is Domaine de Triennes, Rosé, IGP Méditerranée 2024, a pale Provence pink with with sweet and succulent berry fruit. Perfect for hot summer days.

Bordeaux & Burgundy

‘Our Burgundy selection has plenty of gems this season, but I can especially recommend two quality-focused growers at either end of the Côte d’Or,’ says says Adam Bruntlett, Burgundy and Loire buyer.

‘For me, it’s hard to look beyond Laurent Fournier’s Marsannay wines or David Moreau’s juicy and elegant expressions of Maranges and Santenay. Succulent and fruit-forward with ripe tannins, they are perfect summer wines. Served slightly cool, they have the versatility to pair with most dishes at a summer barbecue or picnic,’ he adds (see tasting notes below).

Bordeaux junior buyer Olly Hallworth recommends Château La Gaffelière 2016 (£76). ‘With vineyards nestled just below the esteemed Château Ausone on St-Émilion’s prized limestone slopes, Château La Gaffelière boasts one of the most enviable terroirs on the Right Bank,’ he explains.

‘Under the stewardship of the Malet Roquefort family, the estate has quietly become a benchmark for value, producing wines that consistently punch well above their weight. The 2016 vintage is now beginning to open up offering both immediate pleasure and cellar potential. In terms of price-to-quality ratio, few wines from the Right Bank can compete.’

Another favourite for Hallworth is Dame de Montrose 2014 from Château Montrose in St-Estèphe. ‘Montrose is undeniably at the top of its game, consistently pushing Bordeaux’s First Growths with its Grand Vin.

La Dame de Montrose, the estate’s second wine, offers a great opportunity to experience the wines of the estate at a remarkably accessible price,’ he says.

Loire gems

The Loire line-up includes Anjou producers Domaine Belargus and Terra Vita Vinum, new to the BBR portfolio last autumn. From the latter, Yoan Bernard, fine wine buyer, recommends Grandes Rogeries 2021 (see tasting note below).

‘This is a complex Chenin, made with very low sulphur usage, biodynamic and agroforestry principles,’ he says.

Bernard also highlights one of my favourites in the current white range, Alexandre Bain’s thrilling Pierre Précieuse 2019 (see tasting note below).

‘This Sauvignon Blanc is perfect for food pairing,’ he says. ‘A different style to what you would expect from Pouilly-Fumé, it’s great!’

Meanwhile Natalie Earl loved Charles Joguet’s Les Charmes, Chinon 2020 (see tasting note below). ‘Anne-Charlotte Genet and Kevin Fontaine have been doing an outstanding job at the domaine in the last few years,’ says Bernard.

‘Good for both hot weather or pairing, their precise Chinon can be served slightly chilled on a hot summer’s day, but has the capacity and body to be a good paring wine for a more gastro approach,’ he adds.

Champagne & sparkling

Also new to BBR in spring were the Champagnes of Matthieu Godmé-Guillaume. I really enjoyed his VVV cuvée, a blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from vineyards across Verzenay, Verzy and Villers-Marmery (see tasting note below).

‘A complex wine, this was based on the vibrant 2021 harvest, with 45% reserve wine added to bring depth and spice,’ says Davy Zyw, senior buyer.

Zyw also highlights the English sparkling wines of Hambledon in Hampshire, jointly owned by BBR and Symington Family Estates (see tasting note below).

‘This is the best Chardonnay terroir in England, pure ancient chalk soils that show a real feeling of sense of place in the wine,’ he explains.

The line-up includes the first-ever Blanc de Blancs from Hambledon. ‘It’s made from a 2018 base – an amazing vintage for sparkling in the UK, mirroring its brilliance in Champagne,’ adds Zyw.

Investment options

Following the addition of Heitz Cellar to its portfolio last year, Berry’s has welcomed another new California producer. Haynes Vineyard planted its first Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vines in 1967 in Coombsville. They are now the oldest vines of these varieties in the Napa Valley.

‘I’m delighted to say that our US wine selection is really challenging usual preconceptions of what a Californian or Oregon wine should taste like,’ says senior buyer Catriona Felsted MW.

‘Take our 2020 Haynes Vigneron Chardonnay, for example – tasting that blind, you would never in a million years think it was from Napa Valley. It is so Burgundian in feel and flavour with a beautifully crisp palate and poised minerality. It is so sophisticated and utterly exquisite.’

The 94-pt Vigneron Chardonnay is a great investment bottle that will reward cellaring (see tasting note below). As will 97-pt Testamatta 2022 from cult Tuscany producer Bibi Graetz.

But whether you’re buying to lay down or buying to drink now, the Berry Bros & Rudd portfolio is packed with dependably good choices.

Top wines from Berry Bros & Rudd: 15 to try

Selected by James Button, Jonathan Cristaldi, Natalie Earl and Julie Sheppard 

Related articles

• Symington Family Estates: New leadership as Rob Symington takes on MD role at Berry Bros & Rudd
• UK trio convicted in ‘£37m wine investment fraud’ case
• Best buys at Majestic