Premium English sparkling wine to try this summer

Rich and toasty aromas are accompanied by some serious depth, weight and texture on the palate. It has attractive brioche and mineral notes, the ripeness and flesh making this vinous fizz suitable for food. Impressive acidity gives balance and frames the wine well. Youthful and powerful, with a long, saline finish.

This recent release of Hattingley’s top cuvée is a bold and compelling wine. A barrel-fermented blend of 70% Chardonnay with 30% Pinot Noir, it has spent 30 months on its lees. The taste is like warm buttered toast spread with tangy lemon curd, while the finish is long, focussed and satisfying. Still in the flush of youth, it has undoubted hidden depths and needs time to evolve.

Guy Smith and Laura Evans first planted their 1.1ha Higher Plot in 2008, and this is a multi-vintage blend of the first three harvests. Made with no sulphur and no sugar, it is challenging to taste but extraordinarily rewarding too. From its deep golden colour to its aromas of bruised red apple, honey, spice and roasted hazelnuts, it's a thrillingly complex, edgy and fascinating mouthful of fizz.

Oz Clarke: Full and dry, with a telling streak of mineral stoniness softened by creamy hazelnut which will increase with age. Sarah Jane Evans: Clean, punchy delivery, with vibrant and thrilling freshness. Finely balanced. The finish is tight, but promises well with time. Tina Gellie: Ripe mango, yellow apple and floral notes. Zingy and fresh, with an elegant finish. Recommended by Stephen Skelton MW

From a terroir that closely matches that of Champagne, this also matches the flavour characteristics of some of the region's better examples. Beautiful floral notes on the nose, and even some grapefruit. On the palate it has peppery, spicy nutmeg notes with a crisp, mineral character, and a long, refreshing finish.

A lovely fizz with fine, well-defined acidity that works as a counterpoint to the rich, bready notes on the palate. Savoury leesy, spicy notes and dried apricot fruit add extra interest and pleasure. The finish is long with a salty iodine tang.

<p>This 6.5-hectare vineyard in the South Downs of West Sussex was planted in 2006. The base wine of this hugely complex bubbly was kept on its lees for nine months, then kept on bottle lees for five years. Aromas are of cinnamon-infused lemon cream, with honey-almond praline and strawberry-field fragrance. The palate is rich, honeyed and creamy, yet freshly cut through with laser-sharp spines of acidity. Peaches, strawberries and cream, nutmeg and lemon syllabub flavours emerge, full, robust, concentrated and refreshing, framed around a finely-textured mousse.</p>

Very perfumed with white flowers and creamy notes. The palate is nicely balanced with some crunchy apples to crisp up the buttery character. A rich and distinctive wine whose age has added some great complexity. Impressive lengthy finish.

Launched to coincide with the royal nuptials, this new special cuvée in individually numbered bottles is a 50/50 blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, fermented and aged in old oak with 24 months on its lees. Full of tangy lemon and white peach fruit, it is also spicy and energetic, with a lovely juicy finish. Given its breeding and youth, it will need time to fully evolve, so I’d suggest tucking it away for the first anniversary rather than rushing to pop the cork too soon.

The flagship wine from Henry and Kaye Laithwaite’s flint-strewn vineyard near Marlow, this is a delightfully characterful blend of Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier that has spent three years on its lees. There is a gentle rusticity to the bruised red apple fruit and spice flavours, and a lovely freshness and energy on the finish. The most impressive wine so far from this estate.

If there were an award for stylish packaging, Hoffmann and Rathbone’s beautifully presented bottles would win hands down. The wines themselves tend towards a rich style, and this is no exception. Partially barrel-fermented with 60 months ageing on its lees, it is savoury and smoky with a creamy texture and a very typically English mouthwatering acidity.

Was ever an English wine launch more anticipated than that of the first sparkling wines from Mark and Sarah Driver’s hugely ambitious Sussex project? Their 2015 Rosé and this 2014 Blanc de Blancs were first revealed in April, and both are well made and promising, with the Blanc de Blancs richer than I’d have expected but showing attractive greengage and fresh bread flavours. A Blanc de Noirs and Classic Cuvée will follow.

A refreshing and elegant blend of the three Champagne varieties, this is a delightfully fruity, juicy and engaging fizz- all the more so when you discover that it's part of a not-for-profit community project offering ecotherapy to its staff of volunteer workers. The vineyard is organic and the aim is to produce enough bottles to allow the estate to run grant-free.