Wine growing in the UK guide to be published

By Richard Siddle

Published: 23 April, 2014

The first practical guide on growing wine grapes in England and across the UK has been written by acclaimed English wine expert, Stephen Skelton MW.

His book, Wine Growing in Great Britain, hopes to not only provide a detailed guide to potential winemakers in this country, but also be equally useful to anyone growing grapes in other cool climate countries.

Skelton said the book has been "in non-scientific terms so that anyone can understand the subject and to relate to the very practical issues surrounding the growing of grapes in challenging climates".

It also takes in to consideration the commercial issues in starting a winery and what costs and overheads are involved in buying land and the subsequent management of the vineyard through to the likely income that could be made from selling grapes and bottles of wine to the trade.

Wine Growing in the UK

Skelton hopes it will be relevant to existing UK winemakers looking to "expand their vineyards and improve their winegrowing skills".

Wine Growing in Great Britain, which is published on May 15, covers not only the viticultural tasks involved, but also, uniquely, covers the financial aspects of UK wine growing: the costs of land, vineyard establishment and management, and the income from both grape sales and wine sales.

Key topics covered in the book include: site selection; vine varieties, clones and rootstocks for the UK; pruning and trellising systems for UK vineyards; site planning and preparation; vineyard nutrition; planting; machinery and equipment needed; frost protection; weed control; protected vinegrowing; pest and disease control; trunk diseases; and organic and biodynamic viticulture.

Wine Growing in Great Britain costs £30 and will be available on the print-on-demand website www.lulu.com.

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