My intentions are impure so I’ll keep this introduction short. Articles that profess to look into the future, and deliver its uncertainties with certainty, are often the tireless work of informed forecasters and analysts, but I’m just one woman. A woman who loves to drink and is, ultimately, led by her own wants and desires.
So, as much as these following ‘trends’ are observed from growing sections on wine lists and increased interest from buyers, they’re also areas which I, personally, would love to see gain further popularity this year. And so, this article is as greedy as it is informative — but everything mentioned is undoubtedly worth your palate, and your hard-earned money.
Jurançon is becoming a place to find value
For wine lovers, acquiring the wines you want to drink at a good price can feel like a deeply tiring game of cat and mouse. We chase ethereal, multifaceted wines to the latest up-and-coming area, only to be priced out and ushered along to the next. The current semi-hidden gem is JuranÄon — a region in deep southwest France where white wines are based on the gros manseng and petit manseng grapes.
Honey Spencer, sommellier and co-founder of Sune (129A Pritchard's Road, E2, sune.restaurant) notes why she builds them into her wine lists: “Jurançon is killer, and I’m always shouting about it. Combining the comforting depths of Burgundy woven with the Jura’s electrifying acidity, dry wines from south-west France’s Jurançon region are white wine’s sure bet of 2024, if only the supply remains.”
Tempted? It goes without saying that you can find some Jurançon at Sune, but I’ve also spied bottles in the wine lists of Kol (9 Seymour Street, W1H, kolrestaurant.com), Claridge’s (Brook Street, W1K, claridges.co.uk) and Maison François (34 Duke Street, SW1, maisonfrancois.london).
Dry wines from south-west France’s Jurançon region are white wine’s sure bet of 2024, if only the supply remains
Confidence will continue to grow in English wines
If you want to keep your finger on the pulse of a city’s wine trends, look no further than its restaurants’ by-the-glass list. Ever-evolving to reflect current tastes and interests, if a restaurant is confident that it can sell at least six medium or three large glasses of a wine before it spoils, it’s a safe bet to put on by the glass (and was likely already selling well by the bottle).
Lately, I’ve been seeing a good amount of restaurant staking their name on English wines, which in the past have typically been resigned to their own short section shoved to the back of a wine list. It's not just the better-known sparkling wines, but still wines, too. I’ve seen Westwell’s floral Ortega at Caravel (172 Shepherdess Walk, N1, caravelrestaurant.com), Tillingham’s Germanic ‘Rotwein’ at Spring (Lancaster Place, WC2R, springrestaurant.co.uk) and, eternally, the generosity of Hambledon’s Classic Cuvée at Noble Rot (WC1, W1D, W1J, noblerot.co.uk). Long may our restaurants continue to back this horse.
Sherry will (finally) become sexy
Look, yes, it's been said about years past but I’m calling it: 2024 will finally be the year that sherry shakes its semi-geriatric image and is embraced by wine lovers of all walks of life. Sherry is not all syrupy Granny-juice: styles range from dry, saline fino and manzanilla to the velvety black of pedro ximinéz, though general perception of sherry is often dominated by the latter.
I’ve long hoped that the drier styles would find a place to show their strengths to a new generation of drinkers, but then I saw a glass of fino on the list of Manchester’s über-cool Erst earlier this year. Will Sutton, Erst’s owner, explains: “It’s a wine that’s probably still a little misunderstood in the UK, but we find Sherry’s different styles are so well-suited to pair with our incredibly varied menu. A fino is our preferred choice for the start of a meal – refreshing, nutty and a slight saltiness makes it an ideal apèritif.” Want to get into it in London? Moro (34-36 Exmouth Market, EC1R, moro.co.uk) is an excellent place to start.
Canned wine will come to restaurants
Canned wine, as we know it, is a victim of circumstance. It’s been something grabbed hastily at a train station, and drained even faster en route. Not exactly a situation for sipping and savouring. But now you can enjoy something a little more serious in canned wine: the likes of a cracking Austrian red (weinobib.co.uk) and a Spanish rosado (candourwine.com) are now up for grabs, but some are so certain of its quality they’re actually putting them on wine lists.
Banks Brothers — a canned wine brand owned by restaurateurs Tommy and James Banks — can now be found on the wine lists of their restaurants, comprising Roots, the Abbey Inn and the Michelin-starred Black Swan (where it’s currently the only canned wine you can find at a Michelin-starred menu). I daresay owning a restaurant helps in getting your wine on its list, but it’s surely a total vote of confidence in the rising quality of canned wine. And, with increasing pressure on restaurants to reduce glass waste and move towards more eco-friendly wine buying, I wouldn’t be surprised if others follow suit this year.
