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13 of the Best English Blanc de Blancs

13 Oct 2026 · By Stephen Pritchard in Wine Guides

Blanc de Blancs means white from white: a sparkling wine made entirely from Chardonnay. It is the style that shows the grape most plainly. These 13 are Vinebound's picks, chosen from our own favourites, critical acclaim and award wins since 2025. They run from £29.95 to £75 a bottle, with one magnum-only trophy winner at £165.

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Best English Blanc de Blancs: our top picks

  • Most awarded: Langham Blanc de Blancs NV, £47.95. It won the WineGB 2025 trophy for Best Blanc de Blancs, at 97 points.
  • Best value: Chartham Blanc de Blancs 2022, £29.95, and Greyfriars Blanc de Blancs 2016, £30 (WineGB gold 2026).
  • Best from a supermarket: Balfour Blanc de Blancs Brut at Tesco, £26.
  • Best for a special occasion: Nyetimber Blanc de Blancs 2018, £58 in a gift box.
  • Best to visit: Hambledon, with its cellar door open every day.

What is English Blanc de Blancs?

The name is French for "white of whites", and it means 100% Chardonnay: no Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunier, which the classic cuvées blend in. Made by the traditional method, it is known for green apple, lemon and a chalky, saline edge.

It is usually dry, labelled brut or extra brut, and it is often dearer than a classic cuvée because many are vintage wines from a single harvest. For the standard bottle from each house, see the best English sparkling wines, and for the same grape as a still wine, the best English Chardonnays.

Award-winning English Blanc de Blancs

Langham: Blanc de Blancs NV

Location: near Dorchester, Dorset

Langham's Blanc de Blancs took the WineGB 2025 trophy for Best Blanc de Blancs at 97 points. It is £47.95. John Mobbs of Great British Wine reviewed the 2017 in October 2021: “The palate is spellbinding, with a fusion of crunchy orchard fruit, roasted salty nuts, toasted herbs and almond pastry.”

Visit: open every day except Monday, 10 to 5 (Fridays until 9 for Fizz Friday), all year. Tours start from £25.

Buy from Langham ↗

Balfour: Blanc de Blancs 2022

Location: Staplehurst, Kent

The 2018 won a Decanter trophy in 2026 with 97 points. The 2022 on sale is made entirely from estate-grown Chardonnay on Kentish clay and is £60, produced only in exceptional years. Balfour quotes Charlie Stein of Rick Stein Restaurants on its page: “With its aromas of green apple and pear skin, as well as lime, this is refreshing, with a complex, lovely finish.”

Visit: open every day, 10 to 6 from May to October and 10 to 5 from November to April.

Buy from Balfour ↗

Black Chalk: Eighty Nine Point Six 2020

Location: near Andover, Hampshire

The 2020 won the IWSC 2026 trophy for English sparkling wine. It is sold as a magnum at £165. For a bottle, Black Chalk's Paragon 2022 is 100% Chardonnay from the estate's Upper Levels vineyard at £65.

Visit: open from March to December, 10 to 5, with Friday Night Lates from 5 to 9, and closed in January and February.

Buy from Black Chalk ↗ Paragon 2022 ↗

Woodchester Valley: Blanc de Blancs 2019

Location: Woodchester, near Stroud, Gloucestershire

The 2019 won the WineGB 2026 trophy for Best Blanc de Blancs, and it is £48 a bottle (£288 for six).

Visit: the cellar door shop is open Monday to Saturday, 10 to 6, and Sunday 10 to 5 (closed on Sundays in January and February). The vineyard is open for pre-booked tours and events only.

Buy from Woodchester Valley ↗

Exton Park: RB|45 Blanc de Blancs

Location: Exton, Hampshire

The 2013 Blanc de Blancs won the WineGB 2026 trophy for best aged or vintage sparkling wine, and it is £65. The everyday bottle is RB|45, the Reserve Blend with the most reserve wine in the range, at £49. John Mobbs wrote of the estate's first vintage release, the 2011, in 2016: “a beautifully expressive Blanc de Blancs”.

Visit: tours must be pre-booked, running on Fridays at £50, with some Saturday dates.

Buy RB|45 ↗ Buy the 2013 ↗

Nyetimber: Blanc de Blancs 2018

Location: West Chiltington, West Sussex

The 2016 magnum won an IWC trophy in 2025, and Nyetimber says it was the first non-Champagne to win IWC Champion Sparkling Wine. The 2018 is £58 in a gift box and is 100% Chardonnay. Nyetimber's notes list nectarine, pink grapefruit and orange blossom leading to toasted hazelnut. Julia Harding MW reviewed the 2016 for JancisRobinson.com in May 2024.

Visit: not open for regular visits, with occasional open day tours.

Buy from Nyetimber ↗

Gold medal English Blanc de Blancs

Hambledon: Blanc de Blancs Cuvée NV

Location: Hambledon, Hampshire

It won gold at WineGB 2025 at 96 points. Hambledon's Blanc de Blancs made its debut in February 2025 and has since won gold at the IWSC 2026. It is £62.

Visit: the cellar door shop is open every day, all year: Monday to Thursday 10 to 5, Friday and Saturday 10 to 7, and Sunday 10 to 4.30.

Buy from Hambledon ↗

Wiston: Blanc de Blancs NV

Location: Washington, West Sussex

The 2018 Blanc de Blancs won gold at Decanter 2026 at 96 points. The non-vintage on sale is £42. Wiston's notes list green apple, white blossom, grapefruit and lemon zest over flinty minerality. The 2018 is sold in the estate's 2018 vintage case and Blanc de Blancs set. John Mobbs reviewed the 2018 in May 2025: “As good as English Blanc de Blancs gets!”

Visit: the cellar door is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10 to 4, all year.

Buy from Wiston ↗

Hattingley Valley: Blanc de Blancs 2019

Location: Lower Wield, near Alresford, Hampshire

The 2018 won gold at WineGB 2025 at 95 points. The 2019 is on sale at £51, or £306 for six.

Visit: tours only, pre-booked, on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Buy from Hattingley Valley ↗

Gusbourne: Blanc de Blancs 2020

Location: Appledore, near Ashford, Kent

The Commanders Vineyard Blanc de Blancs 2019 won gold at Decanter 2025 with 95 points. It is £95 as a single-vineyard wine, and the signature Blanc de Blancs 2020 is £65 (£55 for members). Gusbourne's notes list hints of grated ginger, croissant and toasted hazelnut and a salty mineral note. Oz Clarke tasted the 2013 on Decanter's 2018 panel: “Full and dry, with a telling streak of mineral stoniness softened by creamy hazelnut which will increase with age.”

Visit: tours and tastings run Wednesday to Monday, 10 to 5, with walk-in wine and food service Friday to Sunday. Closed Tuesday.

Buy the 2020 ↗ Commanders 2019 ↗

Greyfriars: Blanc de Blancs 2016

Location: Puttenham, near Guildford, Surrey

It won gold at WineGB 2026. It is 100% Chardonnay from the 2016 vintage, at £30. Greyfriars also sells a limited 2016 Old Vines Blanc de Blancs at £33.50, from the tiny original 1989 planting, fermented and aged in old oak barriques.

Visit: open Wednesday to Saturday, 10 to 4, with self-guided vineyard tours and no booking.

Buy the 2016 ↗ Old Vines 2016 ↗

More English Blanc de Blancs to try

Chartham: Blanc de Blancs 2022

Location: Chartham, near Canterbury, Kent

The 2021 won silver at WineGB 2025 at 90 points, and the 2022 on sale won gold at the London Wine Competition 2026. At £29.95, it is the cheapest of the 13. It is 100% Chardonnay from the estate, hand-picked in October 2022 and made by the bottle-fermentation method. Chartham's notes list floral brioche and almond on the nose.

Visit: open Saturdays from February to December, 10.30 to 5, with tours and tastings at 11am and 2pm.

Buy from Chartham ↗

English Oak: San Gabriel Blanc de Blancs Reserve 2019

Location: Lytchett Matravers, near Poole, Dorset

It won silver at Decanter 2026 with 93 points. It is 100% Chardonnay (clone 96) at 12% alcohol and 8 g/l dosage, and it is £75. English Oak's notes list subtle brioche and a persistent citrus finish. English Oak also makes Quercus, a Blanc de Blancs fermented for nine months in 500-litre barrels, at £75.

Visit: public and private tours, booked in advance.

Buy San Gabriel ↗ Quercus ↗

Best English Blanc de Blancs in supermarkets

Not all of these wines are sold in supermarkets, but some of the best are. Prices are correct as of 13 October 2026, and supermarkets run offers, so a bottle can be cheaper for a few weeks.

For the wider supermarket range, see our guide to English wine in supermarkets.

FAQ

What is the best English Blanc de Blancs?
On competition results, Langham's Blanc de Blancs NV won the WineGB 2025 trophy for Best Blanc de Blancs at 97 points, Balfour's 2018 won a Decanter trophy in 2026 at 97, and Woodchester Valley's 2019 won the WineGB 2026 trophy. Hambledon and Wiston both scored 96 for gold medals.
What does Blanc de Blancs mean?
It is French for white of whites: a sparkling wine made entirely from white grapes, which in England means 100% Chardonnay. That is different from the classic cuvée, which blends Chardonnay with the red grapes Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.
What is the difference between Champagne and Blanc de Blancs?
Blanc de Blancs is a style, not a place. Champagne is wine from the Champagne region of France, and a Blanc de Blancs can come from there or from anywhere that makes sparkling wine from Chardonnay by the traditional method, including England. English Blanc de Blancs is made the same way as the Champagne version.
Is blanc de blanc better than Champagne?
They are not like for like: Blanc de Blancs is a style, 100% Chardonnay, and Champagne is a place, so there are Champagne Blanc de Blancs and English ones. Quality depends on the producer and the vintage rather than the label. English examples have won top trophies, including Langham's WineGB 2025 trophy for Best Blanc de Blancs at 97 points and Black Chalk's IWSC 2026 trophy.
Is there an English champagne?
No. Champagne is the name for sparkling wine made in the Champagne region of France, so English wine cannot use it. English sparkling wine is made the same way, by the traditional method and usually from the same grapes. See the best English sparkling wines for the classic cuvées.
Is Blanc de Blancs dry or sweet?
Dry. Most English Blanc de Blancs is brut or extra brut: San Gabriel from English Oak, for example, has 8 g/l of dosage, which is dry. The style is known for green apple, lemon and a chalky, mineral edge rather than sweetness.
Why is Blanc de Blancs more expensive?
Many are vintage wines from a single harvest, made only in good years and given longer on the lees before release, which costs the producer more. The Blanc de Blancs here run from £29.95 to £75 a bottle, against £30 to £48 for the classic cuvées in our guide to the best English sparkling wines.
Is Blanc de Blancs cheaper than Champagne?
It depends on the bottle, so compare like with like on vintage and time on the lees. English Blanc de Blancs in this guide runs from £29.95 to £75, and the supermarket versions start at £26 (Balfour at Tesco) and £35 (Waitrose's Leckford Estate).

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