Artelium 2025: An Award-Winning Year for English Wine in Sussex
Our winemaker’s Solly & Mark at our West Sussex Winery. Photograph by Suzy Red Photography.
Artelium 2025: A Good Year
As 2025 draws to a close, we do so with a deep sense of gratitude and quiet pride. This has been a year shaped by recognition and reflection, creativity and collaboration: a year of long summer days on the terrace, inspiring new releases, thoughtful encounters, and an exceptional harvest that will resonate for years to come.
Awards & Accolades
This year, Artelium’s wines were celebrated on the global stage by some of the world’s most respected critics and competitions.
Our collaboration with Vagabond, on the Nature Series Cuvée 2018 was awarded an exceptional 95 points by the IWSC. We’re already looking ahead to the release of the 2019 vintage in early 2026: a collaboration that continues to evolve and excite.
At the Decanter World Wine Awards, our Makers Rosé 2019 & Chardonnay 2023 both received 90 points, while the Artelium x Vagabond Nature Series Cuvée 2018 was awarded 92 points.
Most recently, we were honoured to see our Curators Cuvée 2018 awarded a remarkable 97 points by Wine Enthusiast— a score achieved by fewer than 0.5% of the 24,000 wines reviewed each year. Further accolades followed, with our Pinot Gris 2023 and Pinot Noir 2023 both receiving 92 points, and our Blanc de Blancs 2018 awarded 93 points.
These accolades speak to the dedication of our vineyard and winemaking teams, and to the unique character of our Sussex sites. They reaffirm our belief that English wines, both still and sparkling, are firmly established on the world stage.
Matthew Jukes with Artefact #9 - Cabaret Noir
Nice Words (That Meant the World to Us)
Throughout the year, we were fortunate to receive thoughtful praise from writers and critics whose voices we deeply respect.
Matthew Jukes described our Makers Rosé 2019 as his “structured rosé of the year…” He also praised Artefact #9 — Cabaret Noir, calling it “crammed with exuberant black fruit and spice.”
Christina Pickard of Wine Enthusiast described our Curators Cuvée 2018 as “English fizz at its finest,” our Blanc de Blancs 2018 as “richly sculpted,” and our Pinot Gris 2023 as layered with aromas of “subtle stone fruit and white spice.”
We were delighted to be featured in The Guardian, where Hannah Crosbie described Artelium as “a real treat” to visit, and our Pinot Noir 2023 as “bright and aromatic.”
For Club Oenologique, Henry Jeffries explored English wine’s experimentation with alternative varieties, praising our work with Pinot Gris and noting our “elegant skin-contact wines” — a nod to Artefact #8 — Skinny Gris.
Their words celebrated not only our wines, but our ethos: creativity rooted in place, and craftsmanship guided by curiosity.
English sparkling wine - Curators Cuvée 2019
New Releases
2025 brought a series of exciting new releases, each marking a distinct moment in our ongoing exploration of English wine:
Artefact #10 — Lil’ Dizzy, a spirited cousin to our bold Artefacts #7–#9, completing the collection with energy, rhythm and flair
Artefact #11 & #12, considered and elegant expressions of Pinot Gris and Chardonnay, made from juice reserved from our maiden Madehurst harvest in 2022: wines shaped by patience and intention
Pinot Noir Reserve 2023, a refined evolution of our much-loved Pinot Noir 2023
Curators Cuvée 2019, the follow-on vintage to our multi-award-winning 2018, already drinking beautifully and full of promise
Each release captures our commitment to craft, patience, innovation and creativity.
Surface Edge Shadow - New Sculpture on the Estate
Art on the Estate
Art continues to sit at the heart of Artelium. This year we unveiled a new permanent sculpture on the estate: Rosie Mortimer — Surface, Edge Shadow
Commissioned as part of the Artelium Artefact Award in collaboration with The Sussex Contemporary, the work brings a powerful new presence to the landscape, deepening our dialogue between art, place and process.
We also hosted two exceptionally successful Makers Markets in March and December, our biggest yet, alongside two art exhibitions: one with Kate McMinnies during Artists Open Houses, and another with Rosie Mortimer as part of Artwave.
Our sun-drenched terrace in the summer.
A Summer to Savour
The summer of 2025 unfolded at an unhurried pace: sun-filled days on the terrace, long lunches, and a food offering shaped by season and setting.
We planted our kitchen garden this year, which yielded abundant home-grown produce and became the foundation of our menu: a direct conversation between soil, kitchen and table.
It was a joy to welcome familiar faces and first-time visitors alike, sharing wines, food and moments across the warmer months.
PLAN YOUR VISIT
Artelium co-founder Mark Collins
An Exceptional Harvest
Near-perfect growing conditions across Sussex delivered fruit of outstanding quality — pristine, beautifully ripe, and expressive. Each bunch told the story of an extraordinary season.
As the young wines now rest quietly in the cellar, a sense of anticipation fills the estate. For a producer celebrated for still wines of depth and precision, the 2025 vintage feels especially significant. The ripeness and purity of the fruit promise wines of exceptional texture, balance and elegance.
As our founder Mark Collins reflects:
“Great wine starts in the vineyard — and this vintage is the best we’ve seen. It allows us to make the most of our Burgundian and Alsace clones for still wine, as well as our sparkling. The wines are already showing real depth and character.”
With such an extraordinary foundation, the 2025 vintage is set to define a new benchmark for English still and sparkling wines. We look forward to sharing the results as they continue their journey in the cellar.
Artelium wines at Gorringe’s auction house
Wine Dinners & Partnerships
Throughout the year, we were delighted to host and take part in wine dinners with valued trade partners, pairing our wines with exceptional food at:
Tresanton Hotel
Hartwell House
Number 34
Dill
The Gore Hotel
And we were delighted to be partners & sponsors of the following charities, institutions & organisations: