Winemaker takes a bow

From the Swindon Advertiser, first published Thursday 24th Jul 2003.

A Vineyard is celebrating its fruity success after winning a silver and gold prize in an annual wine challenge.

The Bow-in-the-Cloud vineyard at Noah's Ark, Garsdon, enjoyed success at the Thames and Chiltern Vineyard Association's annual wine challenge, with wines produced from last year's harvest.

Owner Keith Willingale said he was very pleasantly surprised to win the awards.

The retired Naval officer said: "They are very young and they would normally be best after three years. I did not expect to get anything. I just put them in as I was going down to the event anyway."

The wines entered were a 2002 dry white, which was awarded a silver medal, and a 2002 medium white, which won gold.

There were 35 entries in each class and it was the first year that wines from Bow-in-the-Cloud vineyard had been entered.

Mr Willingale has had the vineyard for ten years and sells most of his wine at farmers' markets.

The wine that won the gold award is a blend of three grapes- Schonburger, Bachus and Seyval.

His 1999 medium white, known as Cloud Nine, was used for the jubilee visit of the Queen.

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