Billy 2023: Red or rosé?

The latest release from our Don't Feed The Ponies range is now available, so we thought it would be a good opportunity to remind you of what these wines are all about.

This collection showcases low intervention winemaking, where we let the fruit do the talking through natural ferments, no fining or filtration, minimal use of sulphites and no other additions, which is how we make all of our wines, but in this range you're going to see some less common styles where these practices really come into their own.

Our vineyard is hugely influenced by the river Dart, which has its source on Dartmoor, and the Don't Feed The Ponies name first came about after our head winemaker's daughter won a competition at her school to design a poster to discourage people from feeding the wild ponies on the moors, and for some reason the name stuck!

Each wine is named after a different Tor on Dartmoor, of which there are just under 1000, with 'Billy' being one of them, so we have many possible styles to make in the range! We also donate 25p from each bottle sold to the Dartmoor Preservation Association to help protect this precious landscape.

Billy is a unique wine that sits somewhere just between a red and a rosé, but closer to a light red. We wanted a wine bursting at the seams with vibrant fruit flavours, we wanted low to no tannin so it would still drink brilliantly straight out of the fridge, but above all, we wanted a style that was almost like juice to enjoy on a warm afternoon or going into the evening.

The blend for the 2023 is 72% Pinot Noir Précoce, 10% Pinot Noir F105 and 18% Madeleine Angevine, all spontaneously co-fermented in stainless steel, and then later down the line we added one barrel of Pinot Noir F105 that had undergone semi-carbonic maceration. 

The wine is light with a bright, glowing ruby red colour in the glass, and has aromas of fresh strawberry, cranberry and raspberry. The palate is also light but is again bursting with vibrant tart red berry flavours and has little to no tannin. We love to serve this wine chilled and it pairs perfectly with BBQ lamb, charcuterie and even meaty fish such as hake or monkfish.