Episode 69: Alex James - Blur bassist, cheesemaker and Britpop drinks founder

Send us Fan MailJoining me on today’s episode of The English Wine Diaries is none other than Blur bassist, Alex James.Blur formed in 1988 and their nine studio albums have all topped the charts in the UK, generating numerous hit singles along the way including Song 2, Beetlebum and Coffee & TV.Now you may be wondering why a member of one of the most successful and influential bands of the 90s would come on a podcast about English wine but I assure you, there is good reason! Following a hugely successful career with Blur, and as a songwriter and producer for other big-name artists, Alex somewhat stepped away from the limelight in the early noughties when he moved to the country with his wife, Claire, and set up a cheese farm.This 200 acre estate in The Cotswolds now plays host to The Big Feastival, which brings together over 75,000 people across three days in August to celebrate good food, good music and good times. What goes down well at festivals? Cider of course. And in 2019, Alex launched his first sparkling medium dry cider, which he aptly named BritPop. Last year he threw a bit of a curve ball into the mix and launched an English Sparkling Wine, also under the Britpop name and made with grapes grown on the Furleigh Estate in Dorset, the county where Alex was born and bred. He has now added an English sparkling rosé  and elderflower wine spritzer to the range and I can attest to the fact they all go brilliantly well with his award-winning cheeses! We talk about crisps as canapés, drinking Champagne for breakfast and what dream person Alex would love to share a glass of Britpop with. The Britpop collection is available from laithwaites.co.uk and you can book tickets to The Big Feastival (which takes place between 23rd to 25th August 2024) at thebigfeastival.com.With thanks to our series sponsor, Wickhams, The Great British Wine Merchant. Visit wickhamwine.co.uk to see their award-winning range of English wine with free delivery on orders over £40. The English Wine Diaries listeners can also get 10% discount on their first purchase by entering the code TEWD10. Please drink responsibly.Thanks for listening to The English Wine Diaries. If you enjoyed the podcast then please leave a rating or review, it helps boost our ratings and makes it easier for other people to find us. To find out who will be joining me next on the English Wine Diaries, follow @theenglishwinediaries on Instagram and for more regular English wine news and reviews, sign up to our newsletter at englishwinediaries.com.