Vintage Roots, the UK’s original organic wine specialist, will celebrate its 40th anniversary with its largest Trade and Press Tasting to date. Bringing together some of the world’s most respected organic and biodynamic pioneers, the tasting will feature more than 150 certified wines, including new releases and wines making their UK debut.
Founded in 1986 by friends Lance Pigott, Neil Palmer and Peter Greet, Vintage Roots began with just 15 wines listed on one side of an A4. At a time when customers still asked whether organic wine was “made from carrots”, the founders set out to introduce a completely new way of thinking about wine to the UK. Forty years later, Vintage Roots remains the UK’s longest-established 100% organic wine business, dedicated exclusively to certified organic wines and working directly with producers who share its commitment to healthy soils, biodiversity and thoughtful winemaking.
Over four decades, Vintage Roots has introduced pioneering wines, producers and initiatives to the UK alongside its own organic ranges. It was an early champion of biodynamic Champagne and organic English wine, while also helping to introduce and promote low and no added sulphur, vegan and regenerative wines in the UK. In 2007, it became the first UK wine company to commission a full study of its carbon footprint and operate as a carbon-neutral business, and in 2024 it achieved B Corp certification.
Vintage Roots co-founder Lance Pigott said: “When we began, organic wine was barely understood in the UK. We started with fifteen wines, a great deal of enthusiasm and a belief that farming and winemaking could be done differently. This tasting celebrates the growers, winemakers, customers and trade partners who have shared that belief with us over the past 40 years.
“Over the last four decades we have seen a gradual shift towards organic, as consumer awareness and interest in health and environmental impacts has grown, and in the last five years this growth has been catalysed as businesses across retail and hospitality have increasingly focused on sustainability – now the buzzword of the drinks industry.”
The Vintage Roots 40th Anniversary Trade and Press Tasting will take place on Monday, 28th September at the Royal Society of Chemistry, London. Three in-depth masterclasses will trace the evolution of organic and biodynamic winemaking and its influence on taste: Jean-Sébastien Fleury of Champagne Fleury, the first Champagne producer to convert to biodynamic farming, will lead a vertical tasting; Silvano Brescianini of Barone Pizzini will examine the character and diversity of three organically and biodynamically farmed Italian estates; and Werner Michlits of Austria’s Meinklang will explore how biodynamics and holistic farming can support healthier soils, more expressive wines and a deeper connection between agriculture, nature and wellbeing.
Further information about the tasting can be found by emailing trade@vintageroots.co.uk.
