August 11, 2026 — 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 has consistently been a ground breaker in sustainability, becoming 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 here, or by emailing trade@vintageroots.co.uk.
International organic pioneers and exclusive masterclasses
The anniversary tasting will welcome representatives from regions at the forefront of organic and biodynamic winemaking, with the following producers attending:
Meinklang / Austria
Albet i Noya / Penedès
Giol / Treviso
Domaines Paul Mas / Languedoc
Bodegas Piqueras / Almansa
Barone Pizzini / Franciacorta, Marche and Maremma
Domaine Bousquet / Mendoza
Château Couronneau / Bordeaux
Champagne Fleury / Champagne
Viña Ijalba / Rioja
Oxney Organic Estate / Kent
Fasoli Gino / Veneto
Masterclass programme
Champagne Fleury: a vertical tasting of Sonate @ 11:00am
Hosted by current owner and winemaker Jean-Sébastien Fleury, the opening masterclass will explore the evolution of Champagne Fleury’s no added sulphur Sonate cuvée through a rare vertical tasting of exciting vintages. Champagne Fleury has been closely connected with Vintage Roots since 1995 and was the first Champagne house to convert its vineyards to biodynamic farming.
Barone Pizzini and the diversity of organic Italy @ 12:30pm
Silvano Brescianini, CEO and winemaker at Barone Pizzini, will lead a tasting exploring the character and diversity of three organically and biodynamically farmed Italian estates. Alongside Barone Pizzini’s pioneering Franciacorta wines, the tasting will feature wines from the Marche, including biodynamically certified Verdicchios and reds from the Maremma.
Meinklang: healthy soil speaks through wine @ 2:00pm
Hosted by Werner Michlits, co-owner of the Meinklang family farm in Austria, the final masterclass will consider how biodynamics and holistic farming can create healthier soils, more expressive wines and a deeper connection between agriculture, nature and human wellbeing.
