The wettest weather in over 100 years has had little effect on English vineyards.

Free-draining soil and slope-planting mean many producers have avoided floods in the vineyard but wet weather has made it harder to prune. Met Office figures suggest December and January combined are the wettest since records began in 1910.

Simon Bladon, owner of Jenkyn Place vineyard, Hampshire, said: “The free-draining Greensand, on which Jenkyn Place lies, has meant that the water is continuing to drain down to the valley bottom. Unfortunately this area is severely flooded but luckily we therefore do not think the vines will experience any adverse effects to the rain.”

Camel Valley’s Bob Lindo said he’s lucky to be on the side of hill. “The land is free-draining and rain also drains naturally down the slopes into the river Camel and we have a wetlands field below the vineyards,” he said.