WINEMAKERS at an award-winning Worcestershire vineyard are raising a glass after being stocked by a major local retailer.

The Midcounties Co-operative Food, which operates nine stores in the county, is showing its support for local produce by offering a new selection of white, rosé and sparkling wines from nearby Sixteen Ridges Vineyard, a six-acre vineyard on a hillside overlooking the Severn river valley.

The new wines are part of the society’s best of our counties range, which is designed to include the highest quality of food and drink sourced from the county.

The wine from the vineyard, which has been producing award-winning wines since 2007, is being made available in the society’s Stourport store on Lombard Street from the end of July, with the potential to become available in other stores in the future.

To support the Society’s network-wide focus on local wines, managers from all The Midcounties Co-operative’s food stores will undertake a day’s tasting and training with the Wines and Spirits Education Trust. This will build the managers’ confidence by teaching them about grape varieties, production methods, and food pairings, so they can help customers choose the perfect bottle.

Matt Fletcher, direct sourcing manager at The Midcounties Co-operative Food, said: “We ask our customers what kinds of product they’d like us to stock.

"We know that people in the Worcestershire community want carefully selected, high quality local food and drinks, which means we’re confident our new wine range will go down a treat, especially now that store managers are being trained to give advice on which wines compliment which foods.

“Our ‘Best of Our Counties’ range features an increasing number of products made right here on our doorstep, and we’re proud to keep supporting our amazing local producers.”

Sally Booth, from Sixteen Ridges added: “Being included in the range is really beneficial to us, as it gets Sixteen Ridges wines in front of so many more customers.

"We’re very appreciative of The Midcounties Co-operative’s ethos in supporting local farmers and producers, and we love the fact that their customers genuinely care about provenance and the countryside around them.”