A WHITE wine made on the other side of the world but with links to west Cumbria has featured on a highly-regarded top 100 list.

The Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc, made in New Zealand, has won many prizes over the years, but it has just revealed its highest-ever accolade.

The Whitehaven Winery - whose only connection with the town of Whitehaven is its 29-year history of trading with Richardson's of Whitehaven - has just announced that the wine has been featured as one of the Wine Spectator's top 100, jumping right in at number 41.

Gerard Richardson MBE, the owner of Richardson's, said: "It’s tremendous news, to be honest.

"There are thousands of wines produced yearly and the hottest prize in the world is to be listed in the Wine Spectator's top 100.

"It’s the Olympic Gold medal of the wine world and we are thrilled to bits for our friends in the vineyard.

"We have been open for 29 years, the same number of vintages the winery has produced and we've stocked every one, but now it's not just us saying this stuff is good, it got proper international recognition and we couldn’t be happier. 

"22 years ago we hosted the owner of the winery, the late Greg White, and his winemaker for a visit to the town, and our trade has grown year on year since then, but for them to get their main wine into the world top 100 is a stellar achievement."