British Airways has become the first airline to serve an English sparkling wine "Balfour Brut Rose" on board its flights and in its lounge at Heathrow Terminal 5.

British Airways has become the first airline to serve an English sparkling wine on board its flights and in its lounge at Heathrow Terminal 5.

The sparkling wine, "Balfour Brut Rose" from the Hush Heath winery in Kent, will be served alongside an existing range of Champagnes to customers in First class between July and September.

The bold move by British Airways signifies staunch support for British growers. As well as English sparkling wine, British produce including Herefordshire beef, Loch Fyne fresh fish and Cropwell Bishop Stilton also feature regularly on the airline's menus.

Lynn McClelland, British Airways' head of catering, said: "No other airline has ever served English fizz to its customers. By giving our British and international customers an exclusive taste of the best of Britain, we are putting English wine making firmly on the map. We look forward to hearing what our customers think."

Andrew Sparrow, British Airways wine buyer at Bibendum, said: "British Airways First class customers expect the very best and we are delighted to be able to offer them this fantastic English wine. In tastings it has performed brilliantly and we believe it will really hold its own at 35,000ft."

Although the first vineyards were only planted by Richard Balfour-Lynn at the Hush Heath Estate in 2002, the wines made from these Kentish grapes have enjoyed tremendous success both nationally and internationally. The 2005 vintage was a Gold Medal and trophy winner at the Decanter World Wine Awards. This was the first time an English Wine was awarded this accolade.

The 2007 vintage, made from the three traditional champagne grape varieties Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier and using the strict traditional Champagne Method process, is being released exclusively for British Airways.

Richard Balfour-Lynn, owner of Hush Heath, said: "I'm excited that British Airways has recognised the quality of our wine and has chosen Balfour Brut Rose 2007 for its First class customers."

British Airways will be showcasing Balfour Brut at food festival, Taste of London, between June 16-19 in Regent's Park, London. The new sparkling wine will be one of the wines available for visitors to taste during wine masterclasses at the British Airways "Height Cuisine" stand. For more information go to: www.ba.com/taste