One of the advantages of spending more time in the UK over the past year whilst travel abroad has been on hold has been discovering all the beautiful UK Vineyards we are so lucky to have right here, some just a cork-popping distance of London!
English and Welsh wine is still so underrated but the UK is really gaining an excellent reputation for sparkling wines – the best of which compares well to the quality of some Champagnes!
Did you know that there are over 700 individual vineyards in the British Isles ranging from extremely small ones (the smallest only has six vines) to ones of almost 90-ha (222-acres)?
Most vineyards are an easy day trip away, either by car or train (depending on who the designated driver is) and I’ve picked some of my favourites which offer vineyard tours, tastings and some even have accommodation on site!
Kent
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Gusbourne Wine Estate
Photo credit: Gusbourne Wine Estate
With summer on the horizon why not book a picnic or Vineyard Tour at Gusbourne or both!
Gusbourne’s Picnic experience has been a popular choice and there are some gorgeous picnic spots dotted across their Boot Hill vineyard, which has sweeping views across Romney Marsh and out to the sea. Choose between two artisanal picnics – charcuterie or vegetarian – both of which are accompanied by a bottle of Gusbourne Brut Reserve. The picnics are presented in a Gusbourne branded jute bag with reusable picnic glassware which you can take home as a keepsake.
Photo credit: Gusbourne Wine Estate
Vineyard Tours include a two-hour hosted tour in which you will find out what makes Gusbourne’s corner of England so special for winemaking. You will partake in a guided walk in the vines and a tutored wine tasting in The Nest Garden before enjoying a picnic, which I highly recommend booking for the full experience.
Vineyard Tours are priced at £25 per person, Picnics are £80 for two, and a combination of both is £125 for two people. Due to government regulations, Discovery and Estate tours are not available until after the 17th May, when the full range of Gusbourne experiences will be available.
However, all tours can be booked in advance from www.gusbourne.com/tours where the full summer tour schedule is available.
Address: Kenardington Rd, Appledore, Ashford, Kent TN26 2BE
How to get there: Jump on a Javelin train from St Pancras to Ashford International and they’re a short taxi journey from the station or alternatively you can drive and park onsite.
Terlingham Vineyard
Terlingham is a family run boutique natural Vineyard and I loved it so much I am returning in September once the Vines are flourishing! Lorna, Jackie and Caroline are the most fabulous hosts!
A visit here is the perfect activity for a day trip which can be combined with nearby Folkestone for a little seaside jaunt and they have the most gorgeous al fresco set up!
The natural wines, which are award-winning, are superb. I especially loved their Manor Rose, which won a Bronze award at the 2020 IEWA awards.
There are no pesticides or fertilisers used on the vineyard and the vines are treated with herbal remedies. Everything is done by hand too, including the riddling and disgorging of the bottles.
I loved every aspect of the experience, especially the warmth and hospitality and I highly recommend it for a lovely day trip this summer and autumn.
Address: Terlingham Manor Farm, Terlingham Ln, Old Hawkinge, Folkestone, Kent.
How to get there: They’re 10 minutes by taxi from both Folkestone West and Central train station or by car with parking available on site.
Find out more: https://terlinghamvineyard.co.uk/
Mount Vineyard
Just over an hour’s drive (or train ride as recommended) from London is a hidden gem in Shoreham, Kent, The Mount Vineyard, a stunning boutique vineyard that produces some seriously exceptional award winning wine and is located on 10 acres of beautiful grounds.
Grape varieties grown here include Phoenix, Seyval Blanc, Bacchus, Chardonnay, Siegerrebe, Pinot Noir, Regent and Rondo.
Book a tour and tasting so you can try their gorgeous wines whilst nibbling on Cheese and Charcuterie.
They have wine tasting sessions all year round and Shoreham Village Station is literally round the corner, so leave those car keys behind and get yourselves on a train there and enjoy an excellent wine tasting in picturesque surroundings.
For more information visit: http://www.themountvineyard.co.uk/
Sussex
Bolney Wine Estate
Bolney Wine Estate is one of the oldest English commercial Vineyards having planted their first vines in 1972!
Just under a two hour drive from London it’s fantastic for a day trip to see the stunning vines, the state-of-the-art Winery, and to try their award-winning wine of course!
Highly recommend booking a table at their restaurant Eighteen Acre Café, which is the perfect spot to enjoy a wine flight and a sumptuous meal after a Vineyard and Winery Tour with breathtaking views of the vines.
Address: Foxhole Ln, Bolney, Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH17 5NB
How to get there: It’s about a 15-minute taxi trip from Haywards Heath station or alternatively you can park on site.
For more information visit: https://bolneywineestate.com/
Tinwood Wine Estate
Tinwood was originally an iceburg lettuce farm just north of Chichester in the hamlet of Halnaker before Art Tukker inherited it. He then researched the viability of transforming it into a vineyard.
Today Tinwood Estate is an absolutely gorgeous vineyard with 65 acres worth of vines, producing some truly incredible wine! The three classic varieties for sparkling wine are produced here; Chardonnay, Pinot noir and Pinot Meunier. The grapes are taken to nearby award-winning Ridgeview Wine Estate for the wine production and return to Tinwood for the ageing process.
Sparkling is produced here primarily because the weather (i.e. lots of rain) dictates what style wine can be produced. Sussex white wines have also particularly been successful due to the well-draining chalky soil found along and around the South Downs as well as the abundant flint that also traps the heat of the sun and warms the soil.
The Tour & Tasting at Tinwood Estate cost £18 per person and for additional £14 you can also indulge in their incredible cheese platter, perfect for sharing between two. You get to try three different wines and we absolutely loved it! So much so that we even bought a voucher for friends as a Wedding present as it is the perfect experience to do together. It was so relaxed, fun and informative.
Address: Tinwood Ln, Chichester PO18 0NE
How to get there: Train/Drive (car parking on site)
For more information visit: https://www.tinwoodestate.com/
Wales
Llanerch Hotel
Did you know there was a Vineyard in Wales where you can do tours, tastings and stay the night?
We had a fabulous tour and tasting at Llanerch Hotel in Hensol where we learned about the grapes used and got to sample a selection of their delicious Cariad Wine. It was my first time visiting a Welsh Vineyard.
Cariad (which means love) Wine is produced on site and the first vines were planted on the grounds in 1986 and were a hybrid of French and German varieties by owners at the time, Peter and Diane. Diane’s interest had been piqued after she read an article about the rising success of British Vineyards in The Guardian which led her to travel to Burgundy, France to learn more.
The first bottles of wine were then produced here three years later, in 1989, under the Cariad name. The Vineyard is now owned by Ryan Davies and his family, who have restored the estate and given it a makeover with a £2 million investment as they want to have the same success with wine tourism as vineyards they have visited themselves in New Zealand and Australia.
Tour details:
The tours run from 1 April to 31 October, every Day: 12:00pm, 2:30pm and 5.00pm.
Cost: £14 per person (individual tours).
Location:
Where: Llanerch Vineyard, Hensol, Vale of Glamorgan, CF72 8GG
For more information: llanerch-vineyard.co.uk
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