‘A booze cruise in reverse’ – why the French love to visit English vineyards

If you have the slightest interest in English wine, you’ll remember the cock-a-hoopery when English sparkling first beat champagne in a blind tasting competition. Now there’s expectant chat about whether English pinot noirs and chardonnays still might ever rival burgundy. But there’s something else that English wine producers are quietly doing extremely well and they’re doing it without so much as a glance across the Channel: tourism.

England has adapted as nimbly to welcoming vineyard visitors as it has to making sparkling wine you long to pour, chilled, into your glass. The wine-loving day-tripper could practise yoga among the vines at Tinwood Estate in West Sussex or glamp beside the vineyards at Yorkshire Heart near York. If you just want to eat and drink, the range of vineyard dining experiences is equally impressive, from the homespun feel of an egg sandwich picnic to the polished luxury of white linen napkins and a star chef.

Yet despite the friendly competition with our neighbours, only once in my years of conversations with English wine producers has anyone referred to the French wine tasting experience. And that wasn’t in a good way.

“Around the time we were planning our tourism offering, our whole team took a trip to Champagne to share production knowledge and techniques,” says Tom Whiteley of Henners Vineyard in East Sussex.

“We also wanted to see how one of the most famous wine-producing regions in the world was approaching tourism. This completely shaped our approach for the cellar door, but predominantly from the view of how not to do things… there was almost a coldness to the whole thing – sterile, elitist, and it generally felt uncomfortable to browse and try wines.”

Among positive sources of inspiration, America – usually California and once, more surprisingly, Texas – is often cited.

“The model for us was Napa in California. There’s a fantastic tourism scene which anchors itself around LA,” says Jack Merrylees of Balfour Winery in Kent. “The vision has always been to provide the same from London – we’re just 50 minutes away by train.”

The template most mentioned is South Africa. The first time I visited Rathfinny Wine Estate in Sussex, back in 2018, co-owner Sarah Driver described the “lightbulb moment” when she realised a tasting room needed to be part of the original, highly ambitious, build. “[My husband] Mark said, did I want to go see wastewater plants which he was researching in South Africa? It was January, I thought ‘Sunshine’. We made a tour of wineries and I realised wine can be an experience; it’s not just what you’re drinking.”

For the Goring family at Wiston Estate, also in Sussex, the South African heritage of matriarch Pip Goring has been hugely influential. Brand director Kirsty Goring says when her mother-in-law first arrived in England she missed the connection between eating and sharing the produce from the land. A 2006 family trip to South Africa took the whole clan to Haute Cabrière and La Motte in Franschhoek. “The way they combined the food and the wine, the cellars, the vineyard around you, it completely blew me away,” says Kirsty. “On a later trip we visited Creation, which in no small way inspired our restaurant, Chalk.”

To the warm welcome, airy restaurants and pairing menus modelled by South Africa, English producers have each layered in a highly individualised brand of British hospitality. Circa, the restaurant at Sandridge Barton in Devon, aims to showcase the best sustainable local produce alongside the locally grown wines. Balfour, in Kent, sells honey, wine and apple juice from its estate. At Albury Estate in Sussex you can take a wildlife walk through the chalk grassland and spot barn owl boxes and blue butterflies.

Besides having the feel-good factor, British wine tourism is an essential part of the industry. English vineyards welcome 1.5 million visitors every year. Tourism accounts for one quarter of all income for English and Welsh wine producers, according to the latest figures from the trade body WineGB, which define wine tourism as cellar-door sales; food and drink; tours; events; and accommodation.

Tourism also breeds loyalty. The memory of one good day out can keep you buying that same producer’s wine for decades. It also gives wine producers a direct relationship with their customer, which means larger margins and less reliance on a third-party retailer. Direct to consumer sales (which includes those from a producer’s website, as well as the cellar-door sales) account for around 30 per cent of all English wine sales.

There’s a great sense of camaraderie between wineries, who team together to increase the richness of their visitor offer. June 17 marks the start of English Wine Week, and many producers will have events running to celebrate. On June 23, for instance, The Grange winery in Alresford, Hampshire, will host the 10th Vineyards of Hampshire Fizz Fest. “It will have high-quality wine, quite a village fete atmosphere and the Alresford ukulele band,” says Zam Baring, managing partner of The Grange.

Meanwhile Balfour, which saw 20,000 visitors to its Hush Heath Estate last year, works with VisitEngland to entice visitors from the UK and beyond.

“We do get a lot of visitors from over the Channel,” says Merrylees. “Something of a booze cruise in reverse.” Now there’s a thought.

English vineyards to visit

Langham Wine Estate, Crawthorne, Dorset

Langham makes some of England’s most admired sparkling wine and has a café that opens for brunch and lunch. Tours (self-guided) from £15pp. Special events include Fizz Fridays Seafood Sessions, £55pp (01258 839095; langhamwine.co.uk).

Sandridge Barton, Stoke Gabriel, Devon

The new home of Sharpham specialises in still wines. Self-guided tastings cost £12pp and Vineyard Safaris, £45pp. Circa restaurant serves locally sourced, seasonal plates. Self-catering accommodation includes an 1850s boathouse on the River Dart, from £1,000 for three nights (01803 732203; sandridgebarton.com).

Balfour Winery, Staplehurst, Kent

A family favourite set on 400 acres of orchards, oak woodland and vineyards, Balfour offers free self-guided tours and tastings from £15pp. A café offers seasonal sharing platters and the restaurant has an à la carte menu (01622 832794; balfourwinery.com).

Knightor Winery, Trethurgy near St Austell, Cornwall

A boutique winery making exquisite still wine using grapes from Cornwall and beyond, Knightor offers cellar-door tastings from £10pp and has a shop at Trethurgy with a café. Tastings are also available at the Portscatho vineyard on the Roseland Peninsula (01726 851101; knightor.com).

Henners Vineyard, Herstmonceux, East Sussex

Henners Vineyard has a new cellar door and offers tours and tastings from £27pp or the option of ordering wine by the glass (from £5) and cheese and charcuterie boards from £9 (01323 832073; hennersvineyard.co.uk).

Black Chalk, near Andover, Hampshire

The Black Chalk tasting room is in an old dairy building with courtyard patio and serves light bites, wine by the glass (from £7) or flights from £11. Vineyard tours and tasting from £15pp, with treehouse tastings from £110 for two people (01264 860440; blackchalkwine.co.uk).