Wine tasting in the South East

[Kim and Phil]

Hi all

I’d like to take my husband to a few wineries in the South East in October Half Term (I work in a school), preferably ones which will allow us to park up overnight. I’ve never done this in UK before, and haven’t done any research yet. Is October a bad time to want to do this? Can anyone recommend vineyards worth a visit, where we could overnight please?

 

[Lenny HB]

It will be a lot easier if you nip over to France, no shortage of vineyards and plenty will let you stay the night.

 

[Keep Right On]

Hi all

I’d like to take my husband to a few wineries in the South East in October Half Term (I work in a school), preferably ones which will allow us to park up overnight. I’ve never done this in UK before, and haven’t done any research yet. Is October a bad time to want to do this? Can anyone recommend vineyards worth a visit, where we could overnight please?

Carr Taylor, near Bexhill - its also a Britstop so free overnight if you're a member

 

[NicandJay]

You could ask Denbies Vineyward near Dorking, Surrey. They have a huge carpark, lovely hotel with restaurant and the usual shop selling all things wine plus other stuff

 

[dryad]

just had a quick google for vineyards and wineries in kent to discover that there are over 50! crikey..
the only one i've ever visited was biddenden a few years ago, lovely area to explore too..
beginning to think that you may need longer than a half term for the south east..

.

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[claude et maude]

I’d try Chapel Down near tenterden, no idea if they allow overnights but they have a massive amount of room. I have also been looking at Balfour Winery near staplehurst but not been there yet so don’t know anything about it.

 

[Southdowners]

There’s Wiston Estate Vinyard on the A24 north of Worthing. They have a restaurant and there’s a couple of sites nearby. They might let you overnight at the vinyard but you’d need to check on that.

It’s quite an interesting vinyard as they have the only champagne press outside of France.

 

[The Wino]

There’s Wiston Estate Vinyard on the A24 north of Worthing. They have a restaurant and there’s a couple of sites nearby. They might let you overnight at the vinyard but you’d need to check on that.

It’s quite an interesting vinyard as they have the only champagne press outside of France.

I'll have to look that up as far as I know there's no such thing as a champagne press. They might have a type of press thats the same as used in some champagne producers but champagne is a protected title for wine made by the champagne method in a particular geographic area.

 

[Southdowners]

Yes, of course they don’t market their wine under the name Champagne… although I think it’s as good or better.

I think i didn’t explain well enough. The press is genuine - from France and it is the only one in the UK. I meant that it was a press used in France to make champagne not that the press was bestowing the name on the grapes being pressed in the UK.

It is an interested process. Probably more so than an ‘ordinary’ wine producing vinyard.

 

[The Wino]

Yes, of course they don’t market their wine under the name Champagne… although I think it’s as good or better.

I think i didn’t explain well enough. The press is genuine - from France and it is the only one in the UK. I meant that it was a press used in France to make champagne not that the press was bestowing the name on the grapes being pressed in the UK.

It is an interested process. Probably more so than an ‘ordinary’ wine producing vinyard.

It is an interesting process especially if you find one that does the turning of the bottles to get the sediment out by hand and the actual bottling. We saw both ends of the spectrum a tour of the underground caves by automated tram at a big champagne producer and a small bloke who does everything by hand in champagne. We haven't visited any English vineyards but they recon a lot of French champagne producers are buying plots in England as global warming means the climate and soil is ideal for sparkling wine production. Some English sparkling wines often win blind tastings against the best champagnes but they aren't cheap.
Maybe we'll stop off on the way to the tunnel this year.

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[Southdowners]

Yes it is an interesting process Wino. They don’t turn the bottles by hand at Wiston instead the bottles are in cages which turn the required rotation at set times. It’s still quite a small concern at the moment but is growing.

 

[Coolcats]

Hi all

I’d like to take my husband to a few wineries in the South East in October Half Term (I work in a school), preferably ones which will allow us to park up overnight. I’ve never done this in UK before, and haven’t done any research yet. Is October a bad time to want to do this? Can anyone recommend vineyards worth a visit, where we could overnight please?

I live in the south east and have a couple of vineyards locally….I think it was Lenny HB who suggested you would be better off going to France I think he is right.

 

[Coolcats]

There’s Wiston Estate Vinyard on the A24 north of Worthing. They have a restaurant and there’s a couple of sites nearby. They might let you overnight at the vinyard but you’d need to check on that.

It’s quite an interesting vinyard as they have the only champagne press outside of France.

It may be sparkeling wine but it cannot be Champagne. You can only get Wensleydale cheese from the Wensleydale area, you can’t make and sell Wensleydale in France.

 

[EuroTrotters]

I’ve yet to find a good, reasonably priced British wine !

 

[orridge]

Carr Taylor is the only one I know of that you can stay over night but have a look at the Cellar Door website as shows all vineyards and opening details etc.

You could consider staying in one place and using somebody like https://www.englishwinetastingtours.co.uk/ to take you around a few vineyards.

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[Southdowners]

It may be sparkeling wine but it cannot be Champagne. You can only get Wensleydale cheese from the Wensleydale area, you can’t make and sell Wensleydale in France.

I know that... see my post (9) above regarding this.

In my original post I said they had the only champagne press in the UK - meaning the actual wooden vessel that presses the grapes, not the resultant product.

The press is from the Champagne region in France - it is the only one in the UK and is being used to produce sparkling wine here in the UK. I wasn't suggesting that the wine pressed at Wiston is marketed as Champagne... it isn't.

 

[The Wino]

I know that... see my post (9) above regarding this.

In my original post I said they had the only champagne press in the UK - meaning the actual wooden vessel that presses the grapes, not the resultant product.

The press is from the Champagne region in France - it is the only one in the UK and is being used to produce sparkling wine here in the UK. I wasn't suggesting that the wine pressed at Wiston is marketed as Champagne... it isn't.

It looks like it isn't! https://www.eastmeonvineyard.co.uk/winemaking
Seems they're in the same area and say there are 4 similar ones in the UK. Looks like they're all using one of the bits of equipment as a bit of a marketing ploy. It's a bit like villages in France it seems there are hundreds in the most beautiful village category!

 

[Coolcats]

I’ve yet to find a good, reasonably priced British wine !

Others will disagree but I think its the 80/20 rule French German and Italian wines tend to be good when you try them even the small producers 80% of the time are good, but only about 20% of the time with UK ones (I know that sounds harsh, but british ones are probably great for pickling onions and eggs, along with sprinkling on to fish and chips as well)

Should add I do not drink very much or very often I am sure there will be some here who will say British wine is as good as French (or better) but I guess its all subjective.

 

[Yorick]

It may be sparkeling wine but it cannot be Champagne. You can only get Wensleydale cheese from the Wensleydale area, you can’t make and sell Wensleydale in France.

Can I get a Cornish pasty in Yorkshire?

 

[suavecarve]

You could ask Denbies Vineyward near Dorking, Surrey. They have a huge carpark, lovely hotel with restaurant and the usual shop selling all things wine plus other stuff

And, I believe, some sparkling white which has won awards

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[Coolcats]

Can I get a Cornish pasty in Yorkshire?

It would be rude not to

 

[Lenny HB]

Can I get a Cornish pasty in Yorkshire?

It will be a bit high after its spent 4 days on a horse & cart to get there.

 

[Southdowners]

It looks like it isn't! https://www.eastmeonvineyard.co.uk/winemaking
Seems they're in the same area and say there are 4 similar ones in the UK. Looks like they're all using one of the bits of equipment as a bit of a marketing ploy. It's a bit like villages in France it seems there are hundreds in the most beautiful village category!

Quote from your link...
'The grapes are pressed in one of the three wine presses at Wiston.
The picture above shows the traditional Coquard basket press from Champagne, one of only 4 such presses outside of France and the only one of its kind in the UK.'

I don't understand your comment about there being 4 similar ones in the UK. The info above is from the link you posted and it clearly states that there are only 4 presses outside of France and the only one of its kind in the UK.

 

[Kim and Phil]

Thanks all. Saving France for a longer holiday. I’ll check out those recommended

 

[The Wino]

Quote from your link...
'The grapes are pressed in one of the three wine presses at Wiston.
The picture above shows the traditional Coquard basket press from Champagne, one of only 4 such presses outside of France and the only one of its kind in the UK.'

I don't understand your comment about there being 4 similar ones in the UK. The info above is from the link you posted and it clearly states that there are only 4 presses outside of France and the only one of its kind in the UK.

This is from English oak vineyard


We are extremely fortunate to have access to a traditional Coquard vertical press, exactly the same as those used in the country-side around Epernay & Reims, to enhance the quality of the wine.

This is from Hambledon

Our Coquard PAI presses use a gentle horizontal pressing motion to extract the best quality juice from the grapes without extracting the bitter compounds from the skins. The juice is separated into two parts: the free run and initial pressing (the Cuvée) and the end pressing (the Taille

This from Black Chalk vineyard


Significantly investment has been made in the winery equipment which includes a Coquard press and a selection of fermenting and maturation vessels,

This is Hattingley Valley

Once loaded into the Coquard press gentle pressure is applied to minimise the extraction of undesirable colour and tannins.


It could be that the one at the winery you visited is a particular model of press made by the same company but it does look a bit like it's not quite as big a selling point as they make out.
That being said I've never tried their wine and the thing that really matters is just that !!

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[Southdowners]

Hi Wino, I seem unable to convince you that the press at Wiston is unique in this country but as far as I know it is. It is an old wooden press type from France - as the article you posted said, it is the only one of four presses outside France and the other three aren't in the UK.

Could it be that the other vineyards you mention have new versions of the presses?

By the way, it wasn't just a passing visit to the vinyard I ran my livery yard at the farm and so I know quite a bit about the history of it and the people involved - I was still there when it opened. That said, I'm not affiliated in any way to the Goring family's enterprise and I no longer own the livery yard as I had serious riding accident and had to give my horses and the yard up.

Anyway... there's some damn fine English sparkling wine about... cheers!

 

[The Wino]

Hi Wino, I seem unable to convince you that the press at Wiston is unique in this country but as far as I know it is. It is an old wooden press type from France - as the article you posted said, it is the only one of four presses outside France and the other three aren't in the UK.

Could it be that the other vineyards you mention have new versions of the presses?

By the way, it wasn't just a passing visit to the vinyard I ran my livery yard at the farm and so I know quite a bit about the history of it and the people involved - I was still there when it opened. That said, I'm not affiliated in any way to the Goring family's enterprise and I no longer own the livery yard as I had serious riding accident and had to give my horses and the yard up.

Anyway... there's some damn fine English sparkling wine about... cheers!

Cheers to you too! Our usual sparkling tipple is vintage cava short arms and deep pockets! If it's a special occasion we have a Tasmanian sparkling wine we really like at about£25. We have tried English sparkly in fact we went to an evening tasting a few times of English wines but not blown away.

 

[ReneeSkylark]

A bit more south than south east, Setley Ridge near Brockenhurst has vineyard, wine tasting, vineyard tours, and a certified CAMC site. Its also next to The Pig microbrewery.

 

[SueMS]

A bit more south than south east, Setley Ridge near Brockenhurst has vineyard, wine tasting, vineyard tours, and a certified CAMC site. Its also next to The Pig microbrewery.

This is in the New Forest, the place we visit most often and have done for over 10 years. Lots of good CLs nearby plus Camping In The Forest and also a couple of club sites. Lovely walks and so easy to park the van in this area.
There is a very big vineyard in Alfriston East Sussex called Rathfinney, not sure what they do in terms of tasting but they have a restaurant so may be worth considering. Not sure that Rathfinney would allow you park overnight, might be worth asking, there are CLs and CSs fairly close by.