By Mike Gerrard
The very thought of an English vineyard tour would have been laughable maybe 20-30 years ago, but today visitors are spoiled for choice. UK wine, especially in southern England, has gone from strength to strength thanks to warmer summers and farmers realising that it’s far more profitable to grow grapes than grain. Dozens of UK vineyards now offer tours, and many have restaurants and very comfortable accommodation too.
It makes sense to book at least one night’s stay, if planning a vineyard tour, so that you don’t have to worry about driving after doing a wine-tasting. Most vineyards are naturally located in scenic, rural settings, and there are some in Devon and Cornwall that are also very close to the coast, so you could easily spend a week at a winery, explore the area, and wake up every morning to a beautiful vineyard view.
Best English Vineyard Tours
Here’s our choice of some of the best vineyard tours spread around the UK, in strictly alphabetical order:
Camel Valley
A few miles outside Bodmin in Cornwall, the pioneering Camel Valley vineyard planted its first vines way back in 1989 and has produced award-winning wines ever since. At the end of a single-track road and surrounded by farmland and woodland close to the River Camel, the delightful scenery is a part of the tour experience.
Tours are daily and must be booked in advance, with email confirmation to avoid the need for tickets. Two barns converted into luxury cottages with panoramic views over the vineyards make for a peaceful overnight stay. https://www.camelvalley.com/tours
Denbies Wine Estate
Denbies opened in 1986 near Dorking in Surrey and offers a full range of experiences, with a vineyard hotel, vineyard weddings, a restaurant with vineyard views, and a choice of indoors and outdoors tours. You can also combine a tour with dinner or an afternoon tea, and they even have their own train to take you round the vineyard.
Denbies makes a wide range of whites, reds, rosés and sparkling wines, and their Pinot Noir shows that you can make red wine in the UK, though they only produce one in the best years.
https://www.denbies.co.uk/tours-and-experiences
Gusbourne
Based near Ashford in Kent, Gusbourne specialises in sparkling wines though in 2018 they also produced a limited edition Pinot Noir. As well as a regular tour you can choose a self-guided tour, a full tour of the whole estate, a tour that ends with a light lunch and wine tasting, a tour that culminates in a full three-course lunch, or a romantic picnic for two where you’re provided with a basket full of local produce and a bottle of their Brut Reserve 2016.
https://www.gusbourne.com/tours
Balfour Winery
The Hush Heath Estate has been making award-winning Balfour wines since 2002, specializing in sparkling wines. Their flagship Balfour Brut Rosé was the first English sparkling wine to be served in British Airways First Class.
You can book accommodation at the nearby Goudhurst Inn, also owned by the estate, and the several tour options include a chance to walk on the estate’s nature trails and combine wine and food pairings.
https://balfourwinery.com/visit/
Old Walls Vineyard and Luxury Lodges
The Old Walls Vineyard is just a few miles from the South Devon coast, between Exeter and Torquay, and with six two-bedroom cottages to rent would make an ideal base for a short break in the area.
There’s also a bistro which naturally features their own wines, both on the wine list and in several of the dishes on the menu. Tours include a welcome tea or coffee, a tasting of several wines, and lunch with a glass of wine.
https://oldwallsvineyard.co.uk/tours-and-tasting/
Ryedale Vineyards
England’s most northerly commercial vineyard is a tiny but charming winery based in a listed cowshed 14 miles from York. Its intimate nature is what makes the tours so appealing, and they’ll even make you a meaty or a vegetarian picnic hamper if you let them know in advance.
There’s also comfy accommodation either in a converted barn or in the 500-year-old Grade II listed farmhouse, while the former stables are available for private parties. Tours end with a pairing of their wines with local cheeses.
https://www.ryedalevineyards.co.uk/tours
Trevibban Mill Vineyard
The Trevibban Mill Vineyard is a ten-minute drive from Padstow and nearby beaches, and is surrounded by beautiful Cornish countryside. At the edge of the vineyard and a short walk from a lake is a stylish and open-plan eco lodge, and there’s also an on-site bar serving light lunches.
As well as a full range of wines, the vineyard also produces two apple liqueurs, an apple dessert wine and several ciders, including a sparkling pink cider. You can simply turn up and do a tasting of seven wines, book a regular tour or book to join their longer Sunday morning walking tour, which includes eight wines and lunch.
https://trevibbanmill.com/tours-tastings/
