A family vineyard on the South Downs above Lewes. Traditional method sparkling and still wines from our own vines, picked by hand and aged in our cellar. Come for a tour and tasting, or have a case sent to you.
Two generations on the same slope, and every bottle passes through family hands.
Every bunch is cut by hand and sorted in the row before it leaves.
The sparkling sits on its lees in our chalk cellar for years, not months.
We ship anywhere in mainland UK, or you collect from the cellar door.
A pick of what is open now. The full list, older vintages and mixed cases are in the online shop and at the cellar door.
Dry
Gold 2024
Elderflower, nettle and grapefruit, with the bright acidity Bacchus does so well here. Good with crab, goat’s cheese or a Friday chip shop.
Off-dry
Peach and honeysuckle with just a touch of sweetness left in. An easy glass before dinner, and it handles a curry better than most.
Aromatic
Trophy
Apricot, quince and orange blossom, rounder than the Bacchus and nowhere near sweet. Made for blue cheese and for pudding.
Dry
Pale salmon, all strawberry and redcurrant, bone dry. The bottle that goes out to the garden the moment it stops raining.
Brut
Silver
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, three years on the lees in the chalk. Bread crust, green apple and a fine, slow bead. The bottle we are known for.
Dry
Sour cherry and bramble with a peppery finish and real grip. Drink it with venison, or with a Sunday roast in February.
Dry
Damson, plum skin and dark chocolate, with soft tannins and a long finish. Charcuterie, hard cheese, or on its own by the fire.
Dry
Gold 2023
The cellar’s flagship still red, fourteen months in French oak. Wild raspberry, coffee and woodsmoke. Light on its feet and serious with it.
Off-dry
Light, floral and uncomplicated — elderflower and pear. The one that goes on the table when people stay longer than they meant to.
The full list, with tasting notes, serving temperatures and case options, is on the page Our wines. After a particular vintage, or wine by the case for an event? Get in touch — we are happy to help.
The first vines went in above Lewes in 1998, five acres on a south-facing chalk slope that everybody said was too cold. It was a weekend project and a few barrels in the barn. It is now thirty-five acres across three blocks, and the chalk turned out to be the whole point.
We work on the principle that the wine is made in the vineyard and the winery only has to avoid spoiling it. Hand picked, whole bunch pressed, and given time. Most of the work is done by the family, so the person pouring at the cellar door was probably up the hill that morning.
“We are not trying to make the most wine in Sussex. We are trying to make the bottle you open again.” — the family behind the vineyard (this is an example website)
Walk the vines, see the press and the riddling racks, then sit down in the chalk cellar and taste the range with somebody who made it. Local cheese and bread come with it. Good for two people on a Saturday, and good for a company away day.
A few pictures from the last twelve months. Click to see them larger.
Three questions that tell you more than a review would.
Ask whether the wine is grown here. Plenty of labels are made from bought-in fruit or contract pressed miles away. Ours comes off this slope and is pressed in the building you are standing in.
Ask how long the sparkling sat on its lees. Traditional method needs time, and time is the expensive part. Anyone who will not give you a number in months has a reason not to.
Ask who is pouring. A tasting is worth going to when the person behind the table picked the fruit. If it is a hired host reading a card, you are paying for the view.
Book a tour, ask about private hire, or ask about a wine. We answer by the next day at the latest.
A tour, a case of wine or a question — send this and we will come back to you.