Kent Wine Tour
3 Vineyards, 12 wines, Lunch, and a Whole Lot of Fun!
Departs from London Bridge
from £135 p/p
GRAB A FRIEND AND LETS GET TO THE VINEYARDS
Day Trips that Depart from Central London
"This tour exceeded our expectations. It is a great alternative to sightseeing in London. The three wineries were all interesting and very different to each other, so we were able to taste a variety of wines of differing prices." - Heather (posted on TripAdvisor)
Experience the Wine Garden of England
The county of Kent is known as the Garden of England which is renown for growing soft fruits and of course wine grapes.
- You will get to drink some delicious wine on the day
- Enjoy our entertaining, factual and fun wine tour guides!
- You will see some quintessential English villages along the way
Discover our award winning English wine
On the day you will taste some award winning wines and learn about our young and growing wine industry.
Taste some fantastic sparkling wine made in the traditional champange method. We also make some beautiful still chardonnay, perfectly pink rosé and very luscious pinot noir.
Capture memories that will last a lifetime
Nothing better than to capture memories to share with friends and family. Our tours take you away to places that are memorable and most of our guests say its one of their best days out from London.
You will have time to shop and capture photos and to take in sites...and wine.
DISCOVER SMALL PRODUCERS AND EXPLORE THE VINES
HERE'S THE DETAILS OF YOUR WINE TOUR
Our Kent English Wine Tasting Tour takes you to two award winning vineyards in the picturesque county of Kent, named the garden of England for it’s ideal fruit growing conditions. Tours visit Chapel Down Winery in the morning and after a delicious 2 course lunch we head to either the Hush Heath Estate or Woodchurch Wines in the afternoon.
History, Background and Live Narrative
Your wine tour will depart promptly from central London, the English Grounds near London Bridge Station so please arrive for 8:45 to ensure a prompt departure at 9:00am. The day will be loaded information as your wine exploration journey will take about 1hr 40minutes to arrive at the first vineyard. Not to worry, we provide a live narrative on the way down that gives you more context about the English wine industry, plus you’ll get to enjoy the scenic English countryside views along the way. Our English wine tour guide is an expert in the industry, who will tell you about the history of English wine since the Roman invasion, the significance of the Battle of Hastings in 1066, and explain who are the movers and shakers in the English wine industry since the birth of modern English wine that started in the 1950s. You will learn about yield and production levels, what grape varietals are grown and even how much money it takes to start a vineyard in England.
The North Downs and Chapel Down Vineyard
Traveling out of London and across the chalk soil of the Kent North Downs we will make our way through beautiful English countryside and arrive at Chapel Down Winery. Chapel Down is nestled in the 15th century shipbuilding port known as the hamlet of Small Hythe were we will explore the vineyard and learn about English viticulture. You’ll enjoy a fully guided tour of the vineyard and winery and learn all about the traditional sparkling winemaking process. Then we head to their tasting room for a guided tasting of their range of English sparkling and still wines. There will be plenty of time to wonder around and browse the wine shop after the tasting.
Food at the The Bull Inn – A Proper Country Pub Lunch
Enjoy a delicious lunch made with local produce and love in this charming traditional English Pub in the village of Benenden. Recorded in the Doomsday Book in 1086 Benenden is steeped in industrial history for both iron-making and cloth-making since the 14th century. The Bull Inn is a traditional old English pub where you can choose from a selection of light lunches all served with a glass of English Wine.
Small Producer Vineyard Experience
Planted in 2009, Woodchurch Estate is a small and unique vineyard where we will meet the producer to understand all the hard work that goes into starting a vineyard. Woodchurch specialises in sparkling wine where they have 9 acres of vineyard that produce a classic cuvée, a sparkling rosé, and a delicious blanc de blancs. They have also just released a still chardonnay. You will have a guided wine tasting with the producer and time for purchases.
OUR Kent WINE TOUR
Wine Tour Duration:
Approximately 8 hours from start to finish
Departure Point:
English Grounds, SE1 2HU (opposite London Bridge)
Itinerary
9.00am Collection London Bridge
- Learn about the History of English Wine
- Significance of the Battle of Hastings
- Industry insights, production levels
- Welcome Drink
10.30am Arrive at Woodchurch Vineyard
- Meet the Producer
- Guided tasting at the wine bar - 5 wines
- Sparkling and still wines
- Time for wine purchases
12.00pm Chapel Down Vineyard
- Guided Tasting - 5 wines
- Time for purchases and shopping
1.30pm Lunch - at Bull in Benenden
- Delicious lunch of seasonal local fayre
- Served with a glass of wine
2.50pm Off to the next Vineyard
3.00pm Herbert Hall Winery
- Guided Wine Tasting
- 2 - award winning sparkling wines
- Served in Fortum & Mason
4.30pm Back on the bus
6.15pm Arrive London Bridge (approximate timing depending on traffic)
All itineraries are subject to change
Where do you pick up from in London?
We pick up guests from central London at a bus stand in front of Southwark Crown Court. The pick up point is on the south side of the Thames River near London Bridge Station, which has both Tube and Overground trains. Departure Point: English Grounds, SE1 2HU (opposite London Bridge)
What is exactly included on this wine tour?
- Our fun and informative expert English Wine Tour Guide for the day
- A Welcome Drink on the coach
- Sample an array of award winning English Wines (12 wines)
- All tasting fees are paid for in advance with the vineyard
- Guided Wine Tastings, sometimes by the producer
- Delicious locally sourced lunch, served with a glass of English Wine
- Goodie Bag – Souvenir Branded English Wine Tasting Tours Jute Bag
- Bag of English Crisps and a bottle of Water
- Return travel from London in luxury mini-coach or van (Mercedes)
- Air-conditioned for transport for your comfort
- Learn how to taste wine like a pro
Do you have vegetarian options for lunch?
Of course we do. We make all attempts to meet all dietary requirements, including vegetiarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free and more. We use food partners, pubs or cafes, to provide excellent quality food for our guests. If you have booked a wine tour, you will receive a lunch order form by email for your food requirements. The lunch order form (web form) will give you a chance to state any dietary requirements or food allergies which we will pass onto the food provider. Keep in mind that most pubs or cafes will not guarantee a nut free restaurant.
How big are the groups on the wine tours?
Our group size can vary from week to week but our maximum public tour group is less that 26, but most of the time we average groups of 12 - 18 guests. Don't worry, everyone loves wine so its easy to make friends! Wine something that connects us all.
Does the weather affect the tour?
Weather is something that we love to discuss in England but it never stops us from "carrying on". We advise guests to dress appropriately and if necessary wear or bring jackets or jumpers, practical shoes, perhaps an umbrella if rain is forecasted. We do try and venture into the vineyard and are outdoors at times.
What vineyards will I visit on the day?
Vineyards are always subject to change from the stated schedule. All vineyards are booked in advance but occasionally last minute changes do happen. Due to customer feedback we have started visiting smaller vineyards where you will have a chance to possibly meet the producer. We may visit a larger producer also. Keep in mind that all English vineyards are small in relative "wine production" terms.
How sustainable are we as a wine tour operator?
We have a Green Tourism badge and by offering group travel in a coach we are more sustainable than a self-drive wine tourist. Because we travel in and out of London our coaches have to be extermely clean for emission standards as London now has an Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ). Most of the coaches we use are Euro4 or Euro6 standard! We hope to move to electric coaches in the near future but coaches are heavy things to move around at present and the technology needs to advance so that we can been even more green. Our souvenir jute bags are reusuable and we recycle as much as possible. We are always trying to find new ways to be more sustainable.
What type of wine will I try on the day?
If you only drink big bolshy reds...then English wine probably isn't for you! 😉 But if you have a place on your palette for award winning sparkling wine, delicate whites, dry rosé and pinot noir reds then you will love English wine. Our wine region is a "cool climate" which means we have higher acidity levels but it enables us to produce fantastic sparkling wine. Nearly 70% of everything we produce is sparkling wine and we predominantly grow mostly Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier and some interesting Germanic varieties. England started its wine industry growing Germanic wines in the 1950s and some vineyards still have those grape varietals today so when possible we try to make sure that you get to try some of those wines as well. We don't have restrictions on what grapes we can grow here so we are different than France or Italy (old world) wine regions and we encourage guests to try new wines and come explore with us.
Is this tour for experienced wine connoisseurs?
We cater to different levels of wine education on our tours. If you want to discuss English oenology or viticulture in more depth our tour guides can definately help to answer your questions. We try to keep the information on the day informative and presented at a level for all but please do ask questions if you want a more detailed answer. We love curious minds!
What type of coaches or vans to you use?
Our coaches are new or late models within a couple of years old. London emission standards requires us to continuously update our coaches. We partner with reputable coach companies on a contractual basis to keep a high standard of vehicle. All of our coaches have leather seats, full air-conditioning and heating, and we have reliable well-trained drivers. If we use a mini-van for groups of 8-people or less, then our vehicle is a Mercedes-Benz, full leather, with air-conditioning.
Wine tour guides or coach drivers?
We offer wine tour experiences verses a coach operator that offers wine tour journeys. Our wine tour guides are experts in English wine so we chaperone verses chauffeur and also provide the education and history regarding our wine industry.