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Vineyards to visit in Sussex
West Sussex is England's second most planted wine county after Kent, and East Sussex adds estates across the South Downs and the High Weald. Most Sussex vineyards that welcome visitors offer a guided tour and tasting, and several add a restaurant, a shop or a walk through the vines. Here they are by county.
16 vineyards, each checked against its own website in October 2026.
Vineyards in West Sussex
Albourne Estate
Albourne, West Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings and events.
A family-owned, sustainably farmed vineyard about eight miles from Brighton, making still and sparkling wines including Bacchus and Pinot Noir.
Public tours run on most Saturdays from May to September, with 2027 dates out in January. Private tours and tastings run all year by arrangement.
Bolney Wine Estate
Bolney, West Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, a restaurant, a café, a shop and events.
Its 36 acres include an 18-acre vineyard set aside for visitors.
Book tours and tastings ahead; the café and wine bar welcome walk-ins.
Kinsbrook Vineyard
Thakeham, West Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, a restaurant, a café, a shop and events.
Its restaurant cooks a seasonal menu with as much produce as possible from the vineyard's own market gardens.
Book tours and the restaurant ahead; the café deli welcomes walk-ins.
Leonardslee Family Vineyards
Mannings Heath, near Horsham, West Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, a restaurant, places to stay and events.
A 240-acre sparkling wine estate, ranked 56th in the World's Best Vineyards 2025 list.
Tours run all year, with fewer times in winter. Drop-in tastings need no booking.
Tinwood Estate
Halnaker, near Chichester, West Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, a café, a shop, places to stay and events.
Run by the Tukker family since 2007, growing Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.
Open all year, with tours every day. Book tours ahead; the Vineyard Kitchen welcomes walk-ins.
Wiston Estate
Washington, West Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, self-guided walks, a restaurant, a café, a shop, places to stay and events.
Its vineyards sit within the 6,000-acre Wiston Estate on the South Downs, and the winery presses grapes in a traditional Coquard Champagne press.
Tours run all year, with fewer between October and March. Book ahead.
Vineyards in East Sussex
Artelium Wine Estate
Streat, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, self-guided walks, a restaurant and events.
A contemporary estate on a former horse livery that pairs English wine with art, with sculptures around the vineyard.
Book tours ahead; tastings welcome walk-ins, with booking advised for groups of more than four.
Bluebell Vineyard Estates
Furners Green, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, self-guided walks, a shop and places to stay.
First planted in 2005, with nearly 100 acres under vine, including Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.
Book tours ahead; the vineyard and woodland trails need no booking.
Court Garden
Ditchling, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings and self-guided walks.
A family-run, single-estate vineyard and winery growing grapes and making wine since 2005.
Book ahead. An autumn and winter winery experience runs alongside the vineyard tours.
Henners
Herstmonceux, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings and events.
Five miles from the English Channel, where sea breezes give its wines a crisp, saline edge.
Winter tours run on Saturdays. Book tours ahead; the cellar door welcomes walk-ins.
Oxney Organic Estate
Beckley, near Rye, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, a shop, places to stay and events.
A single-estate organic vineyard near Rye.
Vineyard tours run May to October, with indoor tastings in winter. Wine flights need no booking.
Rathfinny Wine Estate
Alfriston, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, self-guided walks, a restaurant, a café, a shop, places to stay and events.
A 600-acre estate on chalk inside the South Downs National Park, making Sussex sparkling wine.
The winter tour and tasting runs from 30 October 2026 to 24 April 2027. Drop-in tastings at the cellar door and the walking trail need no booking.
Ridgeview Wine Estate
Ditchling Common, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, self-guided walks, a restaurant, a shop and events.
Founded in 1995 by Mike and Christine Roberts, and now run by their children, Tamara and Simon.
Tours run all year, with winter cellar tours in November and December. Book tours ahead; the cellar door welcomes visitors for tastings when there's space.
Sedlescombe Organic Vineyard
Cripps Corner, near Robertsbridge, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, a café, a shop, places to stay and events.
An organic vineyard whose wines are all certified suitable for vegans.
Book tours ahead; informal tastings welcome walk-ins.
Tickerage
Blackboys, near Uckfield, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings and events.
A family-run, five-acre vineyard on the edge of the Sussex Weald, planted in 2007 with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Regent and Rondo, and its own winery.
Open days with a tasting of the range run at the start of each season, announced four to six weeks ahead, and private tours and tastings run for groups by arrangement. I made wine here for a year.
Tillingham
Peasmarsh, near Rye, East Sussex
What you can do: guided tours, tastings, a restaurant, places to stay and events.
A 70-acre biodynamic mixed farm near Rye, with a history going back to the 13th century.
Book ahead.
Planning a Sussex vineyard visit
- Book the tour ahead. Guided tours run at set times. For a tasting without a booking, the cellar doors at Ridgeview, Rathfinny, Henners and Artelium, and the café and wine bar at Bolney, all welcome walk-ins.
- Go by train from Brighton. Ridgeview's own website notes it's a 15-minute train ride from Brighton.
- Stay for lunch. Ridgeview, Rathfinny, Bolney, Wiston, Kinsbrook, Artelium, Leonardslee and Tillingham all have a restaurant on site.
- Stay the night. Rathfinny, Wiston, Tinwood, Oxney, Bluebell, Sedlescombe, Leonardslee and Tillingham all offer places to stay.
Questions
- Which vineyards are near Brighton?
- Albourne Estate, Artelium, Court Garden and Ridgeview are all around eight or nine miles from Brighton as the crow flies, and Bolney Wine Estate about twelve. Rathfinny, Wiston and Bluebell are a little further, at around 13 to 14 miles.
- Can I do a wine tasting in Sussex without booking?
- Yes. Ridgeview, Rathfinny, Henners and Artelium welcome walk-ins at their cellar doors, Bolney at its café and wine bar, Leonardslee for drop-in tastings, Sedlescombe for informal tastings and Oxney for wine flights. Guided tours are best booked ahead.
- Which Sussex vineyards are open in winter?
- Tinwood runs tours every day all year, Ridgeview adds winter cellar tours in November and December, and Rathfinny's winter tour runs from 30 October 2026 to 24 April 2027. Wiston and Leonardslee run tours all year, with fewer in winter.
- What's the difference between East and West Sussex for a vineyard visit?
- West Sussex is England's second most planted wine county, with estates such as Wiston, Bolney, Tinwood and Leonardslee. East Sussex has a cluster around Ditchling near Brighton, and more towards Rye and the coast.
Run a vineyard in the South East?
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