From the top of the hill, vines cascade down the slopes to the waters of the Cuckmere River as it meanders between chalky cliffs to the sea. The vines to our right are covered with netting, protecting them from hungry crows, but those to our left are exposed.
“These are Chardonnay grapes,” our guide explains. “The birds don’t touch them. And the badgers don’t either. They only like Pinot Precoce.”
That both the birds and the animals are connoisseurs of fine wine is one of the many insights into this emerging British wine region you’ll learn on a tour of Rathfinny Wine Estate in East Sussex.
We are five days into a new wine and walking tour, covering 51 miles of walking in the shelter of the South Downs, through rolling countryside and an area rich in history and culture.
The route begins in Arundel, with its imposing Norman castle. The Romans are often credited with bringing vines to Britain, but the bon viveurs French also established viticulture after the Norman Conquest. The Domesday Book recorded 40 vineyards in the south-east; today there are over 100 in Sussex alone.
Lizzie Enfield takes part in a 51-mile wine and walking tour through England’s South Downs, stopping at several vineyards including the Wiston Estate (pictured above)
Lizzie says: ‘The route starts in Arundel, with its imposing Norman castle (pictured). The Romans are often credited with bringing vines to Britain, but the bon viveur French also established wine growing after the Norman Conquest’
First on our route is Wiston, five miles north of Worthing. The land here has been in the Goring family since the mid-18th century, but it was in the early 2000s that the last generation planted Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay vines and began producing premium Sussex sparkling wines.
In the tasting rooms in the flint barn we sip a rosé, brut and award-winning Blanc de Blancs, with notes of apple, strawberry, cherry and even plum. These flavours are typical of the area, 30 or 40 years ago, when the orchards were flourishing and the soft fruit ripened in the areas now covered in vines.
At that time it was not warm enough for grapes, but global warming has given the south of England a climate similar to that of the Champagne region in the 1970s, leading to an explosion in wine production.
Lizzie drinks rosé and brut at the Wiston Estate (pictured) and tastes ‘notes of apple, strawberry, cherry and even plum’
Lizzie says: ‘We’re going to the Ridgeview estate (pictured) and tasting a sparkling Blanc de Blancs that’s been served at state banquets for the likes of Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping’
Sussex even has Protected Designation of Origin status for its sparkling wine, leading to a degree of sour grapes compared to neighbouring Kent.
Because many vineyards and wineries are located in a relatively small area, a new type of wine tourism has emerged: on foot.
Many estates have their own wine trails, sometimes leading to other nearby vineyards, but Mac’s adventure is the first company to build a longer route right through the heart of the Sussex wine region.
From the tree-lined Iron Age hill fort of Chanctonbury Ring on the ridge above Wiston, we follow the route taken by Charles II as he fled from Parliamentarian forces on his way to France. We stay overnight in the sleepy village of Bramber.
The next day we climb steadily to the edge of the mythical glacial gorge, Devil’s Dyke, with a view described by landscape painter John Constable as ‘the most beautiful in the world’.
From here we follow the South Downs Way before passing the black and white Jack and Jill windmills to the village of Ditchling.
With its creaking Tudor timber-framed buildings, 12th-century church and Arts and Crafts museum, Ditchling was once best known as the birthplace of sculptor Eric Gill. But since his fall from grace, its four vineyards, all within a stone’s throw of each other, have become one of its biggest draws.
We head to the Ridgeview estate and sample a sparkling Blanc de Blancs, which is served at state banquets for the likes of Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Pleasantly sleepy after the generously filled glasses, we go to our hotel, where our luggage, which is transported daily, is waiting for us.
Lizzie notes: ‘Our final day’s walk from the elegant 19th century colonial Wingrove House in Alfriston takes us past the spectacular chalk cliffs of the Seven Sisters (above)’
Accommodation is a mix of hotels and guesthouses, all conveniently located near the route. Our final day’s walk from the elegant 19th century colonial Wingrove House in Alfriston takes us past the spectacular Seven Sisters chalk cliffs.
This chalk, the area’s rocky soil, is one of the keys to the success of Sussex wine. It retains water, allowing vines to flourish without much irrigation.
It is fitting then that the bottle of Rathfinny we smuggle into our room on our last night at Eastbourne’s Grand Hotel has the Seven Sisters on the label. My partner thinks I’m suggestible but I tell him I’ve developed the nose of a badger and as we gaze out to sea and toast the end of our journey, I can definitely taste the landscape we’ve walked through.
It’s all in the glass of bubbly with its salty flavour and hints of honeysuckle, apples and pears. Another taste of the Sussex wine region that you can enjoy with little effort.
Guests dine among the vines of Rathfinny Vineyard (pictured). Lizzie says: ‘I can definitely taste the landscape we walked through’
