Home / Vineyards / Sussex / Bolney
Vineyard guide · Bolney
Bolney Wine Estate in mid Sussex, first planted in 1973, is one of England’s longest-established vineyards, known for sparkling wine and Pinot Noir. It opens daily, with a café, restaurant, shop and tours every day.
| Founded | Land bought 1972, first vines planted 1973 |
|---|---|
| Known for | English sparkling wine, and Pinot Noir red |
| Grapes | Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Bacchus and Müller-Thurgau, among others |
| Open | Daily, 9am to 5pm |
| Booking | Book tours and the restaurant online, the café and wine bar is walk-in only |
| Tours from | £20 |
| Food | Bolney Restaurant (Wednesday to Sunday) and a walk-in café and wine bar |
| Dogs | Welcome in the downstairs café and wine bar, not on tours or in the restaurant |
| Children | Welcome in the café, restaurant and shop, tours strictly 18 and over |
| By train | Haywards Heath or Burgess Hill, both about 15 minutes by taxi |
Checked on the vineyard’s own website in October 2026.
Bolney began in 1972 when Janet and Rodney Pratt bought the land, first called Bookers Vineyard. In 1973 they planted 1,000 Müller-Thurgau vines across three acres, which the estate says made it only the sixth commercial vineyard in England. Experimental plantings of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay followed in 1983, and both did well. Their daughter Sam Linter joined the business full time in 1995 and led a long period of growth.
The main Eighteen Acre Vineyard was planted from 2002 on a south-facing slope of sandstone soils, about 35 metres above sea level. The estate now covers 36 acres of vineyards and land in the Low Weald, close to the edge of the South Downs and around 14 miles from the coast. A first winery opened in 2005, the visitor centre with café, shop and balcony in 2016, and a larger winery, opened by the then Duchess of Cornwall, in 2019. The winemaking team is led by Head Winemaker Cara Lee Dely, and the winery holds Sustainable Wines of Great Britain accreditation.
Bolney made its first red in 1998 and built a name for Pinot Noir at a time when few English vineyards made red wine. In 2012 it was named UK Wine Producer of the Year, and in 2017 it won Winery of the Year in the United Kingdom Vineyards Association competition. More recently its Cuvée Rosé 2016 won the English Sparkling Vintage Rosé Trophy at the International Wine Challenge 2026, and the restaurant holds a VisitEngland Quality Food and Drink Accolade.
Bolney makes sparkling, white, rosé and red wines, all from grapes grown on the estate, plus a gin, sloe gin and vermouth made partly from by-products of winemaking. The sparkling range includes Bolney Bubbly (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Müller-Thurgau), Classic Cuvée, Blanc de Blancs and Cuvée Rosé. Still wines include Estate Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and Lychgate Bacchus, with Winemaker’s Edition bottlings such as a Pinot Noir and a Chardonnay. If you have already tried plenty of English sparkling wine, the reds are the reason to taste here. Where to buy them.
The estate is open every day from 9am to 5pm, with a shop and a terrace over the 18-acre visitor vineyard. The café and wine bar is walk-in only, serving breakfast, cakes and charcuterie boards with wine by the glass; it opens from 10am on Monday and Tuesday, with last orders at 4.30pm. The upstairs restaurant opens Wednesday to Sunday from 9am, with last food orders at 3pm, and stays open until 10pm on Friday. It is card only and needs a booking. The main tour season runs from February to October, with some dates from November to January, and at harvest in September and October you can see the winery working. Tours run in the rain and include 10 to 15 minutes on uneven ground. There is a lift.
| Experience | Price | Length | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cellar Door Tasting A guided tasting of a selection of Bolney’s sparkling and still wines, with background on the grape varieties and how the wines are made. No vineyard walk. | £20 per person | 30 minutes | Daily at 11am |
| Bolney Wine Pairing Tour and Tasting A guided walk through the vineyard and winery, then a tutored tasting of five wines, each paired with a food item. Expect about half a bottle of wine per person. | £30 per person Monday to Thursday, £40 Friday to Sunday | 1.5 hours | Daily at 10am, plus 3pm on Fridays |
| Bolney Experience Tour and Tasting The longest tour: a glass of sparkling wine on arrival, a vineyard and winery tour, and a tasting of five wines with a food-matching plate, a seasonal mezze board and petits fours. | £60 per person Monday to Thursday, £70 Friday to Sunday | 3 hours | Daily at 11am and 1pm |
| Grape To Table Tasting A welcome glass of Classic Cuvée, a guided tasting of still and sparkling wines, then a three-course seasonal menu in the restaurant with a wine paired to each course. It does not include a vineyard tour. | £95 per person | 3 hours | Fridays at 11am and 5pm |
Book these on the Bolney website.
A wine pairing tour and tasting (£30) or the longer Bolney Experience (£60), or a money voucher from £10 that also works in the café, the restaurant and the shop. Bolney is a few minutes off the A23, so it is an easy trip from Brighton or London.
An Elizabethan manor with a spa and a restaurant, in grounds overlooking Cuckfield Park.
A historic village pub on West Street in the heart of Ditchling, beneath the South Downs, offering rooms as well as food.
A 16th-century pub with 13 rooms in the village of Fletching, overlooking the Ouse Valley.
Prices are often the same either way, so compare the booking site with booking direct.
11 bottles in stock with our wine partners this week. Prices are for a single 75cl bottle.
Sparkling
A Pinot Noir-led traditional-method blend with Chardonnay and Meunier, showing hedgerow fruit, apple and brioche.
Sparkling
Chardonnay-led traditional-method fizz with Pinot Noir and Müller-Thurgau, tasting of green apple and citrus.
Sparkling
A traditional-method Blanc de Blancs from one vintage, with apple, citrus and a hazelnut note.
Sparkling rosé
Traditional-method pink fizz with red berries, rhubarb and spice.
Sparkling rosé
Traditional-method pink fizz from Pinot Noir, Meunier, Dornfelder and Rondo, with redcurrant and strawberry.
Sparkling rosé
A traditional-method vintage pink fizz from the warm, ripe 2018 harvest.
White
Classic Bacchus: elderflower and gooseberry, with a grapefruit finish.
White
Alsace-style Pinot Gris fermented cool in steel, with pear and grapefruit and a dry finish.
White
A precise, Chablis-like Chardonnay with taut citrus fruit and a long finish.
Red
A medium-bodied dry red with earthy notes, blackberry and black pepper, and soft tannins.
Red
Silky, medium-bodied Pinot Noir with dark cherry, fig and a touch of white pepper.
Enjoying this guide?
What is on at the vineyards, new tours worth booking and the bottles we are drinking. One short email a month, and you can unsubscribe whenever you like.
The nearest mainline stations are Haywards Heath and Burgess Hill, both about 15 minutes by taxi, with Wivelsfield about 20 minutes away. Trains run from London Victoria, London Bridge, Brighton and Gatwick. Book a taxi ahead, especially at weekends. Buses 86, 89 and 273 serve Bolney. By car, the estate is just off the A272 near its junction with the A23, about 10 minutes from Haywards Heath, 20 minutes from Brighton and 45 minutes to an hour from London. Do not take the Bolney village exit: the entrance is the second of two driveways about half a mile along Foxhole Lane. Parking is free and there is electric car charging.
Bolney sits in mid Sussex between Haywards Heath and the South Downs, so it pairs well with Ridgeview near Ditchling, one of the best-known sparkling wine producers in the county, and with the walks on Ditchling Beacon. Cuckfield and Haywards Heath are a short drive for lunch or a pub, and Brighton is about 20 minutes south. Wiston Estate, below the Downs near Washington, is within reach for a second winery visit on the same day.
See every vineyard you can visit in our Sussex directory. Our other Sussex vineyard guides: Rathfinny, Court Garden, Wiston, Nyetimber.
Yes. Tours, tastings and events are booked online and can sell out. The café and wine bar is walk-in only, and the upstairs restaurant needs a table booking.
The Cellar Door Tasting is £20. The Wine Pairing Tour and Tasting is £30 Monday to Thursday and £40 Friday to Sunday, and the three-hour Bolney Experience is £60 midweek or £70 at weekends.
Children and babies are welcome in the café, restaurant and shop. All vineyard tours are strictly 18 and over.
Dogs are welcome in the downstairs café and wine bar. They are not allowed on tours or in the upstairs restaurant.
Haywards Heath and Burgess Hill are the nearest mainline stations, both about 15 minutes by taxi. Book a taxi ahead, especially at weekends.
No, there is no accommodation or camping on the estate. If you leave your car overnight after a tour, tell your guide, as the gates lock at 6pm and reopen at 8.30am.
What is on at the vineyards that month, new tours worth booking, and our seasonal picks, from Christmas vouchers to harvest days. One email a month. Unsubscribe whenever you like.
