The White Horse Inn
A historic village pub on West Street in the heart of Ditchling, beneath the South Downs, offering rooms as well as food.
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Vineyard guide · Ditchling
Visiting Court Garden
Court Garden is a family-run vineyard and winery on a south-facing slope just north of Ditchling, below the South Downs. Its booked tours walk the vines and the winery before a tasting of award-winning sparkling wines.
Court Garden at a glance
| Founded | Planted 2005 |
|---|---|
| Known for | Traditional method English sparkling wine, especially the Blanc de Blancs |
| Grapes | Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier, plus smaller plantings of six others |
| Open | Booked visits only, self-guided arrivals 10.30am to 4.30pm |
| Booking | Book all tours, self-guided visits and picnics online |
| Tours from | £23.50 self-guided, guided tours from £27.50 |
| Food | No restaurant, picnic lunches bookable on Saturdays |
| By train | Burgess Hill (10 minutes by taxi) or Hassocks (40 minutes on foot) |
Checked on the vineyard’s own website in October 2026.
About Court Garden
Court Gardens Farm has a long farming history. In Saxon times it was known as the Manor of Ditchling Garden, from the Middle Ages to the Reformation it belonged to the monks of Lewes Priory, and it appears on Yeakell and Gardner’s map of Sussex from the late 18th century.
The vineyard was planted in spring 2005 by the Corney family, who still run it, and Hugo Corney makes the wines in the modern winery on the farm. It now covers 17 acres, mainly the three classic sparkling varieties, with Pinot Gris, Ortega, Rondo and Pinot Blanc for still wine and small plantings of the rare old Champagne varieties Arbanne and Petit Meslier. The vines are trained on the Double Guyot system, frost candles are lit in spring when needed, and the grapes are picked by friends of the vineyard.
The Court Garden Blanc de Blancs 2010 won the 2015 International Wine Challenge trophies for Best English Vintage Sparkling and Best English Sparkling Wine. The estate has also won gold medals at the International Wine Challenge, the IWSC, the UK Vineyards Association awards, the Sommelier Wine Awards and in 50 Great Sparkling Wines of the World.
The wines
The core sparkling range is a Classic Cuvée, a Rosé, a Blanc de Noirs and a Blanc de Blancs, all made by the traditional method with long ageing on the lees. Premium blends include the Ditchling Quartet 2014 and Ditchling Solo, and older vintages back to 2010 are sold through the estate’s Wine Library. There are also two still wines, a Ditchling Rosé and a Ditchling White, and a red and a rosé vermouth flavoured with botanicals grown on the farm, such as gorse flowers, lavender and wormwood. Where to buy them.
Tours and tastings at Court Garden
Court Garden is a working farm and winery rather than a drop-in cellar door, so plan your visit around a booked tour or self-guided slot. Guided tours start at 11am or 3pm and take about two hours. On Saturdays you can book a picnic for 1pm to 2pm between the two tours. In autumn and winter the main guided option is the Winery Experience, which spends more time in the cellar and winery than in the vines, and the vineyard tours may not run from October 2026 to January 2027. Wine bought online can be collected by arrangement, and there are occasional ticketed evening events in the Sussex barn. A morning tour followed by lunch in Ditchling village makes a good day.
| Experience | Price | Length | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vineyard and Sparkling Wine Tour An introduction in the tasting room, a walk round the vineyard, a look at the winery and its equipment, then a tasting of four Court Garden sparkling wines. | From £27.50 per person | About 2 hours | 11am and 3pm on calendar dates, may not run October 2026 to January 2027 |
| Wines and Cheese Vineyard Tour The same vineyard and winery tour, with a tasting of two sparkling and two still wines paired with four award-winning Sussex cheeses. | From £37.50 per person | About 2 hours | 11am and 3pm on calendar dates, may not run October 2026 to January 2027 |
| Autumn and Winter Winery Experience A tour of the cellar and winery rather than the vines, then a tasting of Court Garden sparkling wines and a vermouth spritz. | £27.50 per person | About 2 hours | Autumn and winter, 11am and 3pm |
| Self-guided Vineyard Tour Explore the vineyard at your own pace and join one of the tastings at 12.15pm or 4.15pm. | From £23.50 per person | Come any time between 10.30am and 4.30pm | Bookable days, the vineyard closes at 6pm |
| Self-guided Picnic Tour for Two A self-guided visit with a picnic and a half bottle of sparkling wine delivered to a picnic table out in the vineyard. | From £86.50 for two | Picnic served 1pm to 2pm | Saturdays |
| Picnic Lunch A homemade picnic in a basket, with rolls, ham or houmous, salsa, quiche and cake, to add after a morning tour or before an afternoon one. Vegetarian and vegan options are available. | From £19.75 per person | 1pm to 2pm | Saturdays |
Book these on the Court Garden website.
Where to stay
Ockenden Manor Hotel & Spa
An Elizabethan manor with a spa and a restaurant, in grounds overlooking Cuckfield Park.
The Griffin Inn
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.
Buy Court Garden wines
3 bottles in stock with our wine partners this week. Prices are for a single 75cl bottle.
Sparkling
Court Garden Classic Cuvée 2018
Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier, toasty, with greengage and pineapple and a creamy mousse.
£44at The Great Wine Co.BuySparkling
Court Garden Blanc de Noirs 2014
Pinot Noir and Meunier, oak-touched and long-aged, a little sweeter than Brut, with baked apple and toast.
£48at The Great Wine Co.BuySparkling
Court Garden Blanc de Blancs 2018
A traditional-method Brut made only from Chardonnay at this estate below the South Downs.
£50at The Great Wine Co.Buy
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Getting there
The nearest station is Burgess Hill, about a 10-minute taxi ride from the vineyard. Hassocks is about a 40-minute walk; call ahead for a shortcut away from the main road. Both stations are on the London to Brighton line. By car, the farm is on Orchard Lane, just north of Ditchling village (postcode BN6 8TH), and there is plenty of room to park.
Make a day of it
Ditchling village is worth an hour or two for its Museum of Art + Craft, its pubs and restaurants, and the climb up to Ditchling Beacon on the South Downs Way. Ridgeview Wine Estate on Ditchling Common is a few minutes’ drive away, so the two make an easy pairing for a day. Lewes and Brighton are both within half an hour.
See every vineyard you can visit in our Sussex directory. Our other Sussex vineyard guides: Rathfinny, Bolney, Wiston, Nyetimber.
Questions people ask
Do you need to book at Court Garden?
Yes. Guided tours, self-guided visits and picnics are all booked online in advance.
How much is a Court Garden vineyard tour?
The Vineyard and Sparkling Wine Tour is from £27.50 per person and the Wines and Cheese Tour from £37.50. A self-guided visit with a tasting is from £23.50.
How long is the Court Garden tour?
Allow about two hours. Tours start at 11am or 3pm.
Can you get food at Court Garden?
There is no restaurant, but you can book a homemade picnic lunch for 1pm to 2pm on Saturdays, and the wines and cheese tour includes four Sussex cheeses.
How do you get to Court Garden by train?
Take the train to Burgess Hill and a taxi of about 10 minutes, or walk about 40 minutes from Hassocks.