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Mid Sussex vineyards to visit

The vineyards north of the South Downs, between Haywards Heath, East Grinstead, Crawley and Horsham. Kingscote and Leonardslee pour every day; the others open on set days or for booked tours.

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Mid Sussex in brief

  • Kingscote, near East Grinstead, opens its shop and café in a tithe barn every day, and you can drop in for a tasting.
  • Leonardslee’s cellar door at Mannings Heath pours its sparkling wines daily from 11am, with no booking.
  • Highweald, at Ansty, opens its cellar door and garden bar from Friday to Sunday; Sugrue and Rowfant are for booked tours on set days.

Details checked in October 2026.

Map of the Mid Sussex vineyards open to visitors, numbered as in the list belowEast of EnglandLondonSouth EastBrightonGuildfordCrowboroughUckfieldLewesHeathfieldHaywards HeathBurgess HillCrawleyEast GrinsteadHorshamWorthingArundelPetworthPulboroughSevenoaksTonbridgeDorkingReigateGodalmingHorleyHoveSteyningHailshamWadhurstEdenbridgeTunbridge Wells1. Leonardslee Family Vineyards12. Kingscote Estate23. Highweald Wine Estate34. Sugrue South Downs45. The Rowfant Vineyard5
Numbers match the list below; select a pin to jump to it. Pins mark the village, so use each vineyard’s own directions to find the gate. Boundaries: ONS, Open Government Licence.

Mid Sussex vineyards at a glance

From each vineyard’s own visiting information. A dash means the vineyard doesn’t say either way.

VineyardWhereBookingFoodDogsStay
Leonardslee Family VineyardsMannings Heath, near HorshamSome walk-inYes–Yes
Kingscote EstateVowels Lane, near East GrinsteadBook aheadYesYes–
Highweald Wine EstateAnsty, near Haywards HeathSome walk-inYesYes–
Sugrue South DownsWivelsfield Green, near Haywards HeathBook aheadYesNo–
The Rowfant VineyardRowfant, near CrawleyBook ahead–––

The vineyards

From East Grinstead in the north-east round to Horsham in the west.

Leonardslee Family Vineyards

Mannings Heath, near Horsham

With 38 acres of vines at Mannings Heath, this sparkling wine estate is tied to Leonardslee Gardens at Lower Beeding, and has restaurants and hotel rooms.

Visiting: There are two places to taste. At the Mannings Heath cellar door, a flight of the three estate cuvées is £18, daily from 11am with no booking, and the vineyard tour and tasting is £31.50, Wednesday to Sunday at 12pm and 3pm (12pm only in winter), booked ahead. Over at Leonardslee House in the gardens, a tutored tasting (£45) and a two-hour wine tour (£65) run Thursday to Sunday, booked ahead, and both include entry to the gardens. Food is at the Vineyard Kitchen and Restaurant Interlude, and there are rooms at the Vineyard Hotel and Leonardslee House.

Vineyard website

Kingscote Estate

Vowels Lane, near East Grinstead

Near East Grinstead, Kingscote keeps its wine shop and café in a tithe barn. The estate also has a wine garden, a walking trail and fishing lakes.

Visiting: The Tithe Barn shop and café is open every day, 10am to 5pm, serving hot food until 3pm, and you can drop in for a tasting with no need to book. Ninety-minute vineyard tours run Friday to Sunday, booked ahead, at £25 with a tasting, £33 with a cream tea or £40 with lunch. Dogs on leads are welcome in the shop, gardens and woods, but only assistance dogs go on tours. The Coach House on the estate can be rented.

Our full guide Vineyard website

Highweald Wine Estate

Ansty, near Haywards Heath

Highweald is a 63-acre sparkling wine estate and winery at Ansty, with a cellar door shop and a garden bar, and guided tours.

Visiting: No booking is needed for the cellar door and garden bar, open Friday to Sunday, 11am to 5pm. Tours do need booking and are for over-18s. The 90-minute tour and tasting is £25; Meet the Maker takes two hours with the winemaker and costs £35 with four wines and local cheeses. Dogs are welcome, on tours too if on leads. There is no restaurant, so bring a picnic. Parking is free.

Vineyard website

Sugrue South Downs

Wivelsfield Green, near Haywards Heath

Sugrue South Downs is a small producer of sparkling and still wines, made at its winery at Bee Tree Vineyard, and it runs tours for small groups.

Visiting: No more than eight guests at a time tour the vineyard and winery, then sit down to a tutored tasting of at least five wines with cheese and charcuterie. Tours run Thursday to Saturday at 11am and 2.30pm and last about two hours. They cost £55 a head, are pre-booked only and are non-refundable. Over-18s only, and no dogs in the vineyard or winery. Haywards Heath, Burgess Hill and Wivelsfield stations are 10 to 15 minutes away by taxi.

Vineyard website

The Rowfant Vineyard

Rowfant, near Crawley

At Rowfant the family planted just over 4,000 Bacchus vines in April 2021.

Visiting: Tours and tastings happen on set dates in the summer and are booked through the website. The 2026 season is over, and new dates will go up there. You can also adopt a vine.

Vineyard website

Planning your visit

Without booking. Kingscote and Leonardslee are the two you can turn up at. Kingscote is a short taxi ride from East Grinstead station, and Leonardslee from Horsham.

Round Haywards Heath. Highweald at Ansty and Sugrue at Wivelsfield Green are close together; book Sugrue’s small-group tour ahead, and check Highweald’s weekend opening.

With the Downs. Bolney and Albourne, on our South Downs page, are only a few miles south of Haywards Heath, so a day can take in both areas.

Elsewhere in Sussex, see the Wealden Wine Trail and the Rother Wine Triangle and the South Downs, or the Sussex map and full list.

Questions people ask

Which Mid Sussex vineyards can I visit without booking?

Kingscote, near East Grinstead, and Leonardslee’s cellar door at Mannings Heath. Highweald’s cellar door and garden bar also take walk-ins on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Why is this separate from the South Downs?

These vineyards sit in the Weald north of the Downs, around Haywards Heath, East Grinstead and Horsham, so they make a better day out together than with the estates along the foot of the Downs.