Kingscote Estate

We were treated to a wine tasting with lunch experience by a close friend and what a fabulous gift it was. The wine tour was conducted by the very lovely Charlotte who was very knowledgeable about Kingscote but also really keen to hear about other peoples knowledge and experience of wine. The wines we tasted as we enjoyed our tour were all very good and it was really interesting to hear about the history of Kingscote. The lunch we had at the end of the tasting tour was excellent- fresh ingredients and just what we all needed. The staff team all seem to enjoy their work and their enthusiasm is infectious. Thank you for a really lovely day in an intimate vineyard that we will definitely be returning to.

Had the most amazing wine tasting tour of the elegant Kingscote Estate in East Grinstead yesterday. The tour guide, Ellie, was very knowledgeable and the white, rose and sparkling tasters were all memorable. Bottles at the shop are reasonably priced and the estate has several walks that take in the various landmarks dotted in and around the estate, including the iconic Bluebell narrow gauge steam railway. Absolutely worth popping in even if its just to have a drink at the cafe.

We went to the Kingscote Estate Vineyard for my dad’s birthday which also happened to be St George’s Day. We have been to a number of English Vineyards and this was as lovely to visit as we had hoped. The main building is an old barn which hosts the shop, toilets and cafe area where we had a very nice lunch (including some last minute dietary requirements which they managed to take on). There is also an upstairs seated area which we didn’t get to but looked very nice. The weather was wet but we still went in the winery tour which was very good. The Guide was excellent and I’ll hopefully update this with his name (that’s on me & my bad memory). Even though we’ve been on a few before it is always interesting to hear the history of the vineyard, how they are doing and what they are working on with the styles of wine being made. In this case, as well as traditional method sparkling wines they are making a charmat style sparkling wine (which was fantastic - ‘Harlot’). The other thing to mention about the Kingscote Estate is that it is also near the Bluebell Line Steam Railway, which passes by the bottom of one field and you may be able to walk between the two.

This place is not very easy to find and is quite poorly signposted. Allow extra travel time if you're visiting. When we went, the vineyard had been in stasis for the last 12 months whilst some legal issues were sorted out. These have now been resolved and the new owner is investing heavily in getting things back up and running and improving everything - watch this space. This is the reason for the 4 star review. I hope to return in future and maybe revise my rating then. The guide was very amiable and had a great deal of knowledge of viticulture and is also a professional wine taster. The tour itself was quite informal but incredibly informative and involved a nice walk around the scenic vineyard with a lot of explanation about what goes on and how it all works - who knew there was so much science to making wine. The wine itself was very good and there were so many different varieties produced (including a cider made from the orchard on site). We loved our time there - thank you.

We made a day of our experience here. Took the Bluebell railway to get to it and then hung around for a good portion of the day with a picnic and stayed a bit later than planned for some wine. The tour/tasting was fun and informative. A lovely relaxed atmosphere and friendly too. The wines are reasonably priced so it’s an easy place to sit and relax when the weathers nice, enjoying the Sussex Countryside. Wines are reasonable and priced accordingly.