RIDGEVIEW UNVEIL PLANS FOR NEW HOSPITALITY EXPERIENCE

To celebrate Visit Britain’s English Tourism Week (18-27 March 2022) English sparkling wine pioneers Ridgeview announce plans for a new visitor destination experience, due to open late Summer 2022.

With enthusiasm growing for English wine tourism, Ridgeview have revealed their plans to develop their onsite hospitality, offering visitors a total wine experience from vine to glass. The new all-weather, outdoor venue will take pride of place alongside Ridgeview’s Chardonnay vineyard with glorious views across the South Downs National Park offering wine tastings, on-site dining, tours and retail.

The space will be landscaped in harmony with its natural surroundings, crafted by RHS Chelsea Flower Show gold medal winning designer Andy Sturgeon. All of Ridgeview’s new investments and growth will have sustainability in mind after the vineyard and winery have been accredited under Wines GB Sustainability scheme and will deliver net gains for biodiversity across the estate.

Tamara Roberts, Ridgeview’s second-generation CEO commented: “Our philosophy of ‘Life is for Celebrating’ will be experienced throughout the whole destination. We want to create a place where visitors feel welcome time and time again, to simply pop in for a glass, to celebrate together with friends and family or to spend the day with us enjoying a tour and tasting too.”

Roberts continued, “Our focus will also be on championing locally grown seasonal Sussex food, showcased alongside our portfolio of sparkling wines to highlight the best that our gorgeous county produces, where you can eat and drink the South Downs”.

This significant investment comes after 25 years in business and thanks to a very successful 2021 with record visitor numbers and sales across all channels. This was as the market recovered from an extremely challenging period for all in the hospitality sector in 2020, due to the first wave of the pandemic. The onsite development also includes an extension to its winery facilities and is the start of additional visitor experiences planned for the next few years.

The new visitor destination is scheduled to open in late Summer 2022 and has fantastic transport links being only 50 minutes train from London and 30 minutes from Gatwick airport. Ridgeview will work with other likeminded Sussex producers and local hospitality to put the county on the world wine tourism map as a stunning destination to enjoy, stay and play whether that be for the day, the weekend or a longer staycation trip.

Andy Sturgeon Design is proud to have designed new gardens at the tasting rooms of the award-winning Ridgeview Wine Estate in Ditchling, East Sussex. Featuring a series of covered terraces, the gardens due to open in the summer of 2022 will overlook the growing vines and the South Downs beyond. It will be the perfect spot to admire this iconic vineyard while enjoying a sip of their famous English sparkling wine.

“We have worked closely with Ridgeview and the South Downs National Park to design a garden which has biodiversity at its core.  Multi-stem hawthorns and clipped domes of yew sit amongst a palette of native plants which anchor the gardens into their setting at the edge of a woodland.  Closely controlled lighting systems respect the local ecology and the Dark Skies policy of the park and permeable paving and sustainable drainage solutions divert storm water away from drains.”