If you’d asked me a few years ago to name some of the world’s great wine-producing countries, I probably would have instinctively listed France, Italy, Spain, perhaps New Zealand or South Africa. England, if I’m honest, wouldn’t have crossed my mind.
Not because I didn’t think we could produce good wine, but because I’d simply never considered it. Like many people, I had quietly accepted the idea that our climate wasn’t quite right, that English vineyards were something of a novelty rather than something truly world-class. And how quickly that perception has changed!
Over the last decade in particular, English wines have begun appearing on restaurant menus across the country, collecting international awards and earning praise from some of the world’s most respected wine critics. Vineyards have quietly flourished across counties like Sussex, Kent and Hampshire, producing sparkling wines that are now regularly compared with some of the finest Champagnes.
The more I learned about this, the more fascinated I became. Not simply because England makes excellent wine, but because English wine tells a much bigger story. It’s a story about changing landscapes, evolving climates, skilled craftsmanship, local food systems, and a growing appreciation for what can be created much closer to home.
WHAT IS ENGLISH WINE WEEK?
Every year in June, vineyards across England open their doors a little wider. This year, English Wine Week runs from Saturday 20 June to Sunday 28 June 2026, bringing with it wine tastings, guided tours, vineyard walks, seasonal menus and special events across the country. It’s an invitation to discover a side of England that many still don’t realise exists. This is English Wine Week.
Launched in 2006 by Wines of Great Britain, the annual celebration was created to shine a spotlight on the country’s growing wine industry while encouraging people to discover local vineyards and learn more about English winemaking. And there really is plenty to discover!
England is now home to hundreds of vineyards, producing everything from crisp still whites and elegant rosés to internationally celebrated sparkling wines. Many of these vineyards remain family-owned businesses, rooted deeply in the landscapes where their grapes are grown.
Unlike some wine regions that have become almost synonymous with luxury, English wine still feels wonderfully connected to the people making it. Many vineyards welcome visitors personally, offering tours led by the winemakers themselves, sharing not just the finished bottle but the story behind it. It feels less like visiting an attraction and more like being welcomed into someone’s craft.
Why Is English Wine Thriving Now
One question kept coming back to me while researching this article. Why now? After all, England hasn’t suddenly appeared on the map. The countryside hasn’t changed overnight. So what explains this remarkable rise in quality?
As it turns out, several factors have quietly come together over the past few decades. One of the most important is something that dates back millions of years. Large parts of southern England sit on the same chalk soils that stretch beneath the English Channel into the Champagne region of northern France. These free-draining chalk soils are particularly well suited to growing classic sparkling wine grape varieties such as Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.
In other words, the geological foundations have been here all along, but what has changed is the climate. Warmer growing seasons have gradually made southern England increasingly suitable for viticulture. While climate change brings significant challenges globally, it has also altered growing conditions in certain wine regions, allowing grapes to ripen more consistently than they once did.
From Potential to International Recognition
Of course, climate alone doesn’t produce exceptional wine. Alongside these, changing conditions have come decades of investment, research and remarkable expertise. English winemakers have studied traditional methods, experimented with different grape varieties and refined their craft year after year. The result is an industry that has matured quietly but confidently.
Today, English sparkling wines regularly receive international recognition, often outperforming wines from regions with centuries more history. I think that’s quite extraordinary, and to me, it means that our country has developed its own identity when it comes to viniculture. One that celebrates freshness, precision and an unmistakable sense of place.
WHY CHOOSING LOCAL may be MORE SUSTAINABLe
Whenever we talk about sustainability, conversations often focus on reducing, avoiding or giving something up. But sometimes sustainability is simply about looking closer to home.
Choosing to drink English wine will not automatically make every bottle more sustainable than one produced elsewhere. Sustainability depends on countless factors, from vineyard management and packaging to transport and production methods. But supporting local producers can still have meaningful benefits.
Buying wine produced within the UK helps support rural economies, protects agricultural landscapes and encourages investment in local food systems. Many English vineyards are also increasingly embracing biodiversity initiatives, planting wildflower meadows, maintaining hedgerows, encouraging pollinators and managing their land with wildlife in mind. Some, such as Sedlescombe Organic Vineyard, Davenport Vineyards, Albury Vineyard and Winding Wood Vineyard, have gone even further by adopting organic and biodynamic methods that place soil health and biodiversity at the centre of production.
Choosing local also creates opportunities to connect more closely with where our food and drink actually comes from. Instead of seeing wine as something that appears anonymously on a supermarket shelf, we begin to understand the people, places and seasons behind every bottle.
And perhaps that is one of the most sustainable shifts we can make. Not simply changing what we buy, but becoming more connected to its story.
VISITING VINEYARDS - More Than a Wine Tasting
One thing I wasn’t expecting while researching English Wine Week was just how many vineyards welcome visitors. In many ways, they offer exactly the kind of travel I find myself writing about more and more on Suzstainable: the kind that encourages you to slow down, to spend an afternoon rather than an hour, and to learn rather than simply consume.
Visiting a vineyard isn’t only about tasting wine. It’s about understanding how landscapes shape flavour, how seasons influence harvests, and how much patience exists behind every bottle. You walk through the vines themselves. You begin to notice how the rows follow the contours of the hills, how the soil feels beneath your feet, and how weather becomes part of every conversation.
Many vineyards also pair their wines with locally produced cheeses, breads and seasonal ingredients, creating experiences that celebrate the wider food culture of the region rather than wine in isolation. I love that idea.
A Lesson in Slow Travel
The whole concept of visiting a vineyard reminds me a little of the creative retreats I wrote about recently, where the destination itself becomes part of the experience rather than simply the backdrop. Perhaps that’s what slow travel really looks like. Not rushing between landmarks or trying to fit as much as possible into a weekend, but allowing yourself to become immersed in one place for long enough that it begins to tell its own story.
And I can’t help thinking that’s exactly what English Wine Week invites us to do. Not simply drink local wine, but discover a landscape that has quietly been changing beneath our feet for years, and appreciate the people whose passion has helped shape it into something worth celebrating.
ENGLISH VINEYARDS WORTH DISCOVERING
One of the things I’ve enjoyed most while researching English Wine Week has been discovering the people behind the bottles.
Each vineyard feels slightly different. Some are pioneers who helped establish England’s reputation on the international stage. Others are smaller, more boutique producers, quietly crafting wines that reflect the character of the landscape around them.
If you’re looking to celebrate English Wine Week this year, these are some of the vineyards I’d start with:
If English Wine Week has sparked your curiosity, there are plenty of other vineyards across southern England that welcome visitors. Many offer guided tours, tastings, vineyard walks and food experiences that make for an ideal day trip or weekend escape.
Whether you’re interested in sparkling wine, local food, countryside walks or simply slowing down for an afternoon, these vineyards offer a wonderful way to experience a different side of England.
and finally....
This article is not that much about English wine itself, though, as much as it is about landscape and craftsmanship. About choosing to spend an afternoon walking slowly through vineyards rather than rushing between destinations. About meeting the people behind what we consume and understanding that every bottle carries with it years of patience, changing seasons, careful decisions and deep knowledge of place.
Perhaps that’s why English Wine Week feels so aligned with everything I write about here on Suzstainable. It’s inviting us to consume more consciously, and to support local producers where we can. To discover parts of the country we may never have visited otherwise. To understand that sustainability isn’t always about giving things up, but sometimes about appreciating what’s already growing close to home.
