• Story of wine in a single English region
  • Focus on two renowned estates
  • Both headed by women
  • Launched on International Women’s Day
  • Brands wine consumers know and love
  • Celebrating 25th and 50th anniversaries
  • Highlighting sustainability, wine tourism

The word is spreading on the pleasures of English wine, still and sparkling. Sussex by the Glass, by award-winning wine writer Liz Sagues, takes the story of it to a further, more specific level, focusing on one county and two pioneer winemaking families.

Sunny Sussex produces much of England’s finest wine, and the Bolney and Ridgeview estates are pioneers in bringing examples to many, many consumers. Both are rare in the modern history of English wine, being multi-generation businesses – and they are both now headed by the daughters of their founders. The launch of the book on International Women’s Day 2021 spotlights the success of these two skilled and enterprising women, Sam Linter and Tamara Roberts. Liz has had privileged access to both estates, interviewing many of the people involved in creating two major brands in English wine. The result is a fascinating account of why and how they were founded, the tribulations and triumphs on the way to current success and the prospects for years to come.

The book is published at a celebratory moment: Bolney Wine Estate will reach its 50th birthday in 2022; Ridgeview Wine Estate toasted 25 years in 2020. Importantly, it stretches beyond those individual stories to explain the past and present significance of Sussex in England’s fastest-growing agriculture sector. The county is the first UK wine region in line for protected designation of origin status, affirming the quality of its products, and it is the home of Plumpton College, whose Wine Division is a world-respected teaching and research resource.

Written, designed and printed in Sussex, the book is illustrated with more than 100 colour photographs. It also focuses on sustainability issues and opportunities to visit and stay on wine estates, and includes a month-by-month account of activity in vineyard and winery. Liz Sagues is an award-winning wine journalist, whose previous book A Celebration of English Wine (Robert Hale, 2018) brought to wine consumers a story neglected for a decade.

Sussex by the Glass: Wines, vines and two pioneering families is launched on March 8 2021.

Published by Tanwood Press, ISBN 978-1-5272-8442-5, £12
Available from www. bolneywineestate.com, www.ridgeview.co.uk or direct from the publisher – email tanwoodpress@icloud.com.

Sam Linter (Bolney), Tamara Roberts (Ridgeview) and Liz Sagues are available for interview.

For more information please email liz.sagues@icloud.com