Wines of Great Britain (WineGB) is pleased to announce that Knight Frank has become its latest Industry Partner.

WineGB has signed an agreement with leading independent real estate consultancy Knight Frank. WineGB will work primarily with Knight Frank’s viticulture team, which is focused on supporting vineyard managers and wine producers who make quality still and sparkling wine from grapes grown in Britain.

As part of its services to the GB wine sector, Knight Frank identifies land that is suitable for viticulture using its in-house geospatial vineyard mapping software. This technology assesses important variables such as soil type, altitude, frost risk, slope direction, gradient and road access, to ensure land can produce quality wine-grapes. The viticulture team will then help buyers to negotiate with landowners to buy or rent land.

In the South Downs National Park alone, some 39,700 hectares of land has been identified as suitable for viticulture. A recent climate change survey led by Vinescapes has projected that growing season temperatures in England and Wales will rise by a further 1.4°C by 2040, expanding the area of suitability for red grapes such as Pinot Noir as well as other international varieties like Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Sémillon

Knight Frank also supports vineyards and wineries looking to diversify and upscale their businesses. Its placemaking-led diversification service enables wine producers to increase the quality and quantity of footfall to their site. The viticulture team also provides advice in sales and investment in vineyard land and wine businesses.

WineGB CEO Simon Thorpe MW commented: “We are delighted to be working with the Knight Frank team. There are now 879 vineyards and 195 wineries in Britain, and the area under vine has more than quadrupled since 2000. With more vines being planted each year and with some of our more established wineries celebrating key milestones in their history, Knight Frank’s expertise in land assessment and business diversification will be of great use to our industry. We look forward to working with Knight Frank in supporting one of the fastest growing agricultural sectors in the UK.”

Knight Frank Partner and Head of Viticulture Ed Mansel Lewis added: “We are thrilled to have been appointed as WineGB’s new Property Partner. They are a superb organisation that provide extensive support and advice to industry members across the UK. Our vineyard team has been involved in the burgeoning UK vineyard sector for almost a decade, advising many leading UK vineyard and wine businesses across the country with land identification, purchase, sale and business consultancy matters. We are delighted that WineGB recognises this and look forward to supporting them and their members with this new partnership.”

Knight Frank will join WineGB’s four existing Industry Partners Brewin Dolphin, Ferovinum, NFU Mutual and Paris Smith in supporting the GB wine industry.

Read more about Knight Frank’s insights on the importance of Viticulture in the UK here.

WineGB is the trade organisation which supports the English and Welsh wine industry. Originally formed in 1967 as the English Vineyards Association (EVA), it has evolved over the years, becoming the United Kingdom Vineyards Association (UKVA) before rebranding and joining forces with English Wine Producers (EWP) in 2017 as WineGB.