Join us on this exclusive tour in partnership with VIP Wine Tours and Bond Travel visiting several award-winning wineries in Sussex, Sussex and Oxfordshire producing world class wines – and what better time to visit than during English Wine Week?!

Look forward to vineyard and winery tours and tastings, food and wine experiences and more!

Home for two nights will be Denbies Vineyard Hotel located in the heart of the vineyards and within walking distance to Dorking market town.

Warm furnishings compliment the vineyard landscape surrounding the hotel and estate, allowing guests to experience elegance and comfort in a truly spectacular setting, perfect for a tranquil stay. All rooms in Englands first carbon neutral vineyard hotel have flat screen tv, private bathrooms with premium toiletries. A daily cooked breakfast is included.

Day 1: Sunday 16th June 2024

We will meet at Chester railway station early Sunday morning where our luxury Club Class coach will meet us ready for our journey to Surrey.

For your comfort the luxury facilities of the 32-seater Club Class coach include leather seats with additional legroom and tables, satellite tv, power points, USB charging points, reclining seats, air conditioning and climate control and a toilet although we do plan to make one or two comfort stops during the longer journeys on Sunday and Tuesday. Air purifiers and filters are also fitted on the coach. These capture airborne particles which may contain pathogens and viruses such as SARS-CoV-2. It eliminates 99.9%, kills bacteria and destroys common harmful enveloped viruses in minutes and is dermatological tested to be non-irritating making your travel experience safer than ever before.

On boarding the coach, you will be provided with a Wine School of Cheshire breakfast bag and to start the trip in style we will serve you with tea, coffee and some lovely English Sparkling wine to enjoy with your breakfast.

With a Sunday newspaper to read onboard and with a comfort stop or two enroute, in no time at all we will be arriving at Denbies Wine Estate, one of England’s largest single estate vineyards, located in Dorking in the heart of the Surrey Hills. The vineyards are situated on the North Downs in a protected valley of south facing slopes on chalky soil.

On arrival in the afternoon after checking in to our rooms we will make our way to the winery for a private guided tour and tasting. We will learn about the geology and history of the estate and the wine making process. In the cellar we will have a guided tasting of three of Denbies classic wines. We will then head out to the vineyards in the vineyard train to experience the magnificent panoramic views of the Estate and the North Downs. After time to change and freshen up, dinner will be served in the Vineyard Restaurant paired with Denbies wines.

Day 2: Monday 17th June 2024

After breakfast you will have some free time to further enjoy the Denbies Estate. Have a wander through the vineyard, enjoy the café and visit the shop. There are various businesses located throughout the estate that you can visit. Most will require a prior appointment, please request email addresses from VIP Wine Tours.

Chimney Fire Coffee’s roasters is located within the main winery building and offers a range of experiences to book. Visit the roasters to pick up freshly ground coffee as well as accessories.

The Surrey Hills Brewery is in the rear part of the Denbies Winery building. Enjoy a pint of fresh beer straight from the cask or buy some to take home.

Book a Dynamic Pilates or Yoga Tai Chi class at SHP Health in the barn adjacent to the Vineyard Hotel or visit the Village Greens Farm Shop, a small family run business specialising in local produce including some vegetables grown themselves and seasonal cut flowers that are grown in the garden at Denbies.

And if none of this takes your fancy have a walk or take a taxi into the historic and charming market town of Dorking. Surrounded by the beautiful Surrey Hills you can catch glimpses of the wooded hills and open downland as you walk along the historic streets, discovering arts and craft shops, boutiques, art galleries, jewellers, eclectic vintage shops and fabulous antique centres or relax in the charming old town pubs and cafes.

After a morning of adventure or relaxation we are planning to visit Everflyht, a winery that has been featured at some Wine School of Cheshire events and Luke has visited and hosted an event with Richard. Everflyht’s simple motive is that they only want to produce English sparkling wine that they would want to drink themselves and share with friends. Everflyht is a single estate Sussex vineyard nestled at the foot of the Ditchling Beacon in the heart of the South Downs National Park. Their focus is on producing two exceptional, award-winning cuvées, a non-vintage Brut and a sparkling Rosé de Saignée.

After our private guided tour and tasting we will return to Denbies to freshen up for dinner at Hartsfield Manor in Betchworth, a magnificent 19th Century Manor House of historical significance.

For over 150 years Hartsfield Manor, set in 16 acres of Surrey countryside surrounded by sweeping lawns, has been home to a whole host of notable people.

Here we will enjoy wonderful locally sourced produce paired with English wines chosen by Richard of Wine School of Cheshire. In true Wine School fashion Richard will introduce each wine, a mini wine school evening! With discretion of course if there are other diners in the restaurant

Day 3: Tuesday 18th June 2024

After a leisurely breakfast and hotel check out, we will depart for Chester, stopping en route at Brightwell Vineyard, a small, family-run vineyard located in the heart of Oxfordshire. It’s 16 acres running south of the river Thames grow 8 varieties of grape including Bacchus, Chardonnay, Huxelrebe, Dornfelder and Pinot Noir, consistently producing quality English white, rosé, red and sparkling wines produced in the on-site winery employing natural, minimum intervention methods. Richard has worked with Bob at Brightwell since 2017 with WineGB and has featured many of his wines over the years.

Here we will have a private guided tour of the vineyard and a tasting with a Ploughman’s lunch before departing for Chester with comfort stops enroute.