Gusbourne sparkling wine tasting
A tasting of four of Gusbourne’s vintage sparkling wines at the estate on the edge of Romney Marsh.
Starts Gusbourne Estate, Appledore, near Ashford, Kent
Kent Wine Tours / Vineyards / Gusbourne
Vineyard guide · Appledore
Visiting Gusbourne
Gusbourne grows every grape it uses at Appledore, on the edge of Romney Marsh, and makes only vintage wines from them, mostly sparkling. The cellar door, called The Nest, opens every day. Tours and tastings are booked, but you can walk the vines without booking.
Gusbourne at a glance
| Founded | Planted 2004 |
|---|---|
| Known for | Vintage sparkling wine, notably Blanc de Blancs, Brut Reserve and Fifty One Degrees North |
| Awards | IWSC English Wine Producer of the Year three times; first English still wine with a Decanter Platinum (Pinot Noir 2015); King’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade (2024); Top 50 World’s Best Vineyards (2025) |
| Grapes | Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier |
| Open | Daily, 10am to 5pm, including bank holidays |
| Booking | Book all tours and tastings. The self-guided walk and shop need no booking |
| Tours from | £30 tasting flight, guided tours from £50 |
| Food | No restaurant. Lunches with booked experiences, walk-in platters most Fridays to Sundays |
| Dogs | On leads outdoors and on The Nest’s ground floor, not on upstairs experiences |
| Children | Welcome on the self-guided walk and summer terrace, not on hosted experiences |
| By train | Ashford International (15 minutes by car) or Rye (10 minutes), not Appledore |
Checked on the vineyard’s own website in October 2026.
About Gusbourne
John de Goosebourne founded the original estate at Appledore in 1410. His family crest had geese on it, and you can still see it in Appledore church; the goose on every Gusbourne bottle comes from there. Andrew Weeber, whose roots are in Stellenbosch in South Africa, bought the estate in 2003 and planted the first vines in 2004. The first harvest was in 2006, and the Brut Reserve 2006 and Blanc de Blancs 2006 came out in 2010.
There are 60 hectares of vineyards at Appledore, planted mainly with Burgundian clones of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. Gusbourne grows all its own fruit and picks it by hand. It makes only vintage wines, and a vintage that is not good enough does not get released. Jon Pollard is chief vineyard manager, and Mary Bridges has been head winemaker since 2023. The winery at Appledore was finished in 2016, and The Nest opened in 2017.
Gusbourne says it is the only producer to have been named IWSC English Wine Producer of the Year three times. Its Pinot Noir 2015 was the first English still wine to win a Decanter Platinum award. It made the Royal Collection’s English sparkling wine for the 2023 coronation, received the King’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade in 2024, and in 2025 was named in the Top 50 World’s Best Vineyards. 2026 is its 20th vintage.
The wines
All of Gusbourne’s wines are vintage wines from its own grapes. Blanc de Blancs, which the estate calls its signature wine, is the one to taste, though Brut Reserve is the best-seller, and the core sparkling range is completed by a Rosé and a Blanc de Noirs. Above those sit single-vineyard wines from named Appledore sites such as Boot Hill, Butness, Commanders and Mill Hill East, late-disgorged releases, and Fifty One Degrees North, the prestige wine, named after the latitude of the vineyards. There are small amounts of still Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and an English Rosé as well, and these often sell out. Where to buy them.
Tours and tastings at Gusbourne
The Nest is open every day, bank holidays included. You don’t need to book to follow the 45-minute self-guided route through the vines or to buy wine in the shop. On most Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays there is wine by the glass or bottle for walk-in visitors, with a small menu of snacks and platters, served on the terrace from May to September and inside in autumn and winter. It does not run every weekend, so call ahead. You cannot bring your own picnic. For a first visit we’d book the Classic Vineyard Tour and Tasting, which takes 90 minutes and covers the vines as well as the wine. Harvest is usually in October, when the Estate Tour becomes a harvest version, and that is a good month to go. The tasting room has ramp access and accessible toilets, and golf buggies can be arranged in advance.
| Experience | Price | Length | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sparkling Tasting Flight A relaxed tasting of the four classic Gusbourne sparkling wines at The Nest, at your own pace. | £30 per person | About 1 hour | Year round |
| Classic Vineyard Tour and Tasting A guided walk in the vines, then the four classic sparkling wines tasted with a guide in the tasting rooms that look over the estate. | £50 per person | 1.5 hours | Year round |
| Limited Edition Wines Tasting Flight A short tour of the vineyard, then a hosted tasting of four rare and limited wines, Fifty One Degrees North among them, with snacks. | £75 per person | About 1.5 hours | Year round |
| Vineyard Platter for Two with Wine A sharing platter of local, seasonal food with a bottle of Brut Reserve. | £90 for two (£80 for members) | 1 to 2 hours | Year round, in the garden in summer and indoors in cooler months |
| Estate Tour with Lunch Gusbourne’s most popular experience. You tour the estate, taste more widely than on the shorter tours, and finish with a three-course lunch with wine. | £120 per person (£100 for members) | About 4 hours, finishing around 3.30pm | Year round, with harvest and festive versions |
| Icons Experience with Lunch A tour and a masterclass on the rarest wines in the cellar, followed by a four-course lunch. | £175 per person (£155 for members) | About 4 hours, finishing around 3.30pm | Year round |
Book these on the Gusbourne website.
Tours that include Gusbourne
If you would rather not drive, these tours take you there, with tastings included.
London sparkling wine and cheese bus tour
A sightseeing bus tour of London with a tasting of Gusbourne sparkling wine and British cheese on board.
Starts Central London
Give a visit as a present
Tour, tasting and lunch at Gusbourne
A long lunch at one of England’s most admired sparkling wine estates: a glass on arrival, a tour of the vines, an extended tasting and three courses with matched wines. About four and a half hours.
Good to know Thursday to Sunday. The estate’s own experience vouchers are valid for twelve months.
Where to stay
The Woolpack Inn
A 16th-century inn on Church Lane, Warehorne, with five adults-only suites and breakfast included.
The White Lion
A Grade II listed pub on Tenterden High Street with oak beams and 14 bedrooms above the bar.
The Mermaid Inn
Rebuilt in 1420 over cellars from 1156, on cobbled Mermaid Street. There are 31 rooms and a restaurant with 2 AA Rosettes.
Holiday cottages around Tenterden
Cottages, oasts and barn conversions around Tenterden and the Kent Weald, close to Chapel Down and Gusbourne.
Prices are often the same either way, so compare the booking site with booking direct.
What’s on
Coming up at the vineyard, from its own website. All vineyard events.
Food and wine
Guest chef dinner with The Sportsman
A four-course lunch or dinner cooked by the team from The Sportsman at Seasalter, with Gusbourne wines matched to each course.
Saturday 14 November 2026 · 12.30pm to 3.30pm or 6.30pm to 9.30pm · £175 a head · Book ahead
Christmas
Festive estate tour and lunch
A winter vineyard walk, an extended tasting including some rare vintages, and a three-course festive lunch with paired wines.
Selected dates from 27 November to 20 December · 11am to about 3.30pm · £120 a head · Book ahead
Check the exact dates with the vineyard.
Food and wine
Guest chef dinner with The Fordwich Arms
A festive four-course meal by Daniel Smith and the Fordwich Arms team, with a fizz and canapé reception and wines with each course.
Saturday 5 December 2026 · 12.30pm to 3.30pm or 6.30pm to 9.30pm · £175 a head · Book ahead
Buy Gusbourne wines
4 bottles in stock with our wine partners this week. Prices are for a single 75cl bottle.
Sparkling
Gusbourne Blanc de Noirs 2020
Mostly Pinot Noir and Meunier with a little Chardonnay, rich, with raspberry and red apple.
£65at The Great Wine Co.BuySparkling
Gusbourne Blanc de Blancs 2020
All Chardonnay, with green apple, citrus and toasted hazelnut, and made for keeping.
£65at The Great Wine Co.BuySparkling
Gusbourne Brut Reserve Late Disgorged 2015
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with over five years on lees, giving brioche over lemon and white peach.
£108at The Great Wine Co.BuySparkling rosé
Gusbourne Rosé
Chardonnay-led pink fizz with estate Pinot Noir and Meunier, showing red fruit and a little spice.
£53.50at WinebuyersBuy
Getting there
Do not get off at Appledore station, even though it looks closest on the map. There are no taxis or regular buses, and the walk is long and not safe. Go to Ashford International instead, which has trains from London St Pancras and Stratford International every 15 minutes or so. From there it is about 15 minutes by taxi. The estate has a preferred taxi firm with an agreed fare of £30 from Ashford, booked in advance quoting Gusbourne. The other option is the Hastings line, three stops from Ashford to Rye, then a 10-minute taxi. There is no shuttle, so book taxis both ways before you travel. Drivers get free parking a short walk from the tasting room, but there is no coach parking.
Make a day of it
Chapel Down at Small Hythe near Tenterden is a short drive west, so with a car you can do both in a day. Rye is 10 minutes away and the obvious place for lunch or a night. Tenterden has a high street and the Kent and East Sussex steam railway. Romney Marsh and its medieval churches start just south of the estate.
See every vineyard you can visit in our Kent directory. Our other Kent vineyard guides: Chapel Down, Balfour, Westwell, Warehorne, Silverhand, Domaine Evremond, Chartham, Yotes Court.
Questions people ask
Can you visit Gusbourne without booking?
Yes, for the 45-minute self-guided walk and the shop, and for walk-in wine and platters on most Fridays to Sundays. Every tour, tasting and meal has to be booked.
Can you take dogs to Gusbourne?
Yes, on leads, outdoors and on the ground floor of The Nest, where the Sparkling Tasting Flights and the winter Vineyard Platters are served. They cannot come on the Estate Tour, the Icons Experience or other upstairs events.
Can children visit Gusbourne?
They are welcome on the self-guided walk, at the summer terrace experiences and at the summer outdoor bar, and there are soft drinks. The hosted tours and tastings are not suitable for children of any age.