Westwell tour and tasting
A tour of one of Kent’s most adventurous small wineries, with a tasting.
Starts Westwell Wines, Charing, Kent
Kent Wine Tours / Vineyards / Westwell
Vineyard guide · Charing
Visiting Westwell Wines
Westwell is a small winery on the North Downs near Charing that likes to experiment, with pet nats, amphora wines and as little intervention as it can manage. Its tours go into the working winery, and the tasting room looks straight onto the tanks.
Seasonal note: In November and December the tour is the winter winery tour rather than a walk in the vines. The vineyard tour returns in February.
Westwell at a glance
| Founded | Ortega first planted 2008, current owners since 2017 |
|---|---|
| Known for | Ortega still white, Pelegrim NV sparkling, pet nats and amphora wines |
| Awards | WineGB Best Cellar Door (Small), 2026 |
| Grapes | Ortega, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and a little Regent |
| Open | Friday to Sunday, hours vary by season |
| Booking | Book tours and picnics online, drop-ins welcome at the cellar door |
| Tours from | £28 |
| Food | Cheese, charcuterie and plant-based plates, toasties and picnics, with food trucks on Fridays |
| Dogs | On a lead in the vines and tasting room, not in the winery |
| Children | Under-18s go free on tours, mention them when booking |
| By train | Charing, about a mile away, one stop from Ashford |
Checked on the vineyard’s own website in October 2026.
About Westwell
The vineyard runs down a south-south-west facing slope just below the Pilgrims Way, between 100 and 130 metres up. It covers 18 hectares of flint and sandy silt-loam over chalk. Ortega is the grape Westwell is known for. It was first planted here in 2008, and more went in during 2021. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier grow alongside, with a little Regent.
Adrian Pike came to wine from music. He ran a music company in London and founded the record label Moshi Moshi, then learned viticulture and winemaking with Will Davenport before he bought Westwell in 2017. He is now managing director and makes the wine. His wife, Galia Pike, draws the labels and painted the artwork on the cellar door walls. Most of the wines ferment on wild yeasts, and they age in oak, terracotta amphora, steel and concrete. Burning Sky brewery takes Westwell’s lees and grape skins for its saisons.
In 2026 Westwell won Best Cellar Door (Small) at the WineGB Awards, and Time Out lists it among the best vineyards to visit in the UK. The winery itself calls the tasting room more of a studio or workshop than a formal tasting room. Sit down and you are looking at the barrels and amphora.
The wines
Start with the Ortega, the dry white the estate is built around. Pelegrim NV is the benchmark sparkling wine, an extra brut, and Wicken Foy NV is a traditional method blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. The rest of the still range wanders about a bit, with light reds such as Double Pinot, a rosé, skin-contact and amphora-aged wines, and a Westwell Village Chardonnay. Small batches of pet nat come out too, three of them wild-fermented in 2026. You can buy at the cellar door or online. Where to buy them.
Tours and tastings at Westwell
Opening hours move with the seasons, so this is the page where we would say check before you go. Typically the cellar door, bar and shop open Friday 12pm to 9pm, Saturday 11am to 5pm and Sunday 12pm to 4pm. Through 2026, food trucks come on Friday evenings from 4pm to 9pm. You can walk in without booking, but it gets busy, so email ahead to reserve a table. Tours need booking online, and most people book two to three weeks out. Summer dates go quickly. The vineyard tour runs from February to October, and in November and December it gives way to the winter winery tour. The ground in the vines is uneven, so wear proper shoes. The winery, tasting room and toilets are all wheelchair accessible. Under-18s don’t need a ticket for a tour, but leave a note when you book so a place is saved for them. Soft drinks are sold at the bar.
| Experience | Price | Length | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vineyard Tour and Tasting You walk the vineyard, go round the winery, and finish with a guided tasting of four still and sparkling wines. Food can be added when you book. It’s the one we would pick. | £28 per person | About 2 hours | February to October, on open days |
| Winter Winery Tour and Tasting The winter version stays indoors. It follows the wine from grape to bottle through the winery, includes a sabrage demonstration when one can be arranged, and ends with a guided tasting of five wines at the cellar door. | £28 per person | – | November and December |
| In Depth Tour and Technical Tasting A longer tour with a technical tasting, held on a handful of dates through the winter and spring. | £70 per person | – | Set Saturdays at 12.30pm: 7 November and 5 December 2026, then 6 February, 6 March and 3 April 2027 |
| Picnics at Westwell Local meats, cheese, salad, olives and baked goods with a bottle of Ortega or Pelegrim NV, eaten out in the vineyard with a self-guided audio tour. | £80 for two to £115 for three | Stay as long as you like | Collect at your chosen time |
| Private Tour and Tasting A longer walk through the vineyard and a tutored tasting of four current wines. Sharing platters are extra. | £28 per person | – | By arrangement, for 10 to 30 people |
| Celebration Tour and Tasting A glass of Pelegrim when you arrive, a tour of the vineyard and winery, a short tasting, then a light lunch with a glass of still wine. | £55 per person | – | By arrangement, for 6 to 20 people |
| Westwell Experience Tour and Tasting A private tour of the vineyard and winery with the winemaker, Adrian Pike, a tasting that takes in rare and back vintages, and sharing plates. | £90 per person | – | By arrangement, for 6 to 30 people |
Book these on the Westwell website.
Tours that include Westwell
If you would rather not drive, these tours take you there, with tastings included.
Where to stay
Eastwell Manor, Champneys Hotel & Spa
A manor house hotel and spa in grounds out in the countryside. Rooms in the Manor House have four-poster beds and look over the gardens.
The Woolpack Inn
An inn in the old village of Chilham with 14 rooms. Most of them take dogs.
The Woolpack Inn
A 16th-century inn on Church Lane, Warehorne, with five adults-only suites and breakfast included.
Holiday cottages around Canterbury
Cottages in Canterbury and the villages around it, a short drive from Chilham and the North Downs vineyards.
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.
Tasting
In-depth tour and technical tasting
A detailed tour of the vineyard and winery for up to ten people, with a tasting of six or seven wines including an older or unreleased wine, and a cheese, charcuterie or plant-based plate.
Saturdays 7 November, 5 December, 6 February, 6 March and 3 April · 12.30pm · £70 a head · Book ahead
Music and social
Olly Smith book talk
Wine writer Olly Smith talks about his novel Death by Noir, with a reading, questions and a signing. A glass of sparkling wine and snacks are included.
Wednesday 18 November 2026 · 6pm to 8pm · £17.50, or £35 with a signed book · Book ahead
Workshop
Christmas clay ornament workshop
Make clay Christmas decorations with ceramicist Katharine Gray, with a mini wine tasting included.
Thursday 26 November 2026 · 7pm to 9pm · £50 a head · Book ahead
Tasting
Big Christmas tasting
A guided tasting of the current Westwell range with seasonal snacks and oysters. Each session takes up to 30 people.
Saturday 28 November 2026 · 12pm or 3pm · £25 a head · Book ahead
Workshop
Festive lino printing workshop
A lino printing session with I Printed That, with all materials, light snacks and a tasting of three wines included.
Sunday 6 December 2026 · 10.30am to 1pm · £55 a head · Book ahead
Food and wine
Christmas supper club
A glass of sparkling wine and canapés, then three courses of traditional festive food.
Friday 11 December 2026 · 7pm · £60 a head · Book ahead
Buy Westwell wines
3 bottles in stock with our wine partners this week. Prices are for a single 75cl bottle.
White
Westwell Village Chardonnay 2023
Unoaked Chardonnay fermented cool in steel, with ripe citrus and a touch of stone fruit.
£21at WinebuyersBuyWhite
Westwell Ortega Classic Ferment White 2024
Crisp, aromatic Ortega with grapefruit and melon and a hint of white pepper.
£21at WinebuyersBuyRosé
Westwell Pink 2025
A coral rosé from later pressings of Pinot Noir and Meunier, wild fermented, with raspberry and redcurrant.
£22at WinebuyersBuy
Getting there
Charing station is about a mile from the vineyard. It’s one stop from Ashford, and about an hour from London St Pancras. By car, the entrance is on Westwell Lane, just off the A20. Head south on the A20 away from Charing village, turn left onto Wicken Lane after about half a mile, then take the first right onto Westwell Lane. The entrance is 200 metres along on the left. Put ’Westwell Wine Estate’ into the satnav. Parking is free, there is plenty of it, and it’s 20 metres from the winery.
Make a day of it
Charing village is a mile away, and the Pilgrims Way and North Downs Way run along the hill above the vines. Canterbury is under half an hour by car. To make a day of vineyards, Domaine Evremond near Chilham is the obvious second stop, with Chapel Down near Tenterden and Gusbourne at Appledore also within a drive. There’s no full menu at Westwell, so for a proper meal or a bed the winery recommends The Wishful Thinker in Lenham, Boys Hall in Ashford and The Goods Shed in Canterbury.
See every vineyard you can visit in our Kent directory. Our other Kent vineyard guides: Chapel Down, Gusbourne, Balfour, Warehorne, Silverhand, Domaine Evremond, Chartham, Yotes Court.
Questions people ask
Can I bring my dog?
Yes. Well-behaved dogs on a lead are welcome in the vineyard and the tasting room, though not in the winery.
What runs in winter?
In November and December the vineyard tour gives way to the Winter Winery Tour and Tasting, which costs the same £28. The In Depth Tour runs on set Saturdays through the winter and spring.
Is there food at Westwell?
Plates of cheese, charcuterie or plant-based food and toasties are served while the cellar door is open, and picnics can be booked. Food trucks come on Friday evenings.