Denbies Wine Estate
Denbies Wine Estate near Dorking, Surrey has the largest vineyard in England with 265 acres (1.07 km2) under vines, representing more than 10 per cent of the plantings in the whole of the United Kingdom. It has a visitors' centre that attracts around 300,000 visitors a year.
The estate is named for an early owner called John Denby. In the mid-18th century Denby's farm buildings were converted into a gentleman's residence by Jonathan Tyers, proprietor of Vauxhall Gardens near London. Tyer's garden at Denbies was in startling contrast to the frivolities of Vauxhall, being adorned with memento mori ("reminders of death"). The property passed through several other hands, and in the 1850s it was rebuilt on a larger scale by the preeminent Victorian master builder, Thomas Cubitt. He was visited at Denbies by Prince Albert, who planted a commemorative tree which survived until the Great Storm of 1990. The house remained in the Cubitt family until the Second World War, when it was requisitioned by the military. In the 1950s Cubitt's great grandson decided to demolish the house as he lacked the funds to restore and maintain it. He converted the laundry and gardener's house into a smaller Regency-style house. In 1984 the estate was purchased by local businessman Adrian White.
Denbies is situated on the North Downs, which are a range of chalk hills the topsoil of which consists of fertile loam interspersed with flints. From 1986 to 1989 White had the south-facing slopes planted with vines, which cover 265 acres (1.07 km2) of the 627-acre (2.54 km2) estate, the remainder of which is woodland and pasture. The average yield is 300,000 litres of wine per year.
Around 65 per cent of Denbies' wine is sold at the visitors' centre, and the remainder through supermarkets, wholesalers and via mail order.
In 2010 Denbies Chalk Ridge Rosé won the IWC international Gold award, beating more than 360 competitors from 21 countries. The IWC wine challenge is the world's biggest and most influential wine competition.
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