Flybe / September 2018

72 / 116

72 / Flight Time / SEPTEMBER 2018
Me & My Business
reflects: “It feels like an extraordinary time to
be in English wine and I wouldn’t change the
decision to leave London for a second. What I
hadn’t banked on was swapping one career for
three! Growing vines, making wine and then
selling it are all different skill sets and I guess in
old wine regions where they’re 10 generations
in, it’s unusual to do everything yourself. But
that’s the nature of an English vineyard – we’re
all relatively new and, like any start-up, things
just need to get done.”
This year will see Swanaford’s third crop
come in, but that won’t be ready to drink until
at least 2020 thanks to the long process involved
in making sparkling wine. Between now and
then, Ben and Caroline will be popping their
2016 vintage and taking their wine out to the
people of Devon. “The idea is to meet our
customers face to face, either at our weekly
vineyard tours and tastings or at local events.
We live in a great spot with amazing food and
drinks producers all around us. Our next idea
is to combine all that into a feast in the vines –
we’d love to get loads of people along. So watch
this space.”
significant crop to pick in October.”
Indeed, the whole of the UK wine industry is
feeling optimistic, with talk of a record-breaking
10-million-bottle harvest coming in. Good news
for fizz fans who are discovering the delights of
UK-made, artisan sparklers that contain exactly
the same grape varieties as French Champagne
and stand up well in comparison.
“We are really proud of our first vintages,”
says Ben. “To grow a vine from the roots up,
harvest and process the grapes and then make
wine ourselves feels like a huge achievement.
We have had some help, of course! Our friends
and neighbours make a formidable picking team
and we’re really close with our neighbouring
vineyard, Huxbear, who are about five years
ahead of us and have been invaluable friends
and advisors.”
Help has come along in other forms too. In
2017, the couple were approved by the Greater
Dartmoor Leaf (GDL) fund, a government-
backed, not-for-profit organisation working in
partnership with the Dartmoor National Park,
to receive a grant to help them build a bespoke
barn that acts as a processing centre and tasting
room. GDL’s remit was to invest in projects that
encourage innovation and promote prosperity on
Dartmoor, criteria that Ben and Caroline’s own
investment in Swanaford, as well their future
plans, demonstrated. “After planting, a tasting
room for visitors to try or buy the wine was a no-
brainer but we had to build it from the ground up.
With GDL’s help we’ve created a great space to
welcome visitors but also to work in,” says Ben.
With vineyard and barn in place, Swanaford
welcomed its first paying tour group in May
and offers tours every Wednesday until the end
of October, when the harvest will have been
gathered and the growing season for the vines
ends. Caroline has fast become a fan of ‘Wine
Wednesday’, putting her initial nerves aside and
admitting that “the tours are great! People love
to walk through the vineyard and listen to Ben
and I talk our heads off about growing vines,
making wine and the endless challenge of bugs,
birds and badgers stealing your grapes. We
hope to offer more next year and we’ll always
send wine out if people order online.”
Swanaford is one of more than 500
vineyards planted across England and Wales
and the figure is growing. Already up by 15
per cent since 2015, the rate of planting is a
testament to this emerging industry, with the
buzz around English wine – and sparkling in
particular – helped by high-profile fans like the
Duke and Duchess of Cambridge who opted for
English sparkling wine at their 2011 wedding.
More recently, 10 Downing Street announced
that English sparkling wine would be its official
fizz in 2016, and in June this year pub chain JD
Wetherspoons replaced its Champagne offering
with English sparkling wine.
Looking at what they have achieved, Ben
“To grow a vine from
the roots up, harvest
and process the grapes
and then make wine
ourselves feels like a
huge achievement”