Another Kent wine producer could go up for sale

Last month Kent winemaker Chapel Down said it wanted to "carry out a strategic review of options to fund its plan to continue driving strong and profitable growth in the long-term" (ie – possibly putting itself up for sale), now another Kent winemaker is looking at a sale.

Yesterday, Gusbourne announced that its majority shareholder, Lord Ashcroft, wants to look at options for his 66.76 per cent shareholding, which could include a sale, merger with a similar company or a possible capitalisation of all or part of his debt.

Is this the start of something wider in the burgeoning English wine sector?

Last year, Berry Bros & Rudd, the UK’s oldest fine wine and spirits merchant in its 325th year, and Symington Family Estates, the world’s leading producer of premium port, bought Hambledon Vineyard in Hampshire (itself England's oldest commercial vineyard) following a successful plc takeover bid. 

According to Wine GB, the national association for the English and Welsh wine industry, there are now 1,030 vineyards in the UK, a 9.2 per cent rise since the last annual report, according to new figures from the Food Standards Agency Wine Team. In addition, last year English and Welsh wine sales grew by 10 per cent from 2022.

In 2023, 87 new vineyards were registered bringing the total number to more than 1,000 for the first time. Government data also shows that winery numbers have risen from 209 to 221 and that the total area under vine now stands at 4,209 hectares, representing a growth rate of 123 per cent in 10 years.  

Early estimations in the WineGB Harvest Report are that 2023 had been a record year. Official figures for production in 2023 totalled 161,960.84 hectolitres, the equivalent of 21.6 million bottles, up 77 per cent on 2022.

WineGB’s data shows that sales of English and Welsh wine continue to grow sustainably and manageably as new plantings come into production. Sales rose 10 per cent last year to reach 8.8 million bottles. Over a five-year time horizon since 2018, sales have consistently risen.

• Sales of sparkling wine have risen 187 per cent since 2018, from 2.2 million bottles to 6.2 million in 2023.  
• Sales of still wine have increased by 117 per cent over the same period, from 1.2 million to 2.6 million bottles.  

This growth is even more impressive as it is against the wider trend of falling UK and global wine consumption.