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Award-winning Ashton Kirby has woken up the 50-year-old vines at Bewl Water Vineyard in East Sussex — even if he has been known to work in his pyjamas.
Kirby, 22, is regarded as the UK’s youngest winemaker after he moved as a 16-year-old from Brighton with his parents to an oast house property that had a non-commercial vineyard.
“My parents wanted to relax a little bit while I probably had other ideas,” he says. “The vineyard was rundown and we didn’t really have the intention of making wine.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Kirbys made the decision to harvest two weeks before Kirby headed into his final year at Hurstpierpoint College, West Sussex. “My teachers were probably wondering why I was so distracted. I was very multi-tasking,” he smiles.
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“Dad [Simon] and I thought early on how cool it would be to make wine. I thought there was no point making grapes just to push them on when it was such a small quantity, but we came up with this crazy idea to create a very good product.
“It was organic and has grown into a full-time business. I took an opportunity out of the vineyard, it was convenient but my fortune changed. It has also given me time to get used to the lifestyle, change in stress and intensity. As I’ve grown up it’s grown with me.”
From an initial hobby, Bewl Water has turned into a serious business and has won over a dozen awards, with Kirby striking gold last year from WineGB gold for his Reserve Cuvée 2018.
The vineyard has since consumed father and son, who are co-directors. They soon replaced 6,000 wooden posts for GPS-planted ones to create better foliage at the five-acre vineyard, a business they have also kept lean and family run.
“You wouldn’t be able to do that with 10 or 15 acres as we would then have to employ people and lose that personal family magic,” says Kirby. “It means that none of the important processes get cut. It’s all done to our standards and style and that’s what I am really passionate about.”
The vineyard’s Bacchus vines were originally planted in 1973, with Kirby adding pinot noir to produce sparkling, as well as red and white wine. The business sits on clay soil above Bewl Water, the biggest reservoir in south-east England, with above-average iron content.
“More important than the soil is the reservoir,” adds Kirby. “We don’t get early or late frost and with the valley position we get good wind flow which reduces disease pressure.
“As we are small and niche, we can ensure that only the best quality gets picked. We don’t need to make a large amount like a Chapel Down.”
Along with their growing awards, Bewl Water has won tenders to sell its sparkling wine to the Norwegian government and invited over by the British embassy in Poland, alongside other British winemakers, to sample to local sommeliers.
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“Trying to get into Europe and globally is super important. In England we don’t drink enough English wine,” adds Kirby. “It’s great that we are all making vineyards and it’s growing but there has to be money through sales to keep us all growing.
“My modern take is the quality of fruit. The UK pallet is shifting towards a slightly fresher product and more balance. It is subjective but a lot of people don’t like champagne for that reason and it’s too old world tasting as opposed to new world wines.”
Earlier this year, the former Conservative government set aside £1.5m for a new Future Winemakers’ Scheme (FWS) to boost skills and jobs in the sector.
According to trade body WineGB, it is the fastest-growing agricultural industry, with 4,200 hectares under vine.
This is forecast to grow to 85% by 2032, with the number of vineyards now reaching 1,030, a 9.2% increase from 2023.
With the Labour government slated to bring in a series of alcohol tax duties from February, Kirby, as the face of the business, believes there is a “lack of faith” in English wine.
“There has to be change from the government,” he adds. “We need to favour our produce more, perhaps lower the VAT and tax on our wine which we can lower for our consumers.
“If we want diversity and small businesses to do well, we should have a small producers’ relief like cider does. Which is great as you have loads of boutique cider places which can stay in business and compete on price. You can’t please everyone but it would be a great start.”
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Bewl Water produced around 16,000 bottles in 2023, but took the decision not to pick this autumn. It has, says Kirby, been a ‘catastrophic’ year due to cold, damp weather and harvest production down by between 75% and a third across the UK.
“It hurts as I’ve spent thousands of hours in the rain and snow but we don’t have to pick or compromise our quality,” says Kirby.
The upside is that the business isn’t constrained by investors, instead sticking to “what we stand for, which is small, hand-picked, quality and keeping it familiar”.
For the latter, that also means tending to vines in clothes unfamiliar to most traditional viticulteurs.
When Kirby won praise last year, he was pictured wearing T-shirts of his favourite heavy metal bands and says working on the vines while rock music is playing is therapeutic.
Five years on he is still touted as Britain’s youngest winemaker. “I wouldn’t say I’m a success yet, but I think people saw a young person in an industry they don’t necessarily belong in or someone who is doing it in a slightly alternative way,” admits Kirby.
“People want something real when they look for inspiration. I’m open about the fact that I didn’t know what to do with my life and that’s important for young people today.
“I was very grateful for this as I truly didn’t know what I wanted to do. It gave me some control of my life.”
Behind the brand: Bewl Water Vineyard co-founder on…
Leadership
It is a marathon running a business, especially in wine. You have to know not to take things too personally and move forward. There are frustrations knowing we have a great product, you have to be patient and not get too emotionally involved when things go wrong.
Challenges
I’ve made mistakes early on but if you are willing to learn and knuckle down, you can really do it. Viticulture isn’t wildly complicated; it’s about nurturing and putting in the hours. The economic climate and climate is changing constantly and you have to be on your feet ready for change.
Growth
We are keen on making less profit per bottle and selling at a more appropriate cost, which means more people can try it. I don’t have a long-term plan but I want as many people as possible to try fantastic English wine in general.
Watch: The young Brit making waves in the wine world