Managing Director & Winemaker

What got you into wine? Driving through France to Midem (music industry conference) in Cannes every year and visiting vineyards on the way - we would drive through Champagne, Burgundy and the Rhône which was incredibly inspiring. I was lucky enough to have a friend who was a vintner in Cannes, so we would load up our rickety Citroen 2CV with wine (breaking down regularly en route). I first realised the potential of English wine when I tried one of Will Davenport’s wines in a restaurant in Soho back in 2014. I called Will the next day and began studying wine production and viticulture whilst working with him at Davenport.

What did you do before? I ran a music company in London. Previously, I founded record label Moshi Moshi.

What do you love most about your job? The transformation from pruning the vines right back down to two canes to watching them grow through the season - all the way through to watching the berries develop and tasting the flavours. I love the process in the winery, too - turning juice to wine - and then capturing it in the bottle at the perfect time. Once you start tasting the fruit, plans begin to percolate, but you never really know what you’re going to get and that’s rather magical. The taste of the juice transforms dramatically through fermentation but also develops during ageing - whether that be in oak, terracotta, steel or concrete. We tend to do very little to our wines after fermentation but what we do do is taste, and judging the perfect timing for bottling is an art that I’m loving learning.

What is your favourite time of year in the vineyard? Harvest. It’s the toughest time but also the time that the ideas start sparking as you taste the fruit.

Favourite Westwell wine? Pelegrim. It’s the most Westwell-ian of the wines we make - it reflects what the site is capable of: rich and full wine with a fruit-forward profile.

Illustrator & Dogsbody

What got you into wine? Adrian! When we were living in London, both working in music, I genuinely hadn’t anticipated this as our future. Once I tried some English wine, though, I was amazed by the quality and it wasn’t long before we took the plunge, relocating to Sussex where I started studying at Plumpton College and began a blog on English wine. My main job at Westwell is illustrating and designing our labels - mostly very detailed illustrations of vines and the vineyard.

What did you do before? Amongst other things, I worked as a composer for film and television.

What do you love most about your job? The variety. From drawing and designing labels to spending time in the vineyard - the most beautiful place I know.

What is your favourite time of year in the vineyard? I tend to work mainly from home, but as a family, we are always about during harvest and I love the frantic excitement of getting the fruit in and thinking of all the possibility - a little like getting a new sketchpad and pen.

Favourite Westwell wine? I absolutely love the Field '18. It tastes like some of the light juicy red Juran wines of which Adrian is so fond and is very versatile.

Cellar Door & Production Manager

What got you into wine? I’ve always enjoyed drinking wine and decided to take a WSET course to learn more about wine and why I liked the wines I did. The enthusiasm of my tutor - Debbie Ault - was infectious and made me want to learn more and to get involved in the industry in some way. A year later, I gave up my previous career and went travelling to figure out what I may be able to do and I was hooked. I then signed up for the BSc in Viticulture and Oenology at Plumpton College and here I am.

What did you do before? I was a Project Manager and Accountant in the Chemical Industry.

What do you love most about your job? It’s early days for me, but just being around a great group of people who obviously love their jobs, and having the opportunity to learn from them. It’s great to be involved in all aspects from talking to people visiting the vineyard about the fantastic wine we make at Westwell and passing on my knowledge and passion. I’m really looking forward to working harvest this year and actually making our wine, and working in the vineyard to ensure we have the best fruit possible.

What is your favourite time of year in the vineyard? I always describe being in the vineyard as being in my happy place so any time in the vineyard is good for me. But I do love the spring when the flowers are starting to emerge.

Favourite Westwell wine? Ortega Amphora - it was my first real foray into English wine and the reason why I wanted to work at Westwell.

Cellar Door & Programming

What got you into wine? Mainly drinking it at family events while growing up, I used to sneak a taste whenever I could! The interest in learning about it was fuelled back at catering college where we got the chance to do some of the WSET courses and had the most amazing lecturer who was so enthusiastic about wine it was contagious. Ever since I've been tasting and learning as much as I can.

What did you do before? I spent 20 years managing restaurants and F&B, mainly in hotels. I've been lucky enough to work with some amazing wine lists over the years and when we moved to the south east for work I jumped at the opportunity to attend Plumpton College, starting on the wine business course before transferring to the Viticulture and Oenology BSc.

What do you love most about your job? The wine!...... Seeing people taste the wine, talking about the wine and wine making methods.

What is your favourite time of year in the vineyard? I love spring when the green shoots start to appear and you get the promise of the year to come, but I think my absolute favourite is harvest, seeing (and tasting) the fruit. all the planning and hard work (and fun, plus in some cases a level of chaos) that goes into the picking. Once the fruit arrives in the winery there are all the possibilities and potential to assess before deciding on the best action for each parcel of fruit.

Favourite Westwell wine? All of them! It really depends on the time of year, time of day (breakfast wine is a thing!!) and the mood I'm in. I'd choose the Naturally Petulant Pink for a hot summers afternoon, Wicken Foy as an early evening aperitif (or breakfast), Ortega and Double Pinot for a picnic, Pelegrim for anytime really but particularly for an evening in to enjoy with or without food, Blancs des Blancs for anytime I wanted something special or maybe just a wet wednesday in January...I could go on but should probably go do some work!