Leonardslee Vineyard Estate Celebrates Defra PDO Status For Sussex Wine

Leonardslee Lakes and Gardens, the vineyard estate near Horsham in West Sussex, is celebrating the news that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has recognised Sussex wine as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO).  

The registration of ‘Sussex’ as a PDO for wine is regarded as a guarantee of quality and geographical provenance like the French Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée. It will enter the register on 5th July, 2022, giving Sussex wine the same legal status as Stilton cheese, Jersey Royal potatoes and Cornish clotted cream.  

Penny Streeter OBE is the owner of Leonardslee Lakes and Gardens and Mannings Golf and Wine Estate, three miles away, and says:  

“The PDO award will highlight the special qualities of the Sussex wine region, both as a producer and a vineyard visitor destination. Leonardslee and its sister estate at Mannings Heath are increasingly seen as amongst the best English vineyards to visit for wine tastings and tours, where you can dine and stay overnight. We opened new luxury accommodation at Leonardslee House in 2021 and won a Michelin Star for a further year for Restaurant Interlude’s tasting menu experience. “  

Penny Streeter acquired the Mannings Heath golf club in 2017 and one of its 18-hole courses was planted with vines to create the UK’s first golf and wine estate. The 34 acres of vineyard will produce some 70,000 bottles, with the first release in 2024 of sparkling wine cultivars - 60 percent Chardonnay, 30 percent Pinot Noir and 10 percent Pinot Meunier.  

The serial entrepreneur’s next acquisition was Leonardslee Lakes and Gardens in 2018, with its 240 acres of Grade I Listed woodland gardens. The experimental planting of Pinotage will produce an estimated 4,000 bottles later this year, in 2022.  

With the DEFRA announcement, still and sparkling wines can only be called ‘Sussex’ if the grapes are grown in the counties of West Sussex or East Sussex.  

Sussex sparkling wine must be created in the traditional method, primarily from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier - through Arbanne, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Petit Meslier and Pinot Noir Précoce may also be used.  

Wines must have a minimum alcohol content of 11 percent, a minimum tartaric acid content of 6 grammes per litre, a maximum acetic acid content of 0.5 grammes per litre, and a maximum sulphur dioxide content of 150mg per litre.  

Each cuvée must be approved by Wine Standards, an accredited organisation that is part of the UK government's Food Standards Agency.  

At least 85% of the grapes used to make Sussex sparkling wine must be from the nominated year of any vintage, while single-variety wines must have at least 90 percent of the declared variety.  

Sussex still wine must have a minimum abv of 10 percent and meet certain acid, sulphur dioxide, iron, and magnesium content requirements. The programme manager, Campden BRI, will conduct an organoleptic test on all Sussex still wines.  

Penny Streeter is also the owner of Benguela Cove Lagoon Wine Estate, located at the start of the Hermanus Wine Route in the Walker Bay region of South Africa. She acquired the estate in 2013 and, with cellar master Johann Fourie, transformed its 170 acres of vineyards to produce some 500,000 bottles of award-winning wines that include Sauvignon Blanc, Shiraz and other cultivars.   

In South Africa’s prestigious Veritas Wine Awards 2021, the estate achieved three double gold awards for its Vinography Sauvignon Blanc 2020, Benguela Cove Sauvignon Blanc 2020 and Joie De Vivre Cap Classique 2017.