Mannings Heath Golf and Wine Estate, near Horsham in West Sussex, has introduced a national wine delivery service, following the success of local deliveries since the COVID-19 lockdown. This includes a free, weekly online wine tasting experience, each Sunday until May 24th, with the estate’s cellar master Johann Fourie. Wine can be ordered on the Mannings Heath web page. 

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Owner Penny Streeter OBE says:-  

“The vineyard estate is closed during the lockdown, so we wanted to bring something of the experience that our members enjoy to them in their own homes.  “While people can’t visit Mannings Heath for vineyard tours and wine tastings sadly, they can order a case and enjoy a live online tasting with our cellar master who is at our Benguela Cove Lagoon vineyard in South Africa. Each event also includes food pairings, with South African style braais BBQs and other dishes that are easy to prepare at home, led by our chef Annie Badenhorst.” 

Penny Streeter bought Mannings Heath golf club in 2017. One of the two 18-hole golf courses was converted into a 9-hole, and the space used to plant a 15-hectare (37 acres) vineyard. The first harvest will be in the autumn of 2020, to produce some 75,000 bottles of sparkling wine annually, with the first release ready to drink in 2023. 

Wines for the online tastings are from Penny Streeter’s South African vineyard at Benguela Cove, acquired in 2013 and situated at the start of the Hermanus Wine Route in the Walker Bay region, by a lagoon at the edge of the Atlantic Ocean.  

She says: “Benguela Cove wine brings a taste of sunshine in a glass during the lockdown. In the online tasting, our winemaker Johann describes how the lagoon’s microclimate creates the special conditions for viticulture and he explores the taste of each grape varietal. The south-easterly sea breeze is chilled by the Benguela Current flowing up from Antarctica, to cool the grapes at night after warm summer days.” 

 An example of a six-bottle pack offers, priced at £90, is Lighthouse Syrah 2017, Joie De Vivre 2014, Benguela Cove’s flagship Méthode Cap Classique, Leonardslee Rosé 2018, Benguela Cove Semillon Sauvignon Blanc 2016, Benguela Cove Collage 2015, and Noble Late Harvest 2015. 

 For further information on wine tastings and deliveries, visit www.manningsheath.com