Newsletter – Wine Letter
There are many opportunities to enjoy wine at Mannings Heath and Leonardslee.
Our wines are sourced from the owners’ vineyard at Benguela Cove, South Africa. You can enjoy these wines through The Wine Club or buy them at both Mannings Heath and Leonardslee.
We have vineyards on both Sussex estates too. The most recent plantings bring the total of vines under cultivation to 66,000 across 16 hectares at Leonardslee last year and Mannings Heath in 2017 to create the UK’s first golf and wine estate.
The sparkling wine cultivar plantings are 60% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir and 10% Pinot Meunier. The experimental planting of 0.5 hectares for Pinotage at Leonardslee is to evaluate this grape under the growing conditions found in Sussex.
Total production is projected to be 75,000 bottles of sparkling wine annually: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Meunier - and now the non-sparkling Pinotage. The first crop is due in 2020 and the first release of wine in 2023
Wine Experiences This Spring/ Summer
Enjoy These South African-Style Wine Experiences At Mannings Heath And Leonardslee
Self-Drive Buggy Tour of Mannings Heath Vineyard:
Drive a buggy along the winding pathways & over the Kingfisher Golf Course, in an area of natural beauty. Hear interesting information about the vineyards & sparkling wine. Upon return to the clubhouse, enjoy a tutored tasting of 5 estate wines from, Benguela Cove. (£15.00 p/p).
Walking tour of England’s first Pinotage Vineyard at Leonardslee:
Learn all about the cultivars planted, the viticulture and the vine-to-bottle process. Find out at first hand why we have chosen to be part of the English wine growing revolution. Experience includes the tasting of 5 estate wines from Benguela Cove. (£12.00 p/p)
Discover a taste sensation, with locally sourced Sussex cheeses selected by our chef and paired carefully with the five wines from Benguela Cove. Available at Mannings Heath or Leonardslee (£15 p/p).
Wine & Fine Chocolate Pairing:
Sample five Benguela Cove wines, paired perfectly with locally produced, artisan chocolate from J.Cocoa. Mannings Heath or Leonardslee (£15 P/p).
Looks out over the golf course and beautiful English countryside. The Bar is open to the public seven days a week. It is the perfect place to unwind after a long day or week at work, meet friends for a bite to eat from our delicious bar menu or relax.
Vineyard Estates
Leonardslee Lakes & Gardens and Mannings Heath Golf & Wine Estate are both a part of The Benguela Collection, the wine producer and hospitality group that owner Penny Streeter OBE started in 2013 with the purchase of the Benguela Cove Wine Estate, at the edge of South Africa’s southern coast.
Johann Fourie is our Cellar Master for Benguela Cove and the UK vineyards. Barry Anderson has joined the team as Managing Director of MH and is responsible for all UK wine operations.