Only eight miles from the sea, the vineyards of Albourne Estate sit in the stunning South Downs countryside just north of Brighton. It was established in 2010 by Alison Nightingale and Nick Cooper after Alison completed a viticulture and oenology degree at Plumpton College. They make traditional method and charmat sparkling wines alongside red, white, rosé and vermouth.
The vineyards
The location of their vineyards provides excellent drainage, reduces frost risk and ensures maximum sun exposure, meaning they can get the best out of their grapes in the cooler English climate. They have approximately 30 acres of vineyards planted with chardonnay, pinot noir, pinot meunier, pinot blanc, pinot gris, bacchus, ortega and dornfelder.
Sustainability credentials
Sustainability holds different challenges in the English climate, but Albourne are facing the rigours head on. They have been certified by Sustainable Wines of Great Britain, a thorough and independently audited process for UK vineyards and wineries. As a business, they are carbon negative, capturing more carbon through carbon sequestering around their vineyard and estate than they produce.
Green energy
Thanks to 159 solar panels, their winery and estate has been fuelled 100% from green energy since their first vintage in 2013, and they actually give green energy back into the grid thanks to their generous output. They’ve also reduced their overall electricity use by 50% since 2015, and minimised new building work to lower the carbon impact.
Recycling
Everything possible is recycled at Albourne, from the plastic-free wrapping at their cellar door and labels on the wine bottles to all the glass, cardboard, plastic and food used on site. Vineyard waste is collected and recycled via a certified farm recycling scheme. They even ‘recycle’ their wine – their vermouth, the first from Sussex, was launched as a means of finding a home for batches of wine that were not suitable for blending into their sparkling or still wines. Rather than throwing this away, they found it was perfect for making vermouth which further reduced their waste levels.
Biodiversity
The estate is full of life. They graze sheep over winter and grow cover crops in their vineyards. Further biodiversity is encouraged by delaying mowing or leaving areas wild to encourage wildflowers, and they have repaired hedgerows and planted woodland. Herbicide use has been reduced through tactical strimming and reducing cultivation, and organic matter in the soil is being encouraged through high biomass ‘green manures’ and applying compost and organic soil improvers.
Sussex Rosé, Albourne Estate 2023
Producers making a difference
Albourne is just one of our producers with a more sustainable approach to winemaking. We have a whole selection to explore.
