From Georgian Experiment to Modern Revival
Painshill’s winemaking story begins with the Honourable Charles Hamilton, who created his celebrated landscape garden between 1738 and 1773. Hamilton planted around five acres of vines on a south-facing slope overlooking the serpentine lake, producing wine good enough to be mistaken for Champagne and sold commercially for over two decades, proving that viticulture was viable in England long before its modern renaissance. The vineyard fell into disuse after Hamilton sold the estate in 1773 and was eventually converted into a rockery by Victorian owners.
When the Painshill Park Trust was formed to restore the Grade I listed landscape, the vineyard site had become a series of large rock steps overgrown with 200-year-old Scots pines. These were cleared in 1988, and new vines were planted in 1992, with the first full grape harvest following in 1998. The Trust was awarded a Europa Nostra medal in 1999 for the “exemplary restoration” of the park, a recognition that encompasses the revival of winemaking on this historic slope.
Wines, Tastings and the Temple of Bacchus
Today almost two acres are under vine, growing Pinot Noir (one of the varieties Hamilton himself cultivated) alongside Chardonnay, Seyval Blanc and Pinot Grigio. Each October around 20 Trust staff and volunteers hand-pick enough grapes to produce approximately 3,000 bottles a year. The fruit is pressed and vinified by the respected Bluebell Vineyard Estate, yielding a sparkling white made from 100% Seyval Blanc and a sparkling rosé blended from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Both wines are sold exclusively in the Painshill shop.
Visitors can walk through the vineyard and up to the newly restored Temple of Bacchus, where guided tastings are held against a backdrop of sweeping Surrey views. Group tours follow the full historic route past the Waterwheel, Hermitage and Gothic Tower before returning via the Temple and the Turkish Tent. The 158-acre landscape garden is open daily year-round (except Christmas Day and Boxing Day), with summer hours from 10am to 6pm and winter hours from 10am to 4pm. Adult admission is £16.50, with children aged 5-16 at £5.50 and under-fives free.
