Buckswood, recently took delivery of a dry white and sparkling wine made from grapes grown, nurtured and picked by students on the school’s own vineyard located on the estate.
Under the watchful eye and expert guidance of local award-winning wine producer Carr-Taylor Vineyards, the wine is getting better with age and as the vines mature, the flavour of the wine improves.
The vineyard was planted five years ago on the Guestling estate with the grape variety ‘Ortega’ selected to produce a dry white wine. The first harvest was turned into 500 bottles of a dry white last year and this year 750 bottles have been produced, to be sold at various school events. All proceeds go to the school’s Swaziland charity, which contributes towards water projects, education and healthcare in the Kingdom.
In addition to the Ortega grapes, this year saw the planting of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay varieties. The school has also produced its first sparkling white wine – ‘Buckswood Bubbles’.
Speaking of the project, Buckswood Headteacher, Mark Redsell, said: “Experience is the ‘Buckswood Difference’ and it is at the heart of everything we do, our sole aim is to produce young ladies and gentlemen that have an inner confidence and a myriad of experiences that set them apart from their contemporaries. And so, the idea for the Buckswood Vineyard was born out of the combination of the excellent local grape growing conditions on our Sussex coastal estate and the desire to give all the Buckswood scholars yet
another opportunity to experience the world hands-on, in Science, Business, Art and Geography; there is a chance for every academic discipline at Buckswood to use the project as a resource.”
