Owners Simon and Sarah Greenwood swapped life in the city for running the vineyard and have since built a thriving business. Its offering has grown beyond wine making to now encompass year-round tastings, a bar and restaurant, shop and wedding venue.
Simon shares what he thinks is unique about The Mount Vineyard: “We were one of the first vineyards in the South East to put on a full food offering. Our pizza oven was delivered from Italy and we make all food fresh onsite. There is a feel of the southern hemisphere here and when the sun is shining it’s really special. I’ve been fortunate enough to have travelled around the world and I hope we have brought some of the best bits of these experiences to what we offer at The Mount. It is still a very relaxed and family-orientated environment as we want to put people at ease.
“Our proximity to Shoreham train station is great and is vitally important to those travelling from London. The Mount is in a rural location, but is still well-connected. We pride ourselves on being one of the closest vineyards to London and our location is very important to our visitors. Our team recently welcomed the cast from Made in Chelsea, who were filming for the current series.”
Despite having national and international recognition, The Mount Vineyard is very locally focussed. They buy their produce locally wherever possible and have strong links with local businesses, particularly Castle Farm, adopting a collegiate approach to bring more visitors to the area.
Simon explains how always striving for more has been key to ensuring they are always appealing to their visitors: “We have had to be innovative, especially during lockdown, we’ve held outdoor cinema events and festivals, we’re always looking for new things. We now offer a viticulture course, which allows people to join our estate managers and learn about managing the vines all the way through to harvest. This is something that is quite unique but has seen good response so far, especially given the scheme only started this year.
“We’ve also recently opened a 15th century pub in the village – The Samuel Palmer. We pride ourselves on fresh, local produce and great wine and beer. The pub also has three guest bedrooms and if they’re in high demand there is scope to grow the accommodation offering further. We’ve had a positive reception so far, so this is an exciting new extension to The Mount. We’re also looking at expanding our experiential offering further, as there is the potential for trout fishing, foraging, yoga and art classes. Our ambition is to be a destination beyond the wine offering, so there is something for everyone.”