About Us

Gorsley Vineyard, owned and managed by Graham and Pippa Lark, is the fulfilment of a dream – to take advantage of an ideal location for growing grapes at our family home near Canterbury. For many years we had the ambition to create something special in this beautiful valley a few miles outside Canterbury. The chalky soil and gentle slope provided the opportunity and so we took the plunge in 2017 by planting 4,500 vines with the aim of producing small parcels of exquisite wine. After a detailed assessment of our terroir we selected 50% chardonnay, 35% pinot noir and 15% pinot meunier and now spend many enjoyable hours each year on the various seasonal tasks. Caring for vines can be very time consuming!

Before planting, the vineyard was grazed by a herd of alpacas. Indeed they are still welcomed back in the winter months to keep the grass tidy so we have decided to feature these fascinating creatures as a distinctive part of our branding. In many ways winemaking is a serious business but the end product should be enjoyed and the alpacas comical faces convey the sense of fun we aim to achieve with our wines.

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We are passionate about making quality wines but also strive to do so in a sustainable way. In particular we are aiming to minimise the “wine miles” travelled between our vineyard and your glass. With this in mind we selected Defined Wine as our winemaker. Their winery is 2 miles from our vineyard and their investment in equipment and expertise ensures our precious grapes are turned into the wine we want. We then sell into our local market via selected outlets, at the cellar door and online.

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We will be running some vineyard tours and tasting over Summer so if you are interested in paying us a visit, sign up to our mailing list in the footer below to stay up to date.