At Squerryes we've been in the business of creating joy for nearly 300 years and we're now bottling it. Vintage sparkling wine that reflects the amazing spirit, rich heritage
and the beautiful terroir of our North Downs Estate.
“Squerryes is our beautiful, busy home that sits within a productive 2,500 acre estate on the Kent Downs. My family is the 8th generation of Wardes to live here, with many colourful characters preceding us, all with their own story to tell.
These stories, our history I suppose, are one of the things that makes Squerryes
so special. Equally so is the glue, our family motto, that has bound all these
chapters and all these people together over the centuries:
Our walls are decorated with portaits of the Warde family, past and present; but regardless of era there is an ethos that lives through us all, our family motto:
"Licet Esse Beatis": it is permitted to be joyful.
...And this has been the spirit of our house since the first generation of my family lived here. Treasured letters tell how Sir Patience Warde traded wool from the Estate with the French for red wine, which he then sold to the hardworking people of London bringing some pleasure to their days. It felt like the tides were changing when centuries later a very well-known French champagne house came to Squerryes looking to buy some of our land on which to grow their vines.
My father, John, and I decided to walk away from those negotiations and instead set about planting 36 acres of vines ourselves back in 2006. The “long, thirsty wait” that my father spoke of when the first vines were planted, has been well worth it as we are already enjoying great recognition for the quality of our vintage wines, our most recent accolade being a Platinum medal at Decanter World Wine Awards 2019.
Having our family motto engraved above our front door, helps ensure this spirit continues to flow into our house and all the experiences we host here, whether it’s: a tour of Squerryes Court, rich in history, or a tour of the vineyards ripe with fruit; a meal in our seafood restaurant or a flight of our award winning Squerryes sparkling wine in our Tasting Room; private hire of the Court for weddings and celebrations, or of the Winery Bottle Store for smaller events; or even becoming part of the Squerryes ‘family’ through membership, enjoying a whole calendar of events all year round (from our Summer Garden Party and Vendage to winter carol singing at the Court).
Our walls are decorated with portaits of the Warde family, past and present; but regardless of era there is an ethos that lives through us all, our family motto:
"Licet Esse Beatis": it is permitted to be joyful.
...And this has been the spirit of our house since the first generation of my family lived here. Treasured letters tell how Sir Patience Warde traded wool from the Estate with the French for red wine, which he then sold to the hardworking people of London bringing some pleasure to their days. It felt like the tides were changing when centuries later a very well-known French champagne house came to Squerryes looking to buy some of our land on which to grow their vines.
My father, John, and I decided to walk away from those negotiations and instead set about planting 36 acres of vines ourselves back in 2006. The “long, thirsty wait” that my father spoke of when the first vines were planted, has been well worth it as we are already enjoying great recognition for the quality of our vintage wines, our most recent accolade being a Platinum medal at Decanter World Wine Awards 2019.
Having our family motto engraved above our front door, helps ensure this spirit continues to flow into our house and all the experiences we host here, whether it’s: a tour of Squerryes Court, rich in history, or a tour of the vineyards ripe with fruit; a meal in our seafood restaurant or a flight of our award winning Squerryes sparkling wine in our Tasting Room; private hire of the Court for weddings and celebrations, or of the Winery Bottle Store for smaller events; or even becoming part of the Squerryes ‘family’ through membership, enjoying a whole calendar of events all year round (from our Summer Garden Party and Vendage to winter carol singing at the Court).
