Who needs France’s Bordeaux region when we’ve got a beautiful vineyard all of our own right here in Cornwall? Polgoon Vineyard and Orchard, on the edge of Penzance, is a wine lover’s paradise that’s not only open for tours but for tastings of its award-winning tipples.
The family-run vineyard and orchard produces a delicious range of artisan Cornish wines, ciders and juices. It all has to be done via a tour, so you can’t just rock up and start roaming around the estate. But the tours are highly recommended for all serious oenophiles as you don’t just get to know about how the tipples – all certified vegan – are made but you also get to do a five-star tasting at the end. These tours run throughout the year and take about 90 minutes each. They include a gentle stroll around the vineyard and orchard, plus a visit to the production zones. There’s also a shop on-site that stocks the products alongside special hampers and other gifts. And six working beehives also cause a buzz in the extensive grounds.
The vineyard and winery go back to 2004, when former fish merchants John and Kim Coulson bought the site, which had a derelict farmhouse, two cottages, two barns and 23 acres of land sprawled out across it. Despite having little experience in the magical ways of wine production, the couple decided to plant vines on the land and in just two years, they had their first harvest. Their first Polgoon wine won awards and, despite a couple of tough harvests, it’s all been one big success story from there, with the addition of cider production over the years. The Aval – Cornish for ‘apple’ – and Raspberry Aval ciders are bestsellers.
Booking ahead for the tours is essential and there are self-guided options, working off an online or hard copy of the site map to show yourself around. We recommended the guided option, however, as you can’t beat getting all the details from the experts here. The guided tours only take place on Wednesdays and Thursdays, though. Another recommendation at Polgoon is the alfresco Vine House Kitchen, an eatery that not only serves up the homegrown beverages but also offers delights like crab sandwiches, pan-seared scallops and cheese boards. All in all, Polgoon will impress all wine and cider lovers – and even if you don’t drink, there’s nothing like visiting a local Cornish business that’s doing something award-winning and different.