It’s fortunate that Irish-born Dermot Sugrue thrives on stress. The past few years have been a whirlwind for England’s mostlabel, from several sites in East and West Sussex. The winery is next to his new Bee Tree Vineyard. Building work was supposed to be finished by July 2023, in time to receive the harvest, but work overran and he ended up having to process 146 tonnes of fruit while work was ongoing. He’s excited about the quality of the 2023 vintage, which he says is greater than the much-exalted 2018, as it has better physiological ripeness. Dermot and his winemaker wife Ana will be offering tours and tastings by appointment by summer 2024.
