Combe Hay Vineyard - A Family-Run English Wine Estate above Bath
A small, family-run English vineyard above Bath
Tucked into a gentle, south-facing slope in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty just ten minutes up the hill from the historic centre of Bath, Combe Hay Vineyard is one of the oldest and most quietly distinctive family wine estates in the West of England. Planted in 1986, the vineyard sits among fields and woodland, sheltered by trees, fed by a natural spring, and looking out across a valley of native wildflowers, bees, fungi and birdlife.
Today the vineyard is run by Stephen, Filippa, Iris and Evelyn Ross, who took over the site from Filippa's father, the wine merchant Francis Pearson. Their small, hand-tended vineyard produces a single dry white wine from three heritage German grape varieties, vinified just twenty-five minutes away in Frome. The result is a genuine field-to-bottle English wine - and one that the family believe tastes unmistakably of the countryside around it.
Terroir, history and the land itself
Combe Hay has a wine-growing pedigree that stretches back far beyond 1986. The Romans are thought to have cultivated vines in the area, fed by the same natural spring water that still runs through the woodland today, and the village is mentioned in the Domesday Book in connection with its own long tradition of winemaking. When Francis Pearson chose the site, he was consciously reviving that lineage.
The vineyard's terroir - the combination of aspect, climate, soil and the wider ecological biosphere - is what makes the wine taste the way it does. The south-facing slope maximises sunlight, the woodland shelter softens the wind, the springs feed both the vines and the surrounding rewilded ground, and the diversity of plants and animals on site contributes a constant stream of nutrients and minerals to the soil. As the family put it, even a wine made from the same varieties elsewhere will not taste identical, because so much of the flavour comes from the surrounding countryside.
Three heritage grape varieties
Rather than chasing fashionable crossings, Francis Pearson planted three traditional heritage German varieties chosen specifically for how they taste and how they suit the site:
- Schönburger - a pink-berried variety whose grapes can turn a pretty rose colour in a sunny year, contributing fruit and citrus notes.
- Müller-Thurgau - widely planted across central Europe, adding clean, mineral elements and a touch of finesse.
- Huxelrebe - a natural blender that brings smoothness on the palate and length to the finish.
Combined, they produce a fragrant, gently aromatic dry white that has been compared both to Sauvignon Blanc and to top-quality Chenin Blanc - flowery and clean, but with more rounded fruitiness and without the gooseberry edge that some drinkers find too sharp in a young Sauvignon. The wine has gathered praise from sommeliers, independent wine writers and Bath-based reviewers alike, with The Saturday Telegraph noting it as "a good, oaky Combe Hay white" and Bath Life Magazine describing it as "immensely quaffable".
A holistic, regenerative approach
Since the vineyard passed to the second generation, the family have emphasised a regenerative, holistic approach to the whole environment of the vines. Their environmental philosophy combines three overlapping principles:
- Organic - no destructive chemicals, and respect for the natural systems that support the vines.
- Biodynamic - feeding the vines and soil with naturally prepared treatments, timed to the cycles of the moon, and treating the whole site - plants, animals and people - as one symbiotic ecosystem.
- Regenerative - disturbing and managing the soil as little as possible, and letting nature find its own balance.
In practice, this means hand-clearing or mowing competing plants rather than spraying weedkiller, hand pruning, leaf-stripping and picking rather than using machinery, and feeding the vines with biodynamic preparations made from organic plants gathered on the rewilded parts of the site. The team is also creating a nature pond fed by the natural stream that runs through the woods, spreading mushroom spores to encourage fungi, and planning native sheep grazing between the rows in winter. Bees from hives on the site are an active part of the cycle, too.
The wine itself
Combe Hay produces a single dry white wine from its own grapes. The family describe the nose as elegant and aromatic - fresh, clean and zesty, evoking elderflower, apple blossom and heather, with a hint of ripe fig - and the palate as floral and fresh, with fruit and mineral undertones contributed by the Müller-Thurgau. It is a wine that evolves a little with every vintage, because it is a genuinely natural product of a particular place and year.
Because the vineyard is small and the vines are old, supply is limited. At the time of writing the family are currently sold out of all vintages of Combe Hay wine, but new stock is anticipated. When bottles are available, they can be found at a handful of carefully chosen restaurants and pubs in and around Bath that share the vineyard's appreciation for quality and environment, including Corkage in Queens Square, The Packhorse in South Stoke, the award-winning Wheatsheaf in Combe Hay itself, and Castle Farm at Midford.
Visiting the vineyard
The vineyard is open by appointment only, and there is a small car park on site for visitors. The what-three-words reference is ///dwell.path.circle. It sits within easy reach of several footpaths, including a route from Combe Down and South Stoke that almost ends at the vineyard gate - useful to know if you are staying in Bath without a car.
Private guided tours of the vineyard with the owner can be arranged, particularly for guests staying in the on-site cabin. These are a chance to learn about the heritage grape varieties, the regenerative and biodynamic practices, and the history of the site. Prices are tailored to the group and are arranged directly through the accommodation page or via email.
Stay on the vineyard: a nature retreat cabin
From March to October, visitors can come and stay on the vineyard itself in a thoughtfully designed Vineyard Nature Retreat cabin, set among the vines and surrounded by rewilded woodland. The cabin has a large deck beside the vines and a lawn with a firepit - ideal for star-gazing under Bath's famously dark skies - as well as cosy armchairs by a wood burner, French windows looking out across the valley, a kitchen, a heated shower room, a library and reading nook, and a writing desk with art materials.
Guests are encouraged to wander into their own private woods and try woodland meditation, forest bathing (Shirin Yoku), or foraging using the tailored information provided. Optional extras include:
- Vineyard tours and tailored English wine recommendations.
- Roots Massage Therapy - vegan, cruelty-free bodywork and Lava Shell massage in the cabin or on the deck.
- Bohemian Blooms - locally grown flowers for a celebration.
- Personalised tea ceremonies on the deck with Meg from Omcha.
- Tailored photography courses with a local photographer.
Walks from the door include a two-minute stroll to The Wheatsheaf for breakfast, a route through wildflower fields to The Packhorse at South Stoke, and a longer bridle-track walk to The Fox and Badger at Wellow. Caisson Gardens, in the village itself, runs open days and courses for those wanting to explore more of the local horticultural scene.
Volunteering - the Vineyard Friends Programme
Since 2021, Combe Hay has been one of the first English vineyards to actively welcome volunteers onto the site to learn about traditional and developing vineyard practice. The Vineyard Friends Programme is open to anyone with no previous experience - tasks are matched to what each volunteer is comfortable with.
The vineyard has some of the oldest vines in the country (more than forty years old), so volunteers learn how to coax the best crop from both old and young vines, and how to plant, nurture and train new ones. The cycle of work through the year includes:
- February - pruning.
- March onwards - training and feeding the new growth, frost protection, biodynamic preparations, monitoring wild plants.
- Summer - guiding growth, leaf-stripping, shaping, tucking and topping off.
Sessions are usually held weekly on the same day, typically Wednesday, with occasional weekend dates. There is no minimum commitment, and Filippa maintains an email group so volunteers know what they will be doing before they come; the email group can be joined by writing to contact@combehayvineyard.co.uk.
Courses, connection and community
A range of nature-based courses are run by partner organisations on the vineyard, in a relaxed and open environment. These include woodland foraging and fermenting with Living Wild, basket weaving and bushcraft with EcoWild, skincare products from natural botanicals with Rebecca Botanicals, tea ceremonies with Omcha with Meg, and leadership training that brings the nurturing power of nature into organisations, run by the Natural Academy.
A newer addition is a Mindfulness Retreat for Stress & Anxiety, led by Nicola MacDonald of My Resilient Mind, which teaches coping strategies for a busy mind, builds resilience and self-esteem, and explores how to find balance with social media. It is bookable via Eventbrite.
Community, inclusion and free wellbeing
Because members of the Ross family and their wider circle have personal experience of special needs and disabilities, the vineyard places genuine community, inclusion and connection with nature at the heart of what it does. The site hosts children and adults from a wide range of backgrounds and works with several charities, local groups and the local special-needs school.
Together with EcoWild CIC, the vineyard offers free annual wellbeing courses - generally held between January and March in the woodland - for carers, those with long-term conditions, people living with mental health issues and those who are grieving. Booking and information are handled by EcoWild, and the vineyard is not involved in the sign-up process. Filippa also represents the vineyard on the Wine GB Diversity & Inclusion working group, championing accessibility across the UK wine trade.
The winemaker and the team
The vineyard team is small and complementary. Adam, the winemaker and vineyard partner, brings experience gathered from vineyards and wineries as far apart as Chile and Portugal. He is passionate about low-intervention natural winemaking and leads many of the volunteer sessions. He has recently opened a microwinery and natural wine bar called Saddle Goose at The Station in Frome, where he makes and sells his own natural wines and ciders - and where, fittingly, the Combe Hay grapes are also hand-processed just twenty-five minutes down the road from the vineyard itself.
The wider Vineyard Friends community contributes countless hours of hands-on work to keep the vines and the wider ecology of the site healthy, learning as they go and following the season through from pruning to harvest.
Plan a visit
The vineyard is active on Instagram and Facebook, and the family can be contacted at contact@combehayvineyard.co.uk.
Whether you come for a glass of the current vintage at one of the local partner restaurants, stay for a few nights in the vineyard cabin, join a course, or simply roll up your sleeves and volunteer for the day, Combe Hay is the kind of small English wine estate that rewards slowing down. The wines, the views and the people all ask the same question: what does this particular piece of countryside taste like?