Quoit-at-Cross Vineyard: A Family-Run Devon Vineyard Pouring Award-Winning English Sparkling and Still Wines
Quoit-at-Cross Vineyard: A Young Devon Vineyard with Century-Old Roots
Nestled among the rolling upland hills of mid-Devon, Quoit-at-Cross Vineyard is a quietly ambitious English wine project that has, in only a handful of years, transformed a small corner of the Hill family farm into one of the most talked-about boutique vineyards in the West Country. Set in the picturesque village of Stoodleigh, just outside the market town of Tiverton, the vineyard combines a back-to-the-land family ethos with winemaking influenced by time spent in one of the world's premium fine-wine regions.
Established in 2019, the vineyard is home to 4,500 vines spread across roughly 3 - 5 acres of south-east-facing farmland. From its first plantings to a gold-medal-winning sparkling release, Quoit-at-Cross has built a reputation for craft, quality and an unmistakably Devon sense of place. Today it welcomes visitors for tours, tastings and a programme of creative events, and bottles wine that has been recognised at the prestigious Food and Drink Devon awards.
Location and Setting
Quoit-at-Cross sits at the heart of the Devon countryside, in the village of Stoodleigh (postcode EX16 9PJ). What3Words users can find the gate at ///leans.spouse.classics. The site benefits from a south-east orientation and an elevated position, which together create a unique microclimate well-suited to cool-climate viticulture.
From the vines, the views stretch across the Devon landscape, taking in the meandering Exe Valley all the way to the Sidmouth Gap on the distant horizon. The bustling market town of Tiverton is visible from the vineyard, and the site is readily accessible at just 20 minutes from the M5 motorway, making it an easy destination for a day trip from across the region.
The Hill Family and a Hundred Years of Farming
Quoit-at-Cross is, at its heart, a family story. The historic site has been farmed by the Hill family for almost a hundred years. The vineyard itself sits on a 90-acre farm that has traditionally been used for mixed livestock and arable production. Diversification into viticulture represents a careful, considered evolution of that long agricultural heritage, rather than a break from it.
Owner and Vineyard Manager Tim Hill leads the project. Tim learned his trade in the Margaret River region of south-west Australia, where he spent two years working across various vineyards and the wider wine industry. Margaret River is small in size compared with Australia's other wine regions and accounts for only around 3% of the country's exports, yet it is internationally renowned for producing close to two-thirds of Australia's premium fine wines. It was this immersion in quality-focused, small-scale winemaking that shaped Tim's vision for what he wanted to do back home.
Returning to the UK in 2018, Tim set about planning the creation of his own vineyard on the family farm, with the ambitious goal of establishing Stoodleigh's first commercial vineyard.
Planting and Growth: From 800 Vines to 4,500
In April 2019, on a hot spring day, Tim planted 800 vines in the first trial plot. The initial planting comprised Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Bacchus, Rondo, Pinot Gris and Seyval Blanc - a thoughtful mix of Champagne classics and proven cool-climate English varieties. For the next three years, these first vines served as a test area to assess the viability of the site for commercial wine production.
After a promising first few years of growth, the vineyard was extended in 2022 with a further 1,400 vines, and then by another 2,000 in 2025. The current total of 4,500 vines is now the working canvas from which Quoit-at-Cross produces its still and sparkling wines.
The Wines
Quoit-at-Cross produces a focused, considered range of wines drawn from its Devon-grown grapes. The winemaking draws heavily on the classic Champagne varieties of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier, alongside Bacchus, Rondo, Reichensteiner and Seyval Blanc - a portfolio chosen to make the most of the site's cool, sunny Devon growing conditions.
Classic Cuvée Sparkling
The flagship of the Quoit-at-Cross range is the Classic Cuvée Sparkling, made from Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier grapes in the traditional Champagne style. The first vintage was released in 2024 and immediately made its mark, taking Silver at the Food and Drink Devon awards. The following year, the 2022 Classic Cuvée took Gold at the 2025/26 Food and Drink Devon awards - a remarkable achievement for what was only the vineyard's second commercial release. Available to buy online at £24.95 per bottle, the Classic Cuvée has become the definitive expression of Quoit-at-Cross's house style.
Rosé 75cl
The Rosé 75cl is a still pink wine made from a blend of the vineyard's Champagne grapes, with Rondo adding colour, fruit and a distinctly English character. Priced at £14.95 per bottle, it offers a refreshing, food-friendly style that complements the sparkling in the range and showcases the versatility of the vineyard's plantings.
Still Bacchus / Chardonnay
Alongside the Classic Cuvée and Rosé, the vineyard also produces a still Bacchus and Chardonnay blend. The first vintage earned a Bronze medal at the Food and Drink Devon awards, cementing Quoit-at-Cross's reputation for quality across both sparkling and still categories.
Coming in 2026: Pink Sparkling and Col Fondo
Quoit-at-Cross has confirmed that 2026 will see the launch of two new additions: a Pink Sparkling and a Col Fondo. Col Fondo is an increasingly fashionable style of natural, bottle-fermented sparkling wine that retains its lees for a gently cloudy, textural finish - a fitting next step for a producer with such a clear focus on Champagne varieties.
Tours and Tastings
Public tours and tastings are at the heart of the Quoit-at-Cross visitor experience. The 90-minute tour and tasting is offered twice a week between April and September and is led by Tim himself.
The visit begins with a gentle walk around the vines, during which Tim discusses what it takes to run a vineyard in the UK and offers an overview of the current year's operations. From the vineyard, guests move to the guided tasting session, where three of the Quoit-at-Cross wines are poured and walked through in detail. After the tasting, there is an opportunity to buy any of the wines - or local produce - that the vineyard has on sale.
Tour Times
Public tours run on the following schedule between April and September:
- Fridays at 5:30pm
- Sundays at 11:30am
Price
Each tour is priced at £13.50 per person. Under-18s and well-behaved four-legged friends on a lead are admitted free of charge, making the experience family-friendly.
Booking
Tours must be booked in advance. Bookings are taken through the vineyard's online booking calendar, with dedicated slots for the Friday 5:30pm tour and the Sunday 11:30am tour. Each slot is 90 minutes long, made up of a 45-minute guided walk of the vineyard followed by a 45-minute tasting session. Drop-in tours are not offered at this stage.
Private Tours and Private Events
For visitors whose preferred dates are not on the published schedule, Quoit-at-Cross also offers private tours by prior arrangement. A minimum of six paying guests is required to run a private tour, and Tim is happy to tailor a private visit to meet a preferred date and time. The vineyard also welcomes enquiries about private events, including private tasting nights, birthdays, hen and stag parties, and can provide a guided tasting session either at the vineyard or at an external location, alongside catering if required.
2026 Public Tour Dates
Published 2026 dates for public tours are:
- April: Friday 17th + Sunday 19th
- May: Friday 8th + Sunday 10th; Friday 22nd + Sunday 24th
- June: Friday 5th + Sunday 7th; Friday 19th + Sunday 21st
- July: Friday 10th + Sunday 12th; Sunday 26th
- August: Friday 14th + Sunday 16th; Friday 28th + Sunday 30th
- September: Friday 4th + Sunday 6th; Friday 18th + Sunday 20th
- October: Friday 2nd + Sunday 4th
Practical Information for Visitors
To operate a public tour, the vineyard needs a minimum of six paying guests. If numbers are not met, the team will liaise with booked guests to rearrange, or give at least 24 hours' notice if a tour cannot run. Appropriate footwear is required for walking through farmland grass, and a moderate level of fitness is helpful because the vineyard sits on a slight hill. Visitors should wear suitable clothing for the weather conditions. In the event of adverse weather, the team will contact all participants as early as possible. The tasting area operates under a large marquee, and off-grid toilet facilities are available on site.
Events and Workshops
Quoit-at-Cross has hosted a range of creative events and workshops, working with craftspeople such as spoon carver and green woodworker Tom, who has been teaching greenwoodwork and spoon carving since 2014 and has helped many hundreds of people get started in wood craft. Tom helped establish the Green Wood Guild in London, ran regular workshops there in bowl carving, furniture making and whittling, and hosted their weekly spoon clubs. Since 2022, Tom has lived in Gloucestershire, continuing to run workshops in spoon carving and knife forging and bringing his passion for craft to new audiences.
Awards and Recognition
Quoit-at-Cross has built an impressive trophy cabinet in a very short time:
- Food and Drink Devon 2024/25 - Silver for the Classic Cuvée Sparkling
- Food and Drink Devon 2025/26 - Gold for the 2022 Classic Cuvée
- Food and Drink Devon - Bronze for the still Bacchus/Chardonnay
These awards reflect the consistent quality of wine coming off a site that, only a handful of years ago, was an open field on a Devon livestock farm.
Visiting, Contact and Booking
Quoit-at-Cross Vineyard is based at Stoodleigh, Tiverton, Devon EX16 9PJ. The vineyard is around 20 minutes from the M5 motorway, with Tiverton visible from the vines themselves. Bookings, enquiries and private-event discussions can be directed to:
- Email: quoitatcrossvineyard@gmail.com
- Phone: 07983 974 957 (Tim Hill, Owner / Vineyard Manager)
- What3Words: ///leans.spouse.classics
Tours can be booked through the vineyard's online booking calendar. Wines can be purchased directly through the Quoit-at-Cross online shop, with Sparkling Wines, Still Wines and Vineyard Experiences all available. The vineyard is also active on Facebook and Instagram, where new releases, events and seasonal views across the Exe Valley are regularly shared.
Why Quoit-at-Cross Matters in the English Wine Story
English and Welsh wine has grown from a curiosity into a serious international category over the past two decades, and Quoit-at-Cross is a small but vivid example of what makes the sector so compelling. It is family-scale, deeply rooted in its place, and unafraid to take classical inspiration - Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier sparkling in the traditional method - while remaining unmistakably Devon.
From 800 vines in 2019 to a gold-medal sparkling cuvée in 2026, the trajectory of Quoit-at-Cross is a reminder that the most interesting English wines are not always produced by the largest estates. With a new Pink Sparkling and a Col Fondo on the horizon, a programme of tours and tastings running through the warm months, and creative events set to return, Quoit-at-Cross stands as a quietly remarkable Devon vineyard.