
English wine producer Chapel Down has announced plans to raise up to £6 million to expand sparkling wine production at its winery in Tenterden, Kent, as demand for premium wine continues to grow.
The investment will fund a £4.5 million upgrade to the winery’s grape-pressing facilities, allowing the producer to make an additional 300,000 bottles of traditional-method sparkling wine each year. This is the same production technique used in Champagne, involving a second fermentation in the bottle.
The new equipment is expected to be operational for the 2027 harvest, with the first additional sparkling wines reaching consumers from 2030. The expansion could also improve wine quality by reducing the time needed to press harvested grapes from 30 to 21 days, helping preserve fruit freshness and potentially allowing more grapes to be used for premium vintage wines.
Chapel Down is targeting annual sales of 2.5 million bottles of traditional-method sparkling wine by 2033, two years ahead of its previous ambition. Despite some spring frost damage, the producer has also reported a high-quality 2026 harvest, expected to yield approximately 2.5 million bottles of wine.
The investment signals a commitment to greater production and quality, potentially bringing more home-grown sparkling wine to shelves and wine lists in the coming years.











