Vineyard near Streat granted alcohol licence

A fledgling vineyard business has been granted a licence to sell alcohol from a bar and on site shop.

On Thursday (August 20), Lewes District Council issued the terms of a licence for the sale of alcohol at the Artelium Wine Estate – a newly established vineyard near Streat.

The decision follows a hearing last Friday (August 14), where a panel of councillors heard from business owners Julie Bretland and Mark Collins about their plans to sell alcohol online, from an on-site shop and bar (called the Cellar Door) and pre-booked events.

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Speaking at the hearing, Mrs Bretland said: “We’ve applied for an alcohol licence, which we need in order to retail our products on the internet, sell to the trade and we would like to invite people to meet us directly and enjoy the wines, see the vineyard and experience our beautiful part of Sussex for themselves.

“I would like to make clear that this isn’t a hobby for us. It is important for us that the enterprise is sustainable, that we have a competitive offer and that we need to make a positive contribution to our industry but also those around us.

“The Cellar Door and the ability to hold vineyard tours and other wine-related events, such as dinners and corporate events, both during the day and in the evening, are really important in making this a sustainable enterprise.”

The proposals, however, had seen concerns raised by Nicholas Perkins, a neighbour, who argued the premises would be likely to cause a public nuisance.

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Speaking at the hearing, Mr Perkins said: “As I hope has been made clear in my representation, I am not objecting to this application absolutely.

“There is a vineyard there, it is part of the diversification of the countryside, which has been going on in Sussex for some years. There can be no objection to a small facility associated to promote the vineyard akin to a farm shop.

“We’ve heard what Mrs Bretland and her co-applicant have said and there can be absolutely no doubt about their sincerity, but the problem they have, as I see it, is that they have taken very little in the way of steps to promote the licensing objectives.”

To address his concerns, Mr Perkins had argued for greater restrictions on the licenseable hours, as well as the number of people who could attend any events and the amount of alcohol which can be bought by each customer.

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He also argues that any alcohol sales (other than online sales) should be limited to those who have pre-booked tasting sessions.

Mr Perkins also pointed out that the estate does not currently have planning permission for a shop and bar on the site and argued that granting permission for one would be against council policy.

This was not considered to be a relevant argument by councillors as planning sits separately to licensing.

Overall, however, councillors did take account of Mr Perkins’ concerns and added additional conditions to those offered by the business.

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In the decision notice, a council spokesman said: “Whilst the members’ decision is to grant the premises licence, the subcommittee acknowledged and took into account the relevant concerns expressed by the representor, Mr Perkins.

“Therefore the subcommittee decided it would be appropriate and proportionate to modify the proposed conditions offered by the applicants.”

These included: a limit of no more than 25 people at each outdoor event; and a limit of not more than 10 pre-booked events per month.

The subcommittee also confirmed the licence would only allow for bar sales on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, except at pre-booked events.

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