Want to learn more about your favourite Devon food and drink, meet the producers, taste their creations, make your own and learn some new skills?
Whatever your favourite tipple or pastime, there’s a masterclass or guided tasting to suit everyone. Dip into chocolate making. Explore the spirit world. Get hands-on in the kitchen with some serious cookery skills. Dust down the barbecue and learn how to cook on fire or spend a family day planting seeds and exploring nature.
Food Drink Devon, a membership of over 350 food and drink producers, hospitality and retailer members, suggests some of the highlights from the county to enjoy this summer.
For wine lovers
Most, if not all, vineyards are delighted to show you around their little patch of heaven and take you on a guided tasting through their vines and wines.
Huxbear Vineyard in Chudleigh offers a walking tour where owner, Lucy, will talk you through the story of Huxbear, their vineyard calendar and winemaking processes. You’ll learn lots in around 90 minutes, followed by a free tasting. Non-walking tours are also available on request and are suitable for people with limited mobility.
Torview Vineyard, near Beaworthy, goes a step further and lets you get hands-on at their winemaking days. They run a Red and a Sparking version and your experience is spread over a few days, several months apart depending on the wine. This year’s Red Winemaking experience is almost sold out, but there’s space on the upcoming sparkling.
Heron Farm Vineyard, near Honiton, runs vineyard tours which also take in their orchards, to learn about apple juice making, and their kitchen garden and gin orchard, topped off with a tasting back at the Heron Farm Kitchen and Café.
Sandridge Barton Wines, home of award-winning Sharpham Wine and located near Stoke Gabriel, offers several different types of tasting experience, from casual self-guided options to in-depth guided tastings and tours for those wishing to learn more about the processes they use in their sustainable vineyard and winery.
Lyme Bay Winery, near Axminster, offers private guided tasting sessions in their Cellar Door, where they’ll talk you through each wine, where the grapes are grown, how it’s made and give you a few tips to buying wine. You’ll leave with the winemaker’s notes on each of the wines sampled.
More beautiful vineyards with tours and tasting sessions to visit and experience
- Venn Valley Vineyard, near Barnstaple
- Alder Vineyard, near Okehampton
- Old Walls Vineyard, near Bishopsteignton
Want to delve deeper into wine? South West Wine School brings together the best wine educators in the south west to run Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) training courses at Darts Farm, near Topsham. Whether learning about different grapes for the first time or analysing a wine in a blind tasting, South West Wine School will take you on that voyage of discovery.
Beer and cider tours and tastings
Explore the world of brewing and fermenting…
Sandford Orchards, near Crediton, is the go-to destination for cider lovers. Look behind the scenes at the Cider Works, the oldest working cider mill in the country, and see how award-winning Sandford Orchards cider is made. Round off the experience with a Q&A, and a cider tasting flight and pizza included in the price.
Have you got a burning beer-related question? Take yourself and your fellow-beer lovers down to Salcombe Brewery. Their tours include a welcome drink in the Taproom, a tour of the Brewhouse with one of the brewers, who will be very happy to answer questions, and you’ll finish with a beer flight tasting back in the Taproom.
Other beer and cider tours and tastings to consider include…
- Hanlons Brewery, Newton St Cyres
- Hunts Cider, Stoke Gabriel
- Red Rock Brewery, Bishopsteignton
Gin adventures
Go behind the scenes and make your own signature serve…
Quayside Distillery, Exeter Quay
Join the gin experts in the lab for a 90-minute experience learning about the fundamentals of a well-balanced gin whilst creating your own unique gin recipe. Or opt for a 60-minute experience with a master distiller where you’ll taste your way through their flagship range.
Salcombe Gin School, Salcombe
Take charge of a beautiful mini copper pot still to develop and distil your own 70cl signature bottle. Learn about how they produce Salcombe Gin and what it takes to produce a balanced and harmonious gin whilst enjoying a ‘Salcombe and Tonic’.
Gotland Gin, Beaworthy
This novel experience begins in their outside bar with a G&T or soft drink before heading into the nano-distillery to see how Gotland Gin is produced. Next meet their flock of Gotland sheep and lambs during lambing season, then relax back in the bar and learn all about the botanicals while enjoying a few more tasters.
A few more to explore…
- Devon Distillery Gin School, Dartington
- Sidmouth Gin School, Sidmouth
Rum experiences
Learn about the art of blending and rum distilling…
Devon Rum Co, Salcombe
Join the team at their waterside venue in Salcombe for a rum tasting experience, complete with a welcome drink, behind-the-scenes tour of their Blending House, try your hand at bottling rum, then an in-depth tasting of their four award-winning artisan rums. Ideal for rum fans and groups of friends.
Two Drifters Distillery, near Exeter
Want to see a rum distillery in action? Two Drifters were the first distillery to make rum from scratch in the UK. They’ll fix you a drink then you’ll tour the carbon-negative distillery. Smell the molasses and learn how they turn this high-quality material into rum. Back to the Rum Bar for a tasting flight.
Salcombe Rum School, Salcombe
A visit here gives you the opportunity to make your own rum and take it home with you. Learn about distillation and rum production, collect your botanicals, and create your own recipe and bottle label. Maybe leave the car at home as at least three rum cocktails feature in this experience.
Other recommended tours and tastings…
- Devon Distillery, Dartington
- Hattiers Rum, Mothecombe
Cocktail time
Time to mix, muddle and shake your way to a great time…
Devon Rum Co Cocktail Masterclass, Salcombe
Head to Salcombe to mix, muddle, and shake your way through a hands-on cocktail making session. You’ll take charge of your own fully stocked cocktail station, have an introduction to mixology, then make (and drink) up to four unique rum-based cocktails. Might be best to leave the car at home.
Devon Cove Cocktail Masterclasses, Kingsbridge
Perfect for a fun night out with friends or to celebrate a special occasion. Hosted by an expert mixologist, you’ll learn how to make a range of delicious cocktails in the Kingsbridge Tasting Room. Try their award-winning spirits, learn the history of cocktails and play a few games.
Bar Buoy ‘Cocktail Compass’, Exmouth
A one-off tour, talk and tasting event at the home of Bar Buoy handcrafted, ready mixed cocktails in Exmouth. Thursday, September 21, 7-9pm.
Coffee
Take your barista skills to the next level…
Owens Coffee Latte Art Essentials Workshop, Ivybridge
A two-hour course to awaken your inner barista and take your love of coffee to the next level. This isn’t your ordinary coffee class – it’s an experience that’s all about having fun, unleashing your creativity, and elevating your coffee game. Several other coffee tasting, brewing and barista courses are on offer at Owens too.
Sweet treats
Chocolate heaven for big and little ones…
Ilfracombe Chocolate Emporium Introduction to Chocolate Making, Ilfracombe
This lovely workshop session includes a talk on chocolate, learn the process of turning a bean into the chocolate you recognise whilst the chocolatier demonstrates how to hand-craft, hand-dip and decorate chocolates. They also run a ‘Short and Sweet Tutorial’ ideal for children and parents.
Salcombe Dairy Chocolate Factory, Salcombe
Experience the sights, sounds and aromas of bean-to-bar chocolate being made and packaged onsite thanks to full height glass dividing walls between the factory and the shop.
Flapjackery Barbican Trail, Plymouth
Pop into Flapjackery on Southside Street to pick up a free children’s trail which takes you around the sights and sounds of Plymouth’s historic Barbican. Chocolate treats for children who complete the Barbican Trail.
Learn cookery, fire and baking skills
From the correct way chop an onion, to cooking over coals, to the perfect sourdough…
High Grange, Axminister
Learn lots to apply in your own garden at this bespoke barbecue school which covers the full gambit of outdoor cookery. At this fire school you’ll cover a variety of outdoor fire cooking and barbecue techniques and butchery with chef and food writer, Luke MacKay. Enjoy what you’ve just cooked, around the big oak table for lunch. Other masterclasses available too.
Ashburton Cookery School, Ashburton
Ashburton Cookery School is one of the UK’s top cookery schools offering inspirational cookery courses taught by a team of expert chefs. With over 40 cookery courses to choose from, designed to suit beginners as well as advanced home cooks, they’ll teach you to cook with imagination, passion and enjoyment… and how to chop an onion properly.
One Mile Bakery, Exeter
Boudicca Woodland runs One Mile Bakery in Exeter, making and delivering delicious homemade bread, soups and preserves by bike within one mile of home mile, but she also teaches sourdough and other breadmaking classes in her Breadshed microbakery. Her classes fill up so get in quick.
For more information on any of these experiences visit the individual member’s website or for information on Food Drink Devon, visit fooddrinkdevon.co.uk and follow @FoodDrinkDevon on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
