Car-free trips toNorfolk vineyards and breweriesNorfolk
With a dozen fruitful vineyards and more than thirty real ale breweries, Norfolk is a paradise for those of us who appreciate a finely-crafted drink. Many of the vineyards and breweries run tours and tastings, serve food and have created a great atmosphere for sampling their products. Why not get there without a car, turning the visit into an adventure with no need to worry about driving? These rural routes to vineyards and breweries make for a great day out.
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1. Flint Vineyard
Deep in the gently-rolling fields of the Waveney valley near the border with Suffolk, the beautiful Flint vineyard amply rewards an expedition. The couple of miles’ walk from the characterful town of Bungay, with its carved churches and towered castle, can be an excellent way to work up an appetite for the vineyard’s 15 Mile Lunch.
- These sharing boards of local produce from within a 15 mile radius can include creamy Baron Bigod brie from the nearby Fen Farm Dairy, salami from the Marsh Pig at Claxton and medlar jelly from the Eastgate Larder. It’s all served up with artisanal bread and a glass or sparkling pink Charmat Rosé on elegantly-laid garden tables with views across rows of vines and the wide green of the valley.
- Take a self-guided walk around the vineyards with their different aspects and varieties. Drop in to the shop and tasting room, Monday to Saturday, or book ahead for lunch and a friendly tour of the vineyard’s processes. You can find out about everything from pruning and harvesting to winemaking and bottling, followed by a seriously enjoyable guided tasting.
- Sounds great! How do I get to Flint vineyard without a car? The nearest public transport is bus 581 from Beccles to Diss, which stops a mile away at the Queen’s Head pub in Earsham.
- A longer, but hugely rewarding route is to get bus 41 or bus X41 from St Stephens Street (stop BR) in Norwich to the colourful town of Bungay in Suffolk and continue on foot. The scenic bus journey takes about 40 minutes. Get off at Holy Trinity church, walk past St Mary’s and Bungay castle. Then follow this map for an hour or so’s rural stroll to the vineyard, passing the Queen’s Head pub.
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2. Chet Valley Vineyard
There’s another rural adventure among the vines at the Chet Valley vineyard near Loddon. You can take a tour to learn about the complicated multi-stage business of making Champagne-style sparkling wine, have a tasting overlooking the vines and even stay in the Vine House holiday cottage. Between the vines, the grass is allowed to grow long for most of the summer, providing habitat for small mammals, insects and ground-nesting birds.
How do I get to Chet Valley vineyard without a car? From Norwich, catch bus X2, X21 or X22 from Norwich bus station (stop E) towards Beccles and Lowstoft. Get off, after about 15 minutes at the George and Dragon pub in Thurton and follow this map.
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3. Redwell
Buses X2, X21 and X22 also stop very near the Redwell Brewing company’s cheerful taproom, where you can drink gluten free, vegan craft beers on Fridays and weekends. Sit inside the brewery itself or outside in the big beer garden on sunny days. If you can’t decide which of the beers to try, you can choose three third-of-a-pint samples. There’s fresh pizza too, cooked on the premises, and street food on Sundays.
- How do I get to Redwell brewery car-free? Get off bus X2/X21/X22 at County Hall and walk a very short way along Martineau Lane back towards the roundabout. Turn right down down Bracondale and over the bridge to find the taproom underneath it. There is a Beryl bike bay at County Hall too so you could cycle from the railway station or centre of the city very easily. Bus 40/41/X41 gets even closer to the taproom, stopping in Trowse near the May Gurney depot, just a few steps from the door.
- A short walk from Redwell brewery, Whitlingham Country Park is great for a waterside ramble before ending up at the taproom for a pint or two.
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4. Humpty Dumpty brewery
Another brewery you can reach from Norwich by public transport is the Humpty Dumpty, which recently celebrated its twenty-fifth birthday. It is named after the top-heavy steam engines that chuffed between Norwich and Lowestoft a century ago and several of the real ales have rail-related names like the heady Firebox IPA. The brewery shop is piled with jars of local honey and bottles of fruity gin. Combine a trip there with a beautiful day out in the Norfolk Broads.
- How do I get to Humpty Dumpty brewery without a car? It’s about twenty minutes’ stroll down the lane from Reedham station. Greater Anglia’s trains to Reedham arrive regularly from Norwich and Lowestoft on a lovely railway through the watery landscape of the Broads, passing grazing marshes and reed beds. The journey from Norwich to Reedham takes about 25 minutes.
- The most direct walking route from the station can be a little busy with cars so for a slightly longer, but very beautiful walk to the brewery, showcasing some of Reedham’s finest features, follow this map. There’s great countryside for walking nearby and Reedham has three excellent pubs.
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5. Drink your way around Norwich
At the heart of all this rich countryside, the city of Norwich is packed with things to see and places to relax afterwards, boasting a pub-crawl-ready range of breweries and bars.
- It used to be said that Norwich had a pub for each day of the year. These days it’s more like one for every three days, but still plenty to be getting on with. To combine your tippling with a theatrical outing, head to the Playhouse Bar. With four real ales and a shady riverside garden, it’s a great place for a pint whether you’re seeing a play or not.
- How do I get to the Playhouse Bar without a car? The Playhouse is a five-minute stroll from the centre of the city: down St Andrews Hill and over St George’s bridge, an excuse to explore all those tempting cobbled alleys along the way. If you’re coming from the railway station, turn right out of the doors to bus stop DE on Thorpe Road and almost any bus will take you to Castle Meadow in the centre.
- Another of the city’s lively real-ale pubs is the Rose Inn on Queen’s Road near the football club. The Rose serves craft beers, fresh pizzas and has its own deli counter with local cheeses including the legendary Baron Bigod and the unpasteurised Norfolk Dapple, a nutty smoked cheese from Ferndale Farm. Choose your cheese and pay and extra £1 and the friendly staff at the Rose will magic it into a cheeseboard with olives, crackers and chutney – a fantastic bargain!
- To get to the Rose Inn car-free, from Norwich railway station, you can take a scenic riverside walk with the water on your right and cross the second footbridge. Turn left along Kings Street, right up the steps and right again on Bracondale.
- Norwich also has a Norfolk Wine School, a beer-tastic Oktoberfest in Eaton Park with live bands, German food and two-pints steins or real ale and there’s a recently-launched June festival at the end of Norwich Wine Week in Chapelfield Gardens (bus 24 and others from Prince of Wales Road near the station to Rampant House Street).
- The city-wide Norfolk Wine Week is a celebration of the region’s thriving wine-making heritage, going strong since Roman times. It blends tastings, music, food, talks and DJ sets. You could drink Bacchus Fumé and Pinot Precoce from the Flint vineyard at Yalm, the city’s new food hall. Yalm has six kitchens and three bars and is named after a Norfolk word that means to have a hearty meal. Cheers!
Discover more car-free adventures and discounts at attractions around Norfolk – the UK’s first Good Journey County.
