Vineyard Licensing

Wine growing is still a growing sector in England and Wales with another year-on-year increase in the amount of land now planted with vines, and it’s still a popular area for landowners to diversify into. If you are planning on going a step further and opening a vineyard to sell wine directly to the public, what are the key licence considerations you need to think of? 

Before you do anything, you will firstly need to contact your local authority Trading Standards office to find out if you need a retail licence to trade in wine in the UK. There are also very strict rules governing how wine is made and labelled which can be found at www.gov.uk/guidance/wine-trade-regulations 

Next you will need to consider the Licensing Laws and how they impact on your plans. 

If you are setting up a new business, buying an existing business, organising an event or considering a career in the licensed trade, you may need to apply for a licence and UK licensing laws, (the Licensing Act 2003) covers licensable activities including: the sale of alcohol, providing regulated entertainment and selling hot food at night. 

Licensing Objectives include preventing crime, promoting public safety, protecting children from harm and preventing public nuisance. 

There are also different types of licences to apply for and depending on the type of activity, one or more of these examples may be required: 

• Premises licences 

• Personal licences 

• Temporary event notices 

Licences are obtained from the Local Authority. There are different considerations depending on the type of licence and you should consider consulting a solicitor to advise or assist. Failure to obtain the relevant licence(s) could have a significant impact on the business, individual, organisation or client including criminal prosecution. If a licence is refused, your solicitor can advise on appealing the decision. 

It is also important to consider any changes which may need to be made to an existing licence. 

Given the Licensing Laws and the importance of making sure you have the correct licence(s), you should consider taking legal advice in good time of opening any new venture or implementing any changes.