Luckily on my walk about on September 14, 2025 at the Rye Harvest Wine and Food Fair, the rain held off in the afternoon. The ground was a bit suspect because of rain the day before but seeing all the possible tents to hide in, offering eclectic presentations, and of course all the wine and food stands, was encouraging and inviting.
The nearest tent offered poetry by four of the Rye Harbour Writers, a group of poets, living or working near Rye, East Sussex. Their book The Station Poems (financed from Southern Funding) is a collection of poems written by them and displayed over the years in the Rye Station ticket hall. The ones the poets presented were on the whole about food, how much one can forage and written with a sense of humour.
Time to try some bubbly which happened to be offered not far from the tent by Gusbourne, Kenardington Road, Kent not far from Appledore. They are a 250 acre estate of vineyards and woodlands. One can pop in for a self-guided tour or celebrate a special occasion for a tasting tour. Trying two different English sparkling wines, each had its own own beautiful flavour, and I was allowed to take the glass with their emblem (Gusbourne.com) The next stop was fruit compote with crumble (yum yum).
The last presentation on this trip was the food tent. Dena Smith Ellis was ready to show an expectant audience how to make kombucha. She had several glass jars and explained the process of 1st, 2nd and 3rd fermentation with different ingredients, such as two types of teas, honey and elderflower and others. We were able to taste some and it was actually quite nice but however simply Dena tried to explain the process, this writer decided to buy a readymade bottle from her.
Well done to the team who organised the two days and all the people who came to give people an experience of their food and wines.
Image Credits: Heidi Foster , Elise Garner .