insideKENT Magazine Issue 88 - July 2019 | Seite 164

NEWS
KENT AWARDED ‘BEST UK DESTINATION FOR GROUPS’ AT
2019 GROUP TRAVEL AWARDS
Visit Kent were thrilled to be pr esented with the
award for Kent for Best UK Destination for Groups
at the 2019 Gr oup T ravel A wards a t a g ala
presentation in June.
The BAFTA award-winning television presenter,
Michaela Strachan, hosted the a wards, alongside
Landor Travel Publications’ Partnership and Product
Director, Sarah Jeffery and together they welcomed
the winners from the 26 nominated award categories
and five special editor’s awards.
The a wards w ere v oted f or by r eaders of GTO
Magazine and the Group Travel Grapevine (an industry
newsletter) and celebrated a wide range of businesses
and destinations across the tourism industr y. The
Best UK Destination for Groups category included
the following nominated destinations: Bournemouth,
Canterbury, Isle of Wight, Liverpool, London and
Manchester – with Bristol winning the runner up
position, and Kent claiming the award.
Alanna Kite, Visit Kent’s Destina tion Manager
(Partnerships & Travel Trade), commented: “We are
absolutely thrilled that the readers of GTO Magazine
have v oted f or our w onderful county and the
experiences it can offer. This award is testament to
the amazing a ttractions, accommoda tion and
destinations that welcome thousands of groups of
all ages and sizes throughout the year, and we would
like to take this opportunity to thank them all f or
their continued support. We look forward to inspiring
many more domestic and inter national groups to
visit the Garden of England in the future and having
the chance to showcase our top-quality tourism offer
throughout the county – all just a stone’s throw from
London and the Continent.”
SQUERRYES TRIUMPHS IN
WORLD’S LARGEST WINE COMPETITION
Squerryes has triumphed at the 2019 international
Decanter Awards by scooping one of the highest
possible accolades to be given to a wine.
The Westerham-based wine esta te r eceived the
much-prized Platinum medal for its 2014 Vintage
Reserve in the highly acclaimed global competition,
which champions the “very best” wines the w orld
has to offer.
The incr edible ac hievement comes after 28 0
international experts, including some of the world’s
top sommeliers, came together at the Decanter World
Wine Awards (DWWA) to blind-test 16,500 wines
from 57 countries.
The champion bottle, the youngest sparkling wine
to be produced at the 2,500-acre estate on the Kent
Surrey border, received a near perfect scor e of 97
out of 100, making it one of just 0.9 per cent of all
entrants to qualify for the Platinum award.
164
Henry Warde, 8th generation at the Squerryes Estate,
who planted the vine yard in 2006 with an ethos
of creating a “joyous experience”, said: “We are in
the business of creating joy, our family motto ‘Licet
Esse Beatis’ – meaning ‘it is permitted to be joyful’
– has been inscribed o ver our fr ont door f or
generations and we like to believe we’ve now bottled
it in our wines.
“Achieving a platinum at the Decanter Awards shows
that the top experts in this incredibly tough industry
share our belief tha t the wines w e pr oduce ar e
delivering something very special.”
Those who want to shar e in Squerryes’ pride can
sample the award winner for themselves by booking
into the stunning seaf ood restaurant or al fr esco
terrace at the W inery, which boasts br eathtaking
views of the estate.
www.squerryes.co.uk