Biz Extra
Augusta and Robert Raimes
Published: June 26, 2023 | Updated: 27th October 2023
Sip, sip, hooray! New wine tasting barn offers a grape experience in Hinton Ampner
Sparkling wine producer Raimes Vineyard has opened a new tasting barn on Broad Lane in Hinton Ampner.
Between 11am to 4pm on a Thursday and 11am to 5pm on a Saturday, visitors are invited to drop in and enjoy a glass (or a bottle) of the vineyard’s award winning wines.
Looking out on the vineyard, the barn includes tables both inside and out, with guests also able to walk through the vines or book a tour.
Raimes is also offering a tasting flight featuring three of their wines so visitors can find their favourites.
“It has been a big and exciting step for us, and we are delighted with the new Tasting Barn in its new home among the vines,” explained Augusta Raimes, the business’ owner.
“The investment in the new barn has started a new chapter for our vineyard. One that firmly embeds our commitment and vision for the future development of the English Wine Industry.”
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Putting down roots: primary school kids help to plant tree on £97m Eastleigh development
Year two children from Stoneham Park Primary Academy helped to plant a new tree at Bargate Homes’ Heritage Place development on the outskirts of Eastleigh.
It was part of a wider planting of native shrubs and trees at the £97 million development, which is the final phase of the wider 1,000 home North Stoneham Park scheme.
The children’s school is a newly built part of this wider development, opening its doors to students in September 2020 and growing each year with every new cohort of children.
The school is expected to reach a full quota of around 270 children by September 2026.
Christian, age 7, with Andy Kirkpatrick, Construction Director at Bargate Homes
“It was such a great experience to come to Heritage Place to get involved with the planting of a new tree and see forklift truck and digger demonstrations!” said Nicola Wells, the school’s headteacher.
“With the development so close to our school, the children are naturally very curious about it, so this was their opportunity to find out more and ask lots of questions.
“We are very grateful to the Bargate Homes team for making the visit so fun, informative, and memorable, while also educating the children about the dangers present on construction sites.”
Andy Kirkpatrick, Construction Director for Bargate Homes, said: “We were very pleased with the way the children from Stoneham Park Primary Academy got stuck in with the tree planting and construction activities.
“It was inspiring to see how excited these local six and seven-year-olds were to see a live development site in action. Hopefully we have enthused some of them to consider a career in construction and engineering!
“It’s wonderful that one of the children who came on the visit already lives at Heritage Place. We look forward to welcoming many more families to this exemplary development as the construction programme progresses and more of the 322 homes are completed.”
Bargate Homes has recently opened two show homes at Heritage Place, with interiors designed by The Garden Society, located nearby on the outskirts of Southampton.
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Sun care brand set to sail with Gosport youth sailing charity to protect skin at sea
Young sailors taking part in Gosport-based Ocean Youth Trust South’s (OYT South) 2023 voyages will be protected from burnt skin thanks to a new partnership with Saltee, a UK-based sun care brand.
In what is hoped will be the first step on a long journey together, Saltee’s charitable trust, The Saltee Foundation, will be providing its Saltee Active Sun Lotion SPF 30 and SPF 50 for the crew on board OYT South‘s voyages this year.
“Our work is all about taking young people out to sea in the sun and the wind, and we have therefore always been conscious of the need to encourage the young people, as well as our staff and volunteers, to wear sunscreen,” explained Mark Todd, Chief Executive of OYT South.
“Some of our work is with individuals from disadvantaged or vulnerable backgrounds who may have had limited opportunities for outdoor activities, so we aim to raise awareness of the need to protect themselves.”
And the partnership is about more than just protecting skin, working on a sustainability level, too.
“Saltee also brings significant environmental benefits which are so important to the young people on board and also to our charitable work.
“The fact that Saltee products are ocean-friendly, with responsibly sourced ingredients, and working towards zero-waste packaging, makes this partnership a perfect fit for us.”
OYT South runs residential sailing voyages for around 450 young people aged 11-25 each year – normally with up to 15 young people at a time sailing with seven staff and volunteers.
The great majority of its voyages, especially in term-time, are for young people who are disadvantaged or vulnerable in some way.
“For the great majority of our young crew members, being outside for much of the day is a novel experience in itself – let alone taking responsibility for sailing a 105-foot vessel,” said Caroline White Chief Operating Officer OYT South.
“With young people exposed to sun and sea for long periods, we have been very conscious of sunscreen use for years: we keep a box of sunscreen products by the door and watchleaders will regularly remind people to use it as they go in and out.”
The partnership with Saltee alleviates the cost of buying products for 450 young people annually, a substantial bonus for OYT South. And, as well as the high value donation, the Saltee Foundation will be providing a sun care education programme.
“We were so excited to be approached by OYT South to support their youth sailing initiatives,” says Patrick McGuirk, Co-Founder, Saltee.
“Saltee has a greater purpose around supporting those less advantaged and our Saltee Foundation recognises that travel, including sailing, is a great means of broadening opportunity and mindsets.
“The chance to support through product and education with the team on the Prolific was one we couldn’t overlook.”
Saltee is a young brand which pursued a sustainable formulation from its outset. None of its products contain Oxybenzone, nano-particles or zinc oxide. The company prides itself on identifying and avoiding ingredients that might be considered harmful to ocean life.
Prolific already has an environmental toolkit on board, and Saltee will be adding to that with the provision of laminated posters showing the crew how much lotion they need, and how often they need it.
The toolkits used during voyage downtime provide activities, games and experiments on an environmental theme. The idea of developing a partnership involving high-quality sunscreen which is ocean-friendly, zero waste and sustainable feels like a perfect fit, says Mark Todd.
