A Sustainable Wine Festival: Norwich Wine Week

The debut Norwich Wine Week took place between the 3 and 10 June 2023. The week brought together local wine merchants, experts and producers, all raising a glass to celebrate the area’s flourishing wine scene.

Throughout the week there were showcase events popping up at venues across the city, unique offers and bespoke menu pairings. The week culminated in a two-day festival in Chapelfield Gardens. The festival showcased some of the best wine the region has to offer, presented by local vineyards and merchants, with the tastings tent offering unique wine tasting experiences across a host of topics from climate change to posh vs plonk.

Developed and delivered by Norwich BID, it was vitally important that the festival reflected our environmental promise and set a high standard for future iterations of the event. We’re extremely proud of the results!

The Headlines

  • Over 1300 reusable Norwich Wine Week glasses used, reducing the need for over 6900 single-use cups
  • 100% Renewable energy
  • Net-zero waste to landfill
  • Recycling rate of 68%

To achieve these fantastic results, we worked with some wonderful partners

  • Our partnership with Anglian Waste helped reduce waste miles, transferring waste to their headquarters in Attleborough just twenty-one miles from Norwich. Anglian processed 528kg of glass, and 531kg of mixed recycling, leaving just 640kg to go to refuse-derived fuel and therefore zero-waste going to landfill.
  • Sustainable transport methods were promoted through Great Anglia and Konect Bus.
  • The festival was powered by 100% renewable energy provided by Norwich City Council.
  • The Festival guide was printed by Barnwell Print, using carbon balanced printing, offset through the World Land Trust, based in Suffolk.
  • CH Wine Merchants ran a sold out talk in the tasting tent titled ‘Climate Change and Wine’ which covered the importance of climates in the production of wine and the risks that climate change presents to the wine industry.