Oatley Vineyard: The Next Generation(s)

About Us

Ned was lucky enough to grow up at Oatley Vineyard with his sister Liz and brother Fred after their parents Iain and Jane upped sticks from London and made the incredible (if not slightly bonkers) move to Somerset to plant their first vines some 35 years ago. Paula, who grew up in a small village in the Forest of Dean met Ned at Cardiff University where we became inseparable as soon as Ned uttered those magic words “my parents own a vineyard”. Who could say no?

After university we moved to Hampshire where we both had long and successful careers. Ned in a corporate role at BAT and Paula specialising in contaminated land and the protection of water for the Environment Agency. We spent our free time travelling the world, visiting amazing places and diving the worlds waters. We’ve been fly fishing with bears in Alaska, climbed the heights of Kilimanjaro, stood with the heads on Easter Island, walked on glaciers and scuba dived with whale sharks and manta rays. And let’s not forget the wine we got to try along the way.

Then in January 2019 life changed dramatically when the Awty twins, Edith and Albert bounced into our lives. We were asked, of all the amazing places you’ve been to where did we want the twins to grow up. It was a no brainer. Oatley Vineyard. And so things were set in motion and we haven’t looked back.

We made the decision to give up our jobs and join our family at the vineyard. And this is where the next great adventure begins. Muddy puddles, glorious grapes and of course vineyard dogs.

You can follow our adventure through this blog and social media; for the full backstory of Oatley Vineyard you can visit the website here: Oatley Story