Part Time Tour Guide

Balfour Hospitality; Maidstone; On-site; GBP 20,000 - 25,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading winery in England is seeking a Tour Guide to deliver 5-star wine tours and engage guests with wine tastings. Responsibilities include actively selling wines during tours and maintaining a professional work environment. Ideal candidates possess excellent customer service skills, attention to detail, and are willing to learn about winemaking. Flexibility to work weekends and holidays is essential for this role.

Qualifications

• Ability to work weekends and bank holidays is essential.
• Punctuality and time management are crucial.
• Willingness to learn about viticulture and winemaking.

Responsibilities

• Ensure a 5-star quality tour and wine experience for all guests.
• Actively sell wines throughout the tour.
• Maintain a clean and tidy work area.

Skills

Excellent customer service skills

Attention to detail

Excellent communication skills

Basic computer skills

Job description

Overview

Balfour Winery is one of England’s most respected and pioneering wine producers, nestled in the heart of the Hush Heath Estate in Kent. Founded in 2002, our family-run estate has built a reputation for producing world-class English still and sparkling wines with elegance, personality, and a true sense of place.

A Passion for Innovation and Quality

Balfour was among the first English wineries to win international recognition for sparkling wine, with our Balfour Brut Rosé 2004 taking a gold medal at the International Wine Challenge and being the first English Sparkling wine to be served in BA First Class and the official English wine of the London 2012 Olympic games. Since then, we’ve continued to push boundaries, making award-winning wines that rival the best from Champagne and beyond; all while celebrating our English terroir.

The Estate

Our home, Hush Heath Estate, spans 400 acres of pristine Kent countryside. Of that, 130 acres are under vine, planted with classic Champagne varieties (Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, and Chardonnay) along with aromatic still wine varieties like Bacchus and Ortega. We farm sustainably and are committed to protecting our ancient woodlands, wildflower meadows, and orchards that surround the vineyards.

Our Wines

We specialise in both traditional method sparkling wines and a growing range of award-winning still wines, crafted by our expert winemaking team led by Fergus Elias. Every bottle reflects the care we take in the vineyard, the skill in the winery, and the unique character of our English climate.

Key Tasks & Responsibilities

• To ensure a 5 star quality tour and wine experience to all guests and deliver engaging, fun and educational vineyard tours & tastings, whilst maintaining a high level of professionalism
• Actively sell our wines throughout the tour and ensure that groups are escorted back into the retail areas after the tour and that the wines that they have tasted are pointed out to them. Our main aim is for all guests to walk away from our winery with wine purchases!
• Retail wine sales are an important responsibility of the role, you will be required to work within the retail section when required and proactively sell our wines as well as our Wine Club memberships
• As an employee of Balfour Winery you must be prepared to support other work colleagues and may be required to take on extra or different tasks to help support others. This may be in the main tasting room, on the terrace, polishing glasses or serving in the restaurant
• To always keep a clean, tidy work area, including ensuring glassware is immaculate for tastings
• To the best of your ability, ensure all health and safety, security and emergency policies are adhered to
• Helping create a professional environment for staff to work in and customers to enjoy

Personal qualities / expectations

• You must be willing to work weekends and bank holidays when required, this is essential for this role. You will be asked to commit to some bank holidays in advance
• Time management - being punctual and prepared to start your shift on time is essential
• Creativity and progressiveness, you must be able to adapt to change
• Excellent customer service skills
• Attention to detail is essential
• Excellent communication skills and being at ease with the public
• A willingness to learn about viticulture and winemaking
• Basic computer skills
• An ability to work closely, supportively, and flexibly with other staff members
• An excellent understanding of the operations around the production of our wines
• A willingness and ability to be flexible in your approach to the role, taking on responsibilities when required

We welcome applications from a diverse range of individuals and will consider any reasonable adjustments to enable candidates to perform as well as possible during the recruitment process, [e-mail] with any requests.