Harvest 2026

Hello from the vines,

Nine tonnes of grapes, two harvest weekends, a lorry blowout and the strongest team of women we know. Harvest 2026, you were something else.

This year brought a few firsts for The Cornish Vineyard, and we couldn't wait to get started.

Firsts for the vineyard.

For the first time, we harvested Pinot Précoce! This relatively new addition to our vineyard has never produced enough grapes to justify a press of its own. But this year, one of our Pinot Noir clones was also ahead of schedule, giving us enough grapes for a dedicated press at the winery. A small, early harvest and another milestone ticked off.

Then came another first: Chardonnay before Pinot Noir. One for the record books!

We collected just shy of four tonnes of Chardonnay, with an incredible team of volunteers doing all the picking. You were brilliant, and we've got a little something special coming your way: limited-edition 2026 harvest T-shirts!

Nine tonnes, picked by hand.

One week later, we were back for Pinot Meunier and the remaining Pinot Noir, collecting just over four tonnes more.

This year's harvest totalled nine tonnes, all collected by hand. And here's something we're particularly proud of: every single grape was collected by some of the strongest people we know — women.

But picking is only half the job. The grapes had to be lifted from the ground onto the trailer, moved off the trailer onto the lorry, then weighed and packed up for their journey to the winery. With all that handling, our team moved the equivalent of 18 tonnes of grapes at least twice, and some of it three times.

That's a lot of grapes. And a lot of lifting!

When the wheels nearly came off.

The Pinot Noir harvest pushed us to our absolute limit for what we can pick with volunteers in a single day.

Even after we'd called time, some of our family and good friends carried on picking for hours, while Ella and I worked to get the grapes collected and ready to go.

A huge thank you to everyone who turned up, got stuck in and gave so much of their time. We genuinely couldn't have done it without you.

And a special shout-out to Mum and Dad, who safely navigated a tyre blowout on the lorry on the way to the winery. Thankfully, nobody was hurt, and the grapes were back on the road swiftly. Because apparently, nine tonnes of grapes weren't quite enough drama for one harvest!

Looking ahead to 2027…

This year has shown us that, as our vines mature and yields increase, we'll need to spread the harvest across more days. It'll make everything more manageable, give everyone a little more breathing room and, most importantly, keep harvest fun.

And next year? We might even have something for you to drink once we've finished!

We're already getting lots of interest from people wanting to join us in 2027. Our newsletter subscribers will be the first to hear about volunteering opportunities, so if you'd like to get involved, make sure you're signed up and keep an eye out around mid-September 2027.

Nine tonnes safely delivered to the winery. Another huge milestone for our little vineyard. And a team of people we'll never stop being grateful for.

Over and out. Until next time…