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Autumn 2026 Post-Harvest update
2026 has been a fantastic year for Hawkswood Vineyard. Back in June we won Wine GB National silver and bronze awards for our 2025 Bacchus and 2024 Rondo red wines. The summer was hot in East Anglia and remarkably here in Thurston we had hardly a drop of rain for three months from June to August. After a couple of hard frosts in late April which fortunately only damaged about 2% of our budding vines, we suspect that our vines have roots down to the water table. I mention this because despite absolutely no rain only a couple of dozen or so less mature vines lost their crop because of drought. We did have problems with sunburn causing damage to grapes after we had done some de-leafing but all in all the crop was both our largest and our best quality since we planted the vineyard eight years ago!
Harvest started on 19th August when we brought our Solaris in with really ripe grapes that look set to make a 13% white wine. Harvesting so early was unprecedented! The last day of harvest was 19th September when we picked the last of our Bacchus and over 500kgs of Rondo red. In total we harvested nearly six tons of grapes from just 2500 vines. We think next year we may have to drop bunches to reduce the tonnage harvested because this year we ran out of fermentation tanks and had to buy an extra tank just yesterday (20th September). One new development which made a real difference and was great fun, was the help we had from over a dozen local volunteers from Thurston and Beyton. They made picking much easier and we all enjoyed a slap-up late lunch after picking, cooked by Irene and accompanied by as much wine as folk could drink!
Looking ahead we still have a few spaces on our October tastings and then plan a series of pre-Christmas tastings on the four Saturdays before the New Year.
Family and friends from the village pause for a coffee or a beer after picking has finished and before we start crushing and destemming the grapes to put into the press. The time between picking and pressing the grapes is always less than an hour at Hawkswood!
Our oldest picker this year was Irene’s mother at 91 years of age! She beat my father who had held the record at 90 years old.
All hands to the pump as we crush and destem the days Bacchus harvest in the cramped “grape reception” area at Hawkswood Winery.
Irene is dishing up beef curry for our pickers, with a cauliflower and chickpea alternative for the two vegans in the group!
Waiting for the Bacchus to Ripen
Our Bacchus is always the last grape to ripen but it was well on the way this morning, the 3rd of December, but we hope to let it hang for at least another week!
De-Leafing Before the Harvest
On the 31st August we finished the second de-leafing of our pinot noir to make picking easier when we start on 5th September – we’re hoping for a delicious rose and then a rich red!
Rondo’s Crop in Late August
Rondo is a crazy grape with parentage in France and Georgia in the Russian Republics. Even back on the 24th August it looked like this with a massive crop.
Wine GB National Gold Medal
Last month we won our first ever Wine GB national gold medal for our Pinot Rose. It has been shortlisted for the prize of best rose in the UK & as a result we have been shortlisted for best vineyard in the East of England – fingers crossed!
Michael Chatting With Oz Clarke
Michael chatting with Oz Clarke at the Wine GB national awards luncheon – friends have joked – “James May is out of a job – there’s a new show “Doc & Oz’s great wine adventure." Sadly the BBC haven’t called!
Receiving Our Award
Receiving our award for the best vineyard in the East of England from Riedel the sponsors and the head judges – Irene and Michael in the middle.
Get in touch today
Please complete the enquiry form or call us on 07920 427423 (available 09:00am to 17:00pm from Monday to Saturday) to enquire about any of our wines or book a tasting at the vineyard.
