09/21/2026
Harvest Update: Another terrific vintage in store
A fast and furious few weeks and we are almost done with Harvest 2026! As of September 18, we have picked all the Sauvignon Blanc (mostly more than a month ago), all the Chardonnay, all the Pinot Noir and half of the Syrah. By contrast in 2023, 2024 and 2025, we picked our last Pinot Noir and Chardonnays around October 11. Sauvignon Blanc is typically finished in early to mid-September.
We have previously described the warm February that led to early budbreak, and the monsoon humidity and warmth that started late July and proceeded through August. The warm humid nights of August allowed the grapevines to keep working overnight. As a result of this extra activity, much of the fruit was ready simultaneously, particularly the Pinot Noir. In fact, 2026 Pinot Noir mostly came in within a 9-day period (rather than 6 weeks as usual!) At one point we had 30 fermenters full of Pinot Noir bubbling away. Pressing that all off involved some real feats of four-dimensional Tetris/Jenga, but we managed that without too much trouble. And of course, we were still able to be at every single pick to sort the grapes and make critical decisions. This is the super-secret sauce at Dragonette Cellars, as we have emphasized from the beginning.
Quality looks promising in 2026. The grapes still had a nice long season (a 5-month growing season at a minimum) - it was just pushed forward. Most importantly, all the Pinot Noir was in before the extremely hot Tuesday/Wednesday September 8-9. Even so, a one or two day heatwave is nothing like 2020 or 2022, which lasted 4 to 10 days. The Syrah certainly did not seem to mind at all.
It is hard to say at this point, but the Chardonnay seems especially excellent and the low yielding Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir also show great promise. Too early to say on Syrah, though the canopies were much better than they were in the last few years. We have just a week or two to go with those blocks, but as things have cooled off, they look to be coming in for a gentle landing in great shape. Stay tuned!
