Notes from the Vineyard - August 2026

After weeks of relentless heat and dry weather, August finally brought the rain we had been waiting for.

The drought continued until the weekend of 22nd and 23rd August, but by Monday we had received around an inch of rain. More followed during the final week of the month, with a further three inches falling by the 31st. The effect across the estate was remarkable. Ground that had been burnt brown for much of the summer seemed to turn fresh green again within a matter of days.

The change in weather arrived just as harvest preparations were gathering pace. During August we completed our new harvest compound, allowing us to move our flock of around 100 geese, along with numerous ducks, into their temporary quarters. This means we can now leave the apples on the trees and allow them to ripen fully without the windfalls disappearing quite so enthusiastically into the geese.

In fact, this year's apple harvest has already begun. We started picking and pressing fruit during late August — around six weeks earlier than we would ordinarily expect. There seems little doubt that the exceptionally hot summer has accelerated ripening considerably, and the press is now back in action as another winemaking season gets underway.

There is encouraging news from the vineyard too. Despite the prolonged drought, the young vines have come through the summer remarkably well. We estimate that around 20% have now put on sufficient growth to be fully trained onto the fruiting wire. If they continue to establish well, some of these vines could produce their first crop next year — an exciting prospect as we move closer to producing our first wines from grapes grown here at Trenant.

Meanwhile, our wine tastings have continued throughout August and have proved particularly popular. It has been wonderful to introduce visitors to our first collection of wines and, more often than not, see them leave with a bottle or two of their favourites to enjoy at home.

August has therefore felt like something of a turning point. The long, difficult drought has finally broken, the landscape is green again, this year's apple harvest is unexpectedly underway and, out in the vineyard, we're beginning to see the first tantalising signs of future grape harvests to come.

From all of us at Saints Way Wines