Jonathan’s Vineyard Blog - November

Jonathan • November 4, 2021

In this month’s blog it gives me great pleasure to report on our recent grape harvest, which took place under cloudless blue skies on Sunday 17th October.

We are extremely grateful to the twenty five friends and family who so willingly helped us to bring in the harvest; we picked from early morning until mid afternoon and then sat down together to enjoy a convivial lunch comprising our own homemade quiches, farm raised turkey, and all accompanied by our still and sparkling wines. It was a truly wonderful climax to a year which, due to weather and Covid, has been a very challenging one for ours and many businesses up and down the land.


We were very pleasantly surprised by the yield of grapes, which has resulted in a record for Godstone Vineyards. At some points during the growing season I had been genuinely concerned that we might not harvest anything at all - the Spring was cold and late, the Summer predominantly wet. The sugar level of our grapes was slightly lower than average, however this means that we will hopefully end up with a crisp, dry sparkling wine when it is released in 2023.

Looking to Winter.

Another year in the wine cycle draws to a close and yet we are already embarking upon the next one: post and wirework need to be repaired / replaced ; hedges and windbreaks need to be maintained ; winter pruning will commence in December. It quite literally never stops!


Our shop remains open every weekend throughout the Winter and we are always delighted to welcome you. 

Jonathan’s Vineyard Blog -November 2025

By GODSTONE • November 5, 2025
We have arrived at the end of another year in the vineyard and I am delighted to say that the vines have excelled themselves in what was, admittedly, a very good year to be cultivating grapes in England. The disappointment of no harvest in 2024 was a distant memory on Sunday 5th October when, under cloudless blue skies, we picked top quality grapes which will be made into a Sparkling Wine for release in 2028; the grapes had an almost perfect balance of acidity and natural sugar, excellent quality with barely any disease. I would venture to say that 2025 will match 2022, which was the last great vintage in England, time will tell ! I would like to thank those of you who helped with the harvest and also for your efforts throughout the Spring and Summer, it is greatly appreciated and we couldn’t do it without you ! As many of you know by now, our vineyard is planted predominantly with a variety called Seyval Blanc, which - in our opinion - is ideally suited to English conditions. Undoubtedly the doyen of Seyval Blanc was Peter Hall, of Breaky Bottom vineyard near Lewes, and it is with great sadness that we learnt of his passing last month. My brother and I were fortunate to have a private audience with him in 2024 in which he imparted some valuable tricks of his trade ! His obituary (below) gives you a feel for this incredible vigneron who will be much missed. English wine has lost a great character. https://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/tribute-peter-hall-1943-2025 Rest In Peace, Peter Hall, 1943-2025 Kind Regards Jonathan

Jonathan’s Vineyard Blog - September 2025

By GODSTONE • September 4, 2025
The four months of the year which end in ‘ber’ are now upon us which means that Michaelmas Day (September 29th) is only three weeks away. Folklore claimed that if a north wind blew on Michaelmas Day the month of October would be sunny and fine although make the most of it because fine weather on Saint Denis’s Day (October 9th) indicates a hard winter ahead! The sayings below are my personal favourites : “Dew in the night, next day will be bright” “Grey mists at dawn, the day will be warm” “Rain before seven, fine before eleven” “Red sky at night, shepherd’s delight, red sky in the morning, shepherd’s warning” In an age where for most of us the first port of call for a weather forecast is an app on our mobiles, these sayings often stand the test of time! At the time of writing we do not have a definite harvest date and we continue to monitor levels of sugar and acidity every other day in the hope of arriving at the perfect day for picking! Last year the starlings treated our grapes as an open buffet so we are praying that we can avoid a repeat. We are now open every Saturday between midday and 4pm and, as always, would love to see you. Kind Regards Jonathan