Jonathan’s Vineyard Blog - October 2024

GODSTONE • October 10, 2024

I regret to inform my loyal readers that, for only the second time in our history, there will be no harvest at Godstone in 2024 (2012 was the other year). We have, with heavy hearts, raised the white flag after an unforgiving climatic year which culminated in sustained crop damage caused by starlings, pigeons, badgers, and pheasants.


The weather in 2024 has, for vines and many other crops, been horrendous - hereunder is a recap of what we have endured thus far:


  • Spring 2024:
  • March - cold and very wet
  • April - cold
  • May - warm and very wet
  • Conclusion - triple the long-term average monthly Spring rainfall.
  • Summer 2024:
  • June & July - below average temperatures
  • August - slightly above average temperatures
  • Conclusion - the coolest Summer in South East England since 2015 with average rainfall.
  • Autumn 2024:
  • Unrelenting rainfall making disease control almost impossible (at the time of writing it shows no signs of relenting).


Many people are asking me where the most damage occurred and the answer is the Spring - a brief period of warmth encouraged the vines to open their buds only for this to prove a false dawn as a band of very cold nights descended upon the vineyard and caused significant bud damage. The buds which survived were then faced with biblical rainfall during the flowering period which resulted in very low fruit set.


We spent the Summer nurturing the remaining bunches of grapes in the hope that a crop could be salvaged but all to no avail, anything that survived the elements was eaten by ravenous birds!


It’s been one of those years and, of course, immensely disappointing; however I have learnt many valuable lessons which will be implemented from next year and - thankfully - we have sufficient wines in store from the years of bounty to see us through a desperate one such as 2024.


Thank you for all your kind words of support and we hope to see you at the vineyard either on October 26th or in early December.


Jonathan

(The image above shows the combined effects of botrytis - caused by the incessant rain - and bird damage from starlings and pigeons)

Saturday the 26th of October 2024

Join Us For Our Autumn Celebration

Our boutique vineyard will be open for wine sales, walks around the vineyard, carefully curated platters, and hot food options.

Jonathan’s Vineyard Notes - 17th June 2026

By GODSTONE • June 17, 2026
17th June 2026 June is usually a busy month in the vineyard and this year has been no exception. Firstly, bud rubbing and shoot selection has been undertaken - removing unwanted shoots from the trunk - done by hand - after which shoot selection, a critical task which is not so much about keeping the strongest shoots but more about retaining the best positioned ones. Good spacing improves airflow, reduces disease pressure, and makes future tasks more straightforward. Early thinning prevents canopy overcrowding later on. Secondly, we moved on to tucking in, because as shoots extend the main priority is keeping them upright. If done properly this tucking in enables the vines to form a neat hedge-like canopy, thereby improving light distribution and keeping the fruiting zone accessible. In July our main job will be tipping and / or topping the vines, followed by leaf stripping. I will let you know how we get on with these tasks in my next edition of these Notes. We always love to see you and the vineyard is open every Saturday until mid September - with free parking, free self guided vineyard walks, and sharing platters of carefully curated local cheeses and charcuterie, it's a lovely way to enjoy a Saturday this Summer ! (Booking is appreciated and greatly assists with our planning …) https://www.eventbrite.com/e/summer-in-the-vines-at-godstone-vineyards-tickets-1 987770961455?aff=oddtdtcreator Regards, Jonathan & Robert

Jonathan's Vineyard Blog - 15th May 2026

By GODSTONE • May 15, 2026
May 15th The changeable weather has been the main talking point this Spring in the vineyard. Plus cest la meme chose! March was a mild and changeable month with periods of settled weather interspersed with periods of indifferent weather, the provisional mean temperature was 1.3 degrees Celsius above average; April, on the other hand, was dominated by a static anticyclone which blocked North Atlantic low pressure systems, resulting in a very dry, settled, and sunny month. April was a false dawn. May has been an extraordinary month with a distinctly chilly feel especially at night - many vineyards across England are reporting significant frost damage to the young buds which will, inevitably, result in yield reduction. Godstone is planted on slopes below the North Downs which allow cold air to drain away, flowing downhill and collecting in lower spots out of harms way so, fingers crossed, we appear to have escaped the worst of the cold nights. If you wish to read more about the science and reasoning behind vineyards planted on a slope or flat ground I highly recommend this article: https://grape-to-glass.com/index.php/flat-slope-vineyards/ We always love to see you and are now open every Saturday until mid September - plentiful free parking, stroll the vineyard, relax over a glass of wine with a sharing platter of carefully curated local cheeses and charcuterie, booking is recommended and greatly assists with our planning. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1987770961455?aff=oddtdtcreator Regards, Jonathan & Robert