November 2007:

2007 has been a write off: we have not harvested any grapes.

Every English vineyard must expect a blank from time to time and this was one such year. It is vital for any grower to have some semi decent weather when the vines are flowering. Those whose vines flowered earlier in June have done better, but our vines decided to try and flower at the beginning of July when it rained and it rained – and it rained! The fruit set was therefore very uneven. Later weather was also particularly ideal for downey mildew. We could have harvested some grapes but they would not have been close to our usual standard. We have a reputation to protect now so we decided to pass.

We are all quite disappointed because that is obviously quite a lot of work down the drain. Still: we have some fabulous wines in stock, we are looking forward to another year, and we are now up to £7500 in contributions made to the Hambleden Church and associated charities. It’s all good fun!