At Naked, taking you inside the winery is kind of our thing. But this month, we’re going further and bringing you all the action from the frontlines of winemaking: the picking, pressing and tasting at 4am, the well-earned rewards at the end of the day, and the giant blow-outs at the end of the season.
Make yourself comfortable.
That's a wrap!
Done, finito, fini. Our live harvest coverage is over for this year and the next vintage of your favourite wine is one step closer to your glass.
And what a journey it’s been – from Franc’s surprise hailstorm just as the first crop arrived at the winery, to Katie’s rage against the machines (hint: a heatwave got in the wires) – harvest has a way of always bringing something new to the table. You never know what you’re in for.
So thanks for coming along on the journey. Your winemakers have worked their behinds off these past few weeks and it’s fair to say they deserve a bit of downtime.
But not just yet.
There’s still work to be done, and even though our live coverage ends here, there’s plenty more to come on our socials.
Head over to YouTube or check out our Instagram to get the final squeeze of harvest.
It’s about to get juicy.
Franck’s Harvest? Finalizado
Franck Massard is celebrating in a big way – the 2026 harvest is wrapped, and he’s celebrated in the perfect fashion at the annual Poboleda wine festival. And with all the celebration, there’s a bit of wistfulness as well, with another year passing by.
“It’s always an emotional time of year, the tension of the decisions we make, the excitement of seeing the fruits of our labour from the entire past year…”
Read on for Franck’s full end-of-harvest update
Lights, camera, secateurs!
In some ways, harvest is a lot like shooting a movie – exotic locations, early starts, long days, big technical kit, a crew coming together to work on something that can take months or years to refine and perfect.
In many other ways, it’s absolutely nothing like a movie. Hair and make-up tends not to be on the agenda, and our winemakers do all their own stunts – no visual effects required.
But that does not mean harvest is not screen-worthy. Far from it. The Naked team (shout out to Roni at Naked’s Sonoma winery) has been diligently documenting as many vineyard walks, sugar tests, picks and presses as her iPhone storage can handle.
Head over to Youtube to see winemaker dispatches from California (recommended for fans of heavy duty machinery).
There’s plenty to see on Instagram too, including our viral dry ice video from winemaker Jorge (if you know, you know).
And just like that…
After long days in the vineyard, hard work, tired hands and lots of smiles, Paolo Sacchetto and his team have officially called it a day for harvest 2026.
So, what now? Well, the grapes still have some way to go before ending up on your table in a neat looking bottle.
In the meantime, the vineyard is full of surprises – hit the link below to see what Paolo found hiding among his vines.
See Paolo’s vineyard surprise here
Let the fermentation begin
In Oscar Quevedo’s latest update, we’re told the grapes have made it to the winery. In fact, they are at the “lagares” where the fermentation begins.
Yep. This is when the grape juice starts transforming, slowly developing the flavours, aromas and character that will eventually become wine. Shame we have to wait a bit longer to taste the final vintage.
Listen to Oscar himself in this video update from inside the winery
Oscar Quevedo inside the winery
En garde! Harvest 2026 begins in Oregon
While winemakers in sun-drenched Sonoma and southern Europe have been sweating through harvest since early August, cool-climate Oregon takes its sweet time.
It’s September, and Scott Kelley’s vintage is officially out of the starting blocks.
To mark the occasion, Scott gathered the crew and did what any self-respecting winemaker would do: whipped out a Champagne sabre and a celebratory bottle of fizz. A sword-swinging toast to the incoming fruit.
Watch Scott sabre his way into Harvest 2026 here
Harvest downtime with Kat Darnault
While Ben is knee-deep in grapes (and super happy with both the quality and volume coming in), his wife Kat takes us on a quick breather away from the winery to share her weekly ritual: visiting their local Tuesday market in Olonzac. It's where she sources the magnificent southern French produce that fuels the entire Darnault operation.
Take a quick breather with Kat and see life beyond the vineyard down in the Languedoc
Fresh fruit and veg at Olonzac Tuesday market
Tractor patrol in Abruzzo
Want to know who’s keeping the wheels turning at Tenuta Oderisio? Just look for the man on the tractor. Dad Mario is out in the vines at the crack of dawn, keeping a watchful eye over every single row.
This year’s harvest has been particularly relentless – long hours, very little sleep, and total dedication to getting the fruit picked at its peak.
Exhausting? Absolutely. But as the Montepulciano rolls into the winery, the sheer excitement of a new vintage is keeping spirits high.
Follow the di Candilo family’s harvest journey right here
Ciao Angels!
Italian superstar winemaker Stefano di Blasi is elbow deep in Merlot grapes destined for his IGT Toscana.
Stefano says that because of the intense heat this year, there’s a little less juice in the grapes, but no fear – the Merlot remains “fantastic”, and the quality is “unbelievable”.
Can we speed time up until we can have a glass, please?
Watch Stefano in the winery as the grapes roll in
Winemaking: the unvarnished truth
The great thing about having our own winery in the heart of California wine country is that we get the inside scoop on winemaking – every juicy detail from the people in the know. And here it is, courtesy of Franc Dusak, our director of winemaking over in Sonoma and third generation winemaker.
“Everyone thinks that when you come to the winery that you’re going to be tasting barrels and sampling different things.
“Really what you’re doing is cleaning. It’s 99% cleaning.”
Ok so it’s not all crushing and sipping the good stuff. But we thank Franc and the team for their hard work. Our sips are better for it!
Watch this video from inside the winery – we challenge you not to be mesmerised
Franc Dusak
A new chapter begins in Piedmont
Mother and daughter Silvana Aluigi and Camilla Gemme have always championed Gavi at their Piedmont winery, carrying on generations of family tradition.
But this harvest, another grape takes centre stage – one that reminds them a little of their beloved Gavi: Riesling.
Yes, after a few patient years, a new adventure awaits with the family's first-ever Riesling vintage soon in the making. It’s a new grape, a new adventure, but the same Piona family and the same passion.
Sounds like you’re in for a treat…
Read the full report from Silvana and Camilla here
An exciting new chapter: in grape form
Full steam ahead for our new Corsican stars
Do the names Julien Zaffrila and Iris Dubusse ring a bell? That’s because this is the talented winemaking duo that Ben Darnault recently championed by giving up his Winemaker of the Year award in their favour.
And now, you’ve got a front-row seat to watch this next generation of winemakers take on harvest. Because after a hot and challenging summer, their Vermentinu grapes are now reaching beautiful maturity and are set to be picked very soon.
In the meantime, check out this video update from Julien and Iris and come along on the journey.
Rainy day blues and remarkable fungi
Is rain still harvest’s enemy number one? Maybe not. At least according to Sonoma-based Ondine Chattan. Years of experience has given her the tools to deal with most scenarios during the most hectic time of the winemaker calendar. But what about storms during harvest? And fungi?
By the Light of the Moon
Take a nighttime stroll through wine country, and you’ll see that the vines are far from peaceful. You’ll find rows and rows of crews hand-picking and machines humming away. And it’s not just because they’re too excited to get some shut-eye.
Daytime heat affects both the grapes and the people picking them, draining the team’s energy and the grapes’ precious juice. To solve for the sun’s intensity, some winemakers prefer to pick at night. Cooler-temperature harvests allow the grapes to preserve their juice and freshness, leading to a better wine in your glass. Not to mention a bit less sweat on the grapes by the picking teams.
Ben Darnault’s team has been burning the candle at both ends, capping off their first full week with a nighttime Rosé harvest.
Get the full French Dispatch here.
La Vendima Begins
Oscar Aragon’s team is waiting in the wings, walking the vines and tasting for that moment of precise harvest perfection (at last!). While the weather hasn’t been cooperating for all our winemakers across the Northern Hemisphere, Oscar’s found himself on the lucky end, with low temperatures and no rainy days ahead.
Now there’s nothing left to do but enjoy the quiet, sharpen the snips, and wait for harvest – or vendima, if you’d like to fit in with the locals.
Lights out in Priorat: a dramatic opening act
If you’re going to kick off harvest among the sweeping slate slopes of El Priorat, you might as well do it with maximum cinematic drama.
For Franck Massard, day one in Poboleda delivered a surprise hailstorm just as the first crop arrived at the winery. And to top it off, the local power grid threw in the towel, plunging the team (briefly) into darkness. Talk about a high-stress opening act to harvest.
The good news? Day two brought calmer skies. The storm has cleared, the power is back on, and the fruit coming off those legendary slopes is looking phenomenal.
Harvesting on these steep, slate terraces is all about patience and picking each variety at its peak. First out of the blocks is the delicate Garnacha Blanca. Over the coming weeks, the team will hand-pick their way through the rest…
Check out Franck’s full updates from the slopes of Priorat here.
Some of Franck’s dedicated picking squad – organic fruit this good demands to be picked by hand.
Rage against the machines…
When Katie Jones kicked off her harvest, the plan was beautifully simple: no rushing and no big picking machines or crushers.
Just a faithful team hand-picking old vine grapes, so only the best fruit made it into her winery.
Turns out, the machines had other plans. Or rather, the extreme heat did.
With temperatures soaring, Katie’s equipment has gone on strike (a very French tradition). First, the press refused to start. Then the cold unit packed it in. Finally, the refrigerated container gave up the ghost entirely.
Katie has spent more time staring at the insides of broken machinery this week than she has at her beloved vines.
Thankfully, through it all, her team has kept their cool and the stress hasn't transferred to the wines. The reds are rolling in, and the Syrah – against all mechanical odds – is looking magnificent.
Read Katie’s harvest vision and catch up on the subsequent mechanical meltdown.
Peek inside the belly of the beast (AKA Katie’s winery kit) – a sight she is fiercely hoping to avoid for the rest of harvest.
The Chanel No. 5 of the vineyard
Harvest is a high-stakes waiting game, as Marica Bonomo will tell you…
Down near the shores of Lake Garda, she’s been out pacing the rows to check if the Holy Trinity of winemaking – sugar, pH, and acidity – have finally clicked into perfect balance in her Cortese.
Cortese is a notoriously aromatic grape that Marica calls the "Chanel No. 5” of her Custoza Bianco because of its elegant perfume.
Watch Marica’s vineyard update right here.
Nothing like a father-daughter duo
Like Stephen Millier, Aussie-in-California Daryl Groom’s 2026 harvest is his earliest ever.
But this one is different for another reason – Daryl’s working the vines with his daughter, Kara, also a winemaker.
They are in a rhythm: grape sampling for one another to check sugar content, sharing the vineyard inspections.
“We each walk separate rows and take our own samples then compare. If similar, we know it’s correct.”
On August 17th they reckoned they had another week until go time. Watch this space.
Check out Daryl’s post here.
Daryl and his daughter, fellow winemaker Kara, with their freshly picked grape samples
All’s quiet (ish) in the Southern Hemisphere
While the Northern Hemisphere is picking and pressing, on the opposite side of the world it’s quiet – and cold – according to Kiwi winemaker Nicky Parish.
The vines are dormant but the winemakers? Far from it. This is “the moment we get to shape what's coming rather than just react to it,” she says.
“Everything that happens later… starts from the choices made out here in the quiet, in the cold, right now.”
Kicking off Naked Sonoma’s second harvest
It’s usually my three-year-old daughter who's giddy at the sound and sight of heavy duty machinery. But a few weeks ago that was 39-year-old me.
I was lucky enough to visit Naked Sonoma in mid-August, and even luckier that the trip coincided with the early days of harvest in California.
On my final day, a parcel of grapes was due to arrive in the winery where Naked is based. (It will never not be cool that the office is in a winery.)
With about half an hour until I absolutely had to leave, the grapes landed. With hi-vis donated by a colleague (thanks, Sarah!) I did an awkward run-jog across the car park, and watched the whole thing unfold, from forklift to crushpad to tank.
(And yes, I was a little late to check-in at the airport.)
Read our CEO Maza’s account from Sonoma, including Scott Peterson’s bucket of Sangria served with a side of jazz-funk. – Clare S
Maza at Naked Sonoma
A 51st and earliest ever harvest
In September 1975, Pink Floyd released Wish You Were Here, the Pope canonised the first American-born saint, and Stephen Millier got his first harvest under his belt. Fifty-one years later, Stephen is still crushing, but things are getting going much earlier, on a record-beating August 6th – bumping Stephen’s summer holiday off the calendar.
First up, 2 tonnes of Calaveras County Semillon, and lots and lots of chatter about the weather.
As Stephen says: “Our whole industry is dependent on the weather we get. Our daily temperatures are nearly 100 Fahrenheit (nearly 38 celsius). They’re not ideal, but what else can you do but talk about them.”
F. Stephen Millier in the Vineyard.
The countdown is on and every day counts
There was relief in the Loire Valley in late July as rain finally arrived after weeks of relentless, can’t-stop-thinking-about-it heat.
“It has given the vegetation a chance to recover and brought some much-needed freshness during this final stretch before harvest,” says Miguela Villebois.
Now, with work in the vineyard finished, “it’s time to let nature take its course as we patiently wait for the grapes to reach full ripeness”.
“The countdown is on! If weather conditions remain favourable, we expect to begin harvesting around 24 August. Until then, every day counts as the grapes continue their journey towards perfect ripeness.”
See more from Joost and Miguela here
Photographs by Joost and Miguela Villebois of vineyards and grapes in the Loire Valley before harvest 2026
