08/14/2026
Harvest 2026 is here!
Harvest 2026 is officially underway here at Windchaser. The first grapes of the year are in the winery, and the place has made its annual transformation into production mode. The seasonal green waste dumpster is currently full of pomace and dripping pinot noir juice into the gutter. The driveway is littered with dozens and dozens of squashed grapes that the forklift wheels have pulverized into the blacktop. Half ton macro bins have already started accumulating in my parking lot. Bins that have been power washed and are waiting to be returned to their home vineyards where they will be reloaded with grapes and trucked to another winery. There they’ll be emptied, power washed and trucked away again. The life of a macro bin!
Harvest is early this year. The Pinot Noir I brought in on Tuesday for sparkling was picked three weeks later last year. At this stage harvest could be wrapped up by the end of September. We’ll see. This is my 22nd year of making wine, the past eleven under the Windchaser label. While the challenges of running a small wine business have not lifted over the years, the anxious feeling of the coming harvest has. I feel prepared for whatever Mother Nature, Murphys law, Dionysus, Gremlins or Karma have in store for me. I’m not tempting any of them mind you, I’m just saying I’m ready. I am excited to see what this year’s harvest provides me with, both in quality of grapes and in gained experience. Here we go!
Upcoming Events
In addition to all the fun with grapes coming up the next few weeks, I’ve also got a bunch of weekend activities on the books. Blues, Jazz, Jams. Check out the schedule here. (https://www.windchaserwine.com/tasting_events.html)
Wine Club Reminder
If you enjoy Windchaser wine, whether you are Bay Area local or not, please consider joining the Windchaser Wine Club. It’s a really good deal and a really good way to support this little urban winery.
If you are already a Wine Club member, please remember that you get 20% off all the wine you buy all year. So, if you drink wine on any kind of regular basis, it’s just being financially responsible to take advantage of your discount and drink Windchaser.
I have an entire room full of current and previous vintages of all your favorites—wines you’ve enjoyed in the past, now aged, matured, and waiting for you to experience them once again. Join the club, restock your favorites, or come find something new to open soon. Email [email protected] for more information.
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