Sunday Greetings (November 1, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: Record-early Harvest in 2026 and 4 ombiasy Wine Tours in 2027

Dear wine friends,

 

I apologize for having been quiet for the last couple of months. 

 

In September I travelled with a fantastic group of wine enthusiasts to the Alto Adige - Trentino wine region in Northern Italy. This region is spectacular: stunning wines, great food, breathtakingly beautiful mountain scenery, a glimpse of the mighty Dolomite landscape and a unique bi-cultural area where Germanic and Italian traditions meet.

 

I also had several speaking engagements showing off great wines from Europe including seminars at the German Embassy in Washington DC, the French Embassy in Washington DC, and two seminars at the 59th National Conference of the American Wine Society (AWS) in Jacksonville, Florida.

 

Now, arriving in autumn, things quiet down, and a cozier atmosphere gradually takes hold here. The first wines from the new vintage 2026 have arrived in the cellars of the European wine makers after a roller coaster of an unusual growing and harvest season:

The summer: heat came early and stayed, drought followed

 

The defining feature was an early, intense heatwave. The heat arrived well before the critical ripening window, compressing a growing season that decades of warming had already shortened. The south of France took the worst early damage. In the Gard, Pyrénées-Orientales and Hérault, the consequences were described as catastrophic, with grapes scorched and leaves dried out within hours. Across the continent, heat and drought pushed grapes toward ripeness at extraordinary speed. The traditional gap between flowering and harvest, roughly 100 days two generations ago and closer to 90 more recently, fell toward just 80 days in 2026. In Germany the Rhein river showed record low water levels and boat traffic came to a halt.

The harvest: record-early picking

 

The year 2026 brought record early harvests across France, Italy, Germany, and Switzerland. In France, the first grapes were picked on July 15th, and Burgundy started around August 8th. Germany announced on August 28th that its main harvest had begun earlier than ever recorded across all 13 wine-growing regions, while parts of Switzerland were already picking in mid-August. In Italy, the harvest started up to 20 days early. 

What is means for the quality of the wines  

            

The common thread is low volume and high concentration. The main risk is that heat hikes up sugar build-up while reducing manic acid, which could lead to higher alcohol levels and wines with softer acidity. The winners here are cooler sites, older vines, and soils that hold moisture.

 

Mark your calendars for the wine tours in 2027. The tours are described on my website and the registrations are open: https://ombiasypr.com/

    Three Country Tour: Southern Germany, Switzerland, Alsace

Thursday, June 3 - Sunday, June 13, 2027   /   11 days – 10 nights

    Rhône Valley Tour: Northern Rhône, Southern Rhône, Provence

Sunday, June 20 – Thursday, July 01, 2027   /  12 days – 11nights

          Bordeaux Tour: Left Bank, Right Bank, Graves, Sauterne

Tuesday, August 31 – Thursday, September 08    /    10 days – 9 nights

  Alto-Adige Tour: Alto Adige, Trentino

Sunday, September 19 – Sunday September 26    /    08 days – 7 nights

 

Best regards

Annette

WINE EDUCATION ///  WINE TOURS
Annette Schiller, Diplom-Volkswirt
Professional Member and Wine Educator 
American Wine Society AWS
German Wine Society, DC, Board Member
ombiasy PR, LLC
Washington DC - Frankfurt am Main
T: +1 (703) 459.7513
T: + 49  177.337.0281
aschiller@ombiasypr.com
web: ombiasypr.com
blog: schiller-wine.blogspot.com    

 

Previous Sunday Greetings from Annette

 

Sunday Greetings (November 1, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: Record-early Harvest in 2026 and 4 ombiasy Wine Tours in 2027 Sunday Greetings (July 26, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: Climate Change, Extreme Weather, Hail in the Pfalz/ Germany and Weingut Juelg in Schweigen-Rechtenbach (July 26, 2026)  

Sunday Greetings (July 12, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: The Extremely Steep and Rocky Mittelrhein and Mosel Valley Vineyards and Upcoming Wine Tour through Alto Adige, Trentino and a Day in the Veneto Region to Taste Great Amarone Wines (September 06 - September 13)  

Sunday Greetings (June 28, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: Upcoming Wine Tour through Alto Adige, Trentino and a Day in the Veneto Region to Taste Great Amarone Wines (September 06 - September 13) 

Sunday Greetings (May 25, 2026) from Annette Schiller, ombiasy Wine Education and Wine Travel: Great Cool-climate wines from Trentino-Alto Adige (Italy) 

Sunday Greetings (March 22, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: Bordeaux, Michel Rolland, Dany Rolland, Château Le Bon Pasteur in Pomerol  

Sunday Greetings (March 8, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: Greetings from Germany - Visit to Schloss Johannisberg, Rheingau  

Sunday Greetings (March 1, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: Bordeaux Meets Riesling in Hattenheim, Rheingau, Germany  

Sunday Greetings (Feb. 22, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: I am talking about Tuscany (June 8 -18, 2026)!  

Sunday Greetings (Feb. 2, 2026) from ombiasy WineTours/ Annette Schiller - Focus Today: Germany Classic: 12 days, 11 nights - Sunday, June 28 - Thursday, July 09, 2026