Reflections – Vintage 2026

The 2026 vintage is the earliest harvest ever recorded … previously it was 2020 with a start on August 16th … now we have a start on August 8th … maybe even August 6 or 7th.

So one week earlier … this is a giant leap … and could well indicate new times for Burgundy! This should render all fans of Burgundy wines scared stiff.

Last minute thoughts before the 2026 harvest

Normally I always try to reference old vintages to the coming 2026 vintage … good or bad. The 2026 vintage is, however, very extreme as the heat and the speed of the ripening are unheard of.

There are therefore some questions that arise when you, as a critic, try to judge the wine that ends up in the bottle.

The ripeness process is very fast … and this can introduce some issues that will seriously influence the final wine.

Here I try to unfold a bit of the thoughts that go through my head as I see the vineyards and the vignerons making the wines!

The ripeness

The grapes in 2026 are in many instances already ripe … too ripe in some areas already, and with an increased risk of high alcohol wines, as the ripening process doesn’t follow the 2025s, where the water blockage stopped the increase in alcohol for a period. In 2026, it looks like more normal ripening processes.

At the moment, the alcohol level is climbing rapidly in a week with strong heat… the whites are almost there, and the reds need 1% to 2 % more to be perfect.

Alcohol soon there!

There is still some time … during one week, the wines will achieve 1% of extra alcohol or even more … and with the current level 11,5% – 12,5% for the reds, this will, after one week, bring the alcohol up to 12,5% to 13,5% on August 17th. Calculating one more week forward, 13,5% to 14,5% on Monday 24th.

The whites are even further … and close to the wanted alcohol level and are now causing nervous twitches, as the aromatic profiles are not to all the vignerons’ liking.

The problem … the issue … the caveat!!

When the Vignerons taste the grapes, they don’t always find what they expect or want. The degrees are high but with no balance … an expression used by quite some vignerons.

Some also mention a bitterness, but bothers are just the lack of balance … and this is where things become very complex and difficult. What seems to be the problem?

The blocked ripening issue

Looking at a random bucket of 2026 Puligny, we see a big variation of grape sizes, colors, and ripeness stages. This is to a degree normal, but the amount of seemingly unripe “plasticky” grapes seems larger in 2026 … the sugar might be there, but the grapes don’t seem to be physically ripe … hence the expression plasticky.

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