Jonathan’s Vineyard Blog - September 2024

September 9, 2024

Weather folklore for September states that “grey mists at dawn, the day will be warm”. Unfortunately this year a piece of seaweed would be more useful for meteorological predictions in our vineyard!


This year the weather has been abysmal for growing grapes in England: a cold, late Spring, followed by a predominantly wet Summer with very few warm spells. We live in hope for an ‘Indian Summer’ between now and late October but I am not holding my breath. The years in which we have abundant harvests - such as 2023 - help us to navigate the challenges of a year like the current one.


Thankfully we have plentiful supplies of wines from previous vintages - some of you will have had the chance by now to sample them on the two days we opened during August and September. Our harvest this year will ( assuming the grapes are left alone by badgers, pheasants, and other winged foragers ) be low yielding. Although there is reason to believe that the balance of sugar and acidity will produce outstanding sparkling wine albeit a very limited edition! Time will tell.


Our shop will be open on Saturday 14th September for tastings / purchases of our recent releases, we would be grateful if interest in attending could be done via the link below:


https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1011346553767?aff=oddtdtcreator

Jonathan’s Vineyard Blog - April 2025

By GODSTONE • April 4, 2025
April is a wonderful month when nature bursts into life after the dormancy of winter; one of my personal highlights is the sight and aroma of wild garlic in the woodlands on the approach to our vineyard. This bulbous perennial, with its distinctive and pungent garlicky smell, is common and widespread across the UK, most widely in deciduous woodland and on chalky soils. Wild Garlic is not to be confused with ‘Lily of the Valley’, especially since the latter is poisonous. Wild Garlic is an ancient woodland-indicator plant and its presence is a sign that you are in a rare and special habitat; it flowers early in Spring and is therefore an important early bloom for the bees and other insects which pollinate them. The bulbs are also a source of food for wild boars, not that I have ever encountered one in East Surrey! Wild Garlic was traditionally used in medicine - its bulb being a key ingredient in tonics for rheumatic problems and high cholesterol. It is nowadays a popular foraged ingredient (my brother makes an excellent wild garlic pesto!) - its leaves can be eaten raw in salads, blanched and used in place of spinach, or made into an interesting soup. April and May are the perfect months to view Wild Garlic and we will be open on one Saturday each month; you can also undertake our ‘Champagne Challenge’ where we see if you can taste the difference between Champagne and a glass of Godstone’s finest ! We’d love to see you. Book for Saturday 12th April https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/springtime-means-wine-time-at-godstone-vineyards-tickets-1128653175029?aff=oddtdtcreator Book for Saturday 17th May https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/a-summer-of-wine-at-godstone-vineyards-tickets-1250415659899?aff=oddtdtcreator Kind Regards to you all Jonathan

Jonathan’s Vineyard Blog - February 2025

By GODSTONE • February 24, 2025
We have passed “Candlemas Day” - 2nd February - traditionally the midpoint of winter, halfway between the shortest day and the spring equinox. In bygone times “Candlemas” was the day of the year when all candles that were to be used in church during the coming year, were brought into church and a blessing was said over them; candles were very important, especially pre-industrial revolution, and some people believed that they gave protection against plague, illness, and famine. However, in reality, candles were important because there were no electric lights ! Snowdrops appear in February. According to legend, the snowdrop became a symbol of hope when Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden. When Eve was about to give up hope that the cold winters would never end, an angel appeared. She transformed some of the snowflakes into snowdrop flowers, proving that the winters do eventually give way to the spring. We have now settled upon opening one Saturday per month throughout the year, and, these are the dates from March until August should you wish to plan ahead: https://www.godstonevineyards.com/contact If you would like to come and admire the snowdrops in our woodland then we would be delighted to see you on Saturday 15th March. We will be offering tastings and wine sales, alongside platters of local cheeses and charcuterie (perfect for sharing over a bottle of our wine). Please book for Saturday 15th March using the link below: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/springtime-means-wine-time-at-godstone-vineyards-tickets-1128641620469?aff=oddtdtcreator Kind Regards to you all Jonathan