As of last week, our winemaker Carmel Greenberg and her team have already brought in Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec from Hirondelle Vineyard. This week, our first block of Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon has arrived and our team is working fast to bring them all home. Cabernet Sauvignon needs the longest hang time of the four, so it's always last off the vine.
An Early Year Early Start, Long Harvest
This harvest got underway early, weeks ahead of a typical Napa Valley calendar. Cool temperatures since then have slowed the pace, and picking is now settling back toward a more typical timeline for the rest of the season. Growers up and down the Silverado Trail are describing 2026 as a small crop so far, lighter in volume than usual, paired with real intensity in the fruit that is coming in. Smaller berries concentrate flavor, color, and tannin into less juice, which is part of why an early, light year can still turn into a memorable one in the glass. We won't know what this vintage is until fermentation and aging have their say, but the early signs across the valley are encouraging.
The Order of Things
Merlot ripens earliest of Hirondelle's red varieties, followed closely by Cabernet Franc and Malbec, both used here in smaller amounts to round out the final blend. Cabernet Sauvignon, the backbone of what we make, needs more time on the vine to develop the tannin structure that lets it age. It comes in last most years, sometimes into October. Patience, as they say, is a virtue.
Deciding When to Pick
There's no calendar date that tells the team to start on any given block. Sugar matters, but so does acid, so does tannin ripeness in the seeds and skins, and the only way to check all three is to walk the rows and taste. Our viticulture and winemaking teams do that daily once véraison finishes and the grapes have turned color, sometimes twice a day as a block gets close, because a day or two of heat can move it from "not yet" to "pick tonight." Most of our picking happens by hand and starts before sunrise, when the fruit is coolest, since warm fruit brings warm juice into the winery and warm juice starts changing before anyone wants it to.
From Vine to Tank in a Few Hours
Once a block is picked, the clock matters more than almost anything else. Bins move straight to the crush pad, where the fruit is sorted by hand before it ever reaches a tank, culling out anything short of what that block is capable of. From there it's destemmed and, in most cases, gently crushed and moved into fermentation, kept separate by variety and by block. Nothing gets blended together at this stage. The decision about which lots belong in the final wine doesn't happen until well after harvest ends, once every lot has had time to show what it actually is.
A Season the Whole Property Feels
Harvest changes the rhythm of the entire estate, not just the vineyard rows. Crush pad crews are working while the tasting room is still pouring that morning's first flight. Cellar staff are checking fermentations around the clock. Even visitors notice it: the smell of fermenting must drifting across the property, bins moving past the parking area, a pace that's visibly different from a quiet Tuesday in June. If you're planning a visit to Hirondelle House this fall, the next several weeks are when this activity is at its peak, in full view of anyone who walks through.
If you want to see it firsthand and not just read about it, we're celebrating the season at our Harvest Farmers Market on the estate this October, with local farmers, artisans, and a kids' terrarium workshop alongside whatever's still coming off the vine.
Blending, aging, and bottling all come later. Right now, everything runs on what comes off Hirondelle.
Frequently Asked Questions
Has harvest started at Clos du Val this year? Yes. As of early September, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec are already in from Hirondelle Vineyard, with Cabernet Sauvignon, our Stags Leap District flagship, right behind them.
Why is Cabernet Sauvignon picked last? It needs the longest hang time of Hirondelle's red varieties to develop the structure it's known for. Merlot ripens earliest, with Cabernet Franc and Malbec following before Cabernet Sauvignon comes in last.
Is 2026 an unusual harvest? It got started early, weeks ahead of a typical Napa Valley calendar, though cooler temperatures since then have slowed the pace back toward something closer to an average timeline. Yields so far are on the lighter side. Smaller crops often mean more concentrated fruit, though the finished wines will tell the real story after fermentation and aging.
How do you decide when to pick a block? Our viticulture and winemaking teams taste fruit directly in the vineyard, checking sugar, acid, and tannin ripeness together rather than relying on a single number. Once a block is close, they may check it daily or twice a day before deciding to pick.
Can visitors see harvest happening? Yes. The coming weeks bring noticeably more activity across the estate, from crush pad work to the smell of active fermentation, and it's one of the more interesting times of year to visit Hirondelle House.