Laetitia Blog

Vibes at an All-Time High at Laetitia - August 2026

Early fruit, Coquard press back at work, new faces, and a lot of dirt about to get turned over

There's a particular kind of energy that shows up on a property when several big things are happening at once instead of one at a time. That's where we are right now. Harvest started early, our Coquard presses are back in action on this year's Chardonnay, we've added some excellent people to the team, and behind the scenes we've been drawing up plans for the property that will take years to fully play out. Oh, and the Lemon House is almost ready for its first guests. Buckle up.

Harvest.. early again

We picked our first fruit of 2026 on July 21st. This was about 6 weeks ahead of last year! Chardonnay came in first, and the numbers were exactly where we wanted them to be able to create a balanced wine.  Whether this turns into a genuinely early finish or a long, drawn-out harvest with lots of waiting in between depends on how the rest of the vineyards catch up.

Our Coquard presses are back to work

We're still the only winery in North America with a Coquard press and we've actually got two of them, which is a fact we don't get tired of mentioning. These are old-world vertical basket presses, built for the kind of slow, gentle, whole-cluster pressing that a lot of the world's best sparkling houses swear by, and we've had ours for years now. They're a fixture of how we work, not a new toy, but that doesn't make it any less satisfying to fire them back up each harvest.

Last week we ran our first Chardonnay through the coquard, destined for several of our sparkling wines. The slow cycle keeps solids low and treats the fruit with a light touch, which is exactly what you want going into a base wine that's going to spend time developing in bottle. Whole clusters go in and beautiful, clean juice come out.

New faces around the property

We've also brought some great new people onto the team this season. Between the vineyard, the cellar, and hospitality, it's been a season of onboarding alongside harvest, which is never the easiest timing, but everyone has jumped in without missing a beat. If you're out at the property this fall, say hello to the new faces.

Replanting the estate

One long-term commitment on our list that you might have seen us tackling: we're moving forward with replanting across our estate vineyards. It's a multi-year undertaking, but it's the kind of investment that pays off in the glass a decade from now.

The Lemon House is almost open

And finally The Lemon House, our second on-property Airbnb, is nearly ready to welcome its first guests. We're putting the finishing touches on it now and expect to open bookings very soon. This has been a project a long time in the making, and having another beautiful property to stay out here among the vines is going to be another incredible way to experience Laetitia.

So: an early harvest, unevenness in the vineyard that promises a long ripening season, our coquards doing what they do best, new people finding their footing, big plans taking shape, replanting on the horizon, and a place to actually spend the night among it all. It's a lot happening at once, and it all adds up to the same feeling: the vibes out here are at an all-time high. Stay tuned!