The season leading into Vintage 2026 was one of the most challenging we have seen from a vineyard logistics perspective. Winter was exceptionally wet, with nearly one metre of rain recorded from June through September alone, above the recent annual average. Wilyabrup finished the season with around 1,250 mm of rainfall, and the local weather station recorded its wettest winter since 1967.
This made life particularly difficult for our vineyard manager, Brian Martin. Spray windows were short, and the team had to work around constant rain events, often finding that the only clear weather arrived on weekends. In Brian’s words, it was “the most challenging growing season I’ve had in 20 years.”
Thankfully, after a wet November, the rain largely switched off. From then until the end of March, when the first real rain event arrived on the 28th, the dangerous part of the growing season was dry and close to ideal. Apart from Christmas Day, which reached around 35°C, there were no extreme heat events. Instead, we had steady, even ripening conditions as we moved into harvest.
Harvest began at the start of February, a few days later than 2025 and a few days earlier than 2023. That puts it close to the median of the past decade, but still early in the context of Cullen’s 50-year history — perhaps the new normal. Heat accumulation was very similar to 2023, although it was more evenly spread, with less intense summer heat.
From the first picks into the winery, we were excited by the fruit. Flavours were strong and acids were holding well. There was no rush on the Chardonnay this year. It was picked steadily over nearly three weeks, with acid retention and flavour development both excellent. Yields were good across both the young blocks and the old vines.
Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon came in quickly over one long week. Yields were down, partly due to blind budding in the Sauvignon Blanc and limited fruit set, but the flavours were incredible. With no rain pressure and delicious fruit coming through the door, it was one of those rare periods where the winemaking decisions felt easy.
There was no real gap between whites and reds this year, with the first red fruit arriving just two days after the last of the whites. Again, the conditions held beautifully. The weather was fine, not too hot, and ripening continued at a moderate pace. Acids held, flavours built, and we were able to wait for optimum ripeness across all varieties rather than being forced by weather.
The reds were a real highlight of the season: great colour, fruit weight and freshness. After such a demanding start in the vineyard, the winery had the easier job. By the end of harvest, there was a quiet feeling among the team that 2026 may prove to be one of the strongest Cullen vintages yet.