Harvest in Quebec: So Much More Than Picking Grapes
- Aug 25
- 6 min read
Updated: Aug 27
There is something special about harvest season in Quebec.
After months spent pruning, weeding, leaf-thinning, and protecting the vines and grapes, the time finally comes to harvest the fruit of all that work. Quite literally.
At the vineyard, harvest marks a change of pace. Field activities gradually slow down while the winery comes to life. Bins fill up, grapes leave the vineyard blocks, and a new stage begins.
But before cutting that first bunch of grapes, you need to know when to harvest.
In this article:
Before Harvest: Knowing When to Pick the Grapes
Five to six weeks before harvest, the vines enter a particularly important stage: veraison.
The grapes gradually change colour, depending on the grape variety, and begin accumulating sugars and compounds that will contribute to the aromas and structure of the future wine.
This is also when we monitor the vines very closely. Weather conditions, grape health, development, and ripeness are assessed regularly. Each vineyard block develops at its own pace, so the calendar alone is not enough to determine the harvest date.
We measure sugar levels, but that is only part of the equation. Acidity, the ripeness of the seeds and skins, aromas, and even the taste of the grapes are also important.
Because, ultimately, you have to taste them.
The goal is not simply to harvest the sweetest grapes possible, but to reach the balance needed to produce the desired style of wine.
In Québec, this decision can be particularly challenging. Our growing season is relatively short, and weather conditions can change quickly in the fall. A few beautiful sunny days can make all the difference… just as a few cold nights or a period of rain can.
Hand Harvesting in Quebec: Hard Work in the Vineyard
When we think about grape harvesting, it is easy to imagine bunches of grapes at hand level that simply need to be cut and placed in a bin.
At our vineyard, the reality is a little different.
Our vineyard is planted exclusively with Vitis vinifera varieties, including Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. Their grape clusters grow relatively low in the canopy.
Very low.
To pick them, you often have to work in a crouched position, what we jokingly call working “like a little person,” or sit on a bucket. Some harvesters even use small carts that they move along with their feet as they make their way down the row.
And you cannot simply cut everything in front of you. An initial selection is made directly in the vineyard so that only the healthiest, properly ripened grapes are harvested. Clusters showing signs of disease or deterioration, or grapes that are not fully ripe, are left behind.
After a few hours, you quickly understand why grape harvesting is such physical work: bending over, crouching, standing back up, cutting, sorting, placing the grapes in containers, and starting all over again, row after row.
Your legs, back, and arms definitely feel it… and your hands get sticky!
A Day in the Life of a Grape Harvester
Every year, on select harvest days, we invite volunteers who would like to come lend us a hand.
No viticulture experience is required. We explain how to harvest the grapes and guide volunteers through the vineyard rows.
But you do need to be ready to work!
The grapes are harvested primarily by hand, one cluster at a time. We move along the rows, cut, sort, and place the grapes in the containers provided.
It is repetitive and sometimes demanding, but there is something particularly satisfying about watching the containers fill up throughout the day.
Most of all, you discover the vineyard from a completely different perspective. You see the vines up close, handle the grapes that will become our next wines, and take part in an important stage of the vintage.
A Well-Deserved Break During Harvest
A day of grape harvesting is, of course, about more than working in the vineyard rows.
Around midday, a break with an included lunch gives everyone a chance to recharge and share a moment with the other volunteers and the vineyard team.
Then, once the workday is over, it is time for a tasting of our wines and products.
The wine being tasted obviously does not come from the grapes harvested just a few hours earlier. Those grapes have only just arrived at the winery, and their transformation is only beginning.
But after spending the day with your hands in the grapes, tasting takes on a whole new dimension.
From Grapes to Wine: What Happens After Harvest?
Once harvested, the grape clusters arrive at the winery, where they are prepared according to the grape variety and the style of wine we want to produce.
They may be sorted, destemmed, crushed, or pressed.
For red wines, such as Pinot Noir, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, the grapes are fermented with their skins. This is one of the stages where the wine begins to extract some of its colour, tannins, and aromas.
For white wines, such as Riesling and Chardonnay, the grapes are generally pressed to extract the juice, which is then fermented.
Yeasts transform the sugars in the grape juice into alcohol and, gradually, the juice begins to become wine.
But the work is far from over.
Fermentation requires close attention, and the wines must be monitored, tasted, and guided throughout their development. Some wines will be aged in tanks, while others may spend time in barrels.
The entire process can sometimes take more than 12 months. This is particularly true of our Merlot and Cabernet Franc.
After Harvest, the Work Continues in the Vineyard
Harvest does not mark the end of the work in the vineyard.
While the wines quietly continue their development in the winery, the vineyard begins preparing for winter. The leaves eventually fall, and the vines gradually enter dormancy.
But in Québec, winter requires some special preparation.
For Vitis vinifera, the vines must be pruned and then covered with a geotextile fabric to protect them from the cold and the harsh conditions of the season.
Harvest therefore marks a transition from one stage to another: work in the vineyard gradually gives way to work in the winery, while preparations for the next growing season are already underway.
Every Vintage Tells a Different Story
This is also what makes harvest season so interesting.
Our Québec climate presents its challenges, but it also helps shape our wines. Warm days, cool nights, temperature fluctuations, and the conditions unique to each growing season all influence grape ripeness and, ultimately, the character of the vintage.
Same vineyard block. Same grape variety. Same winemaker.
But a different year.
And that is precisely what makes every vintage unique.
Taking part in harvest allows you to understand this firsthand. After spending a few hours harvesting grapes by hand, you never look at a bottle quite the same way again.
You now know that it is the result of many months of work, observation, and decisions made in the vineyard, followed by several stages of transformation and aging in the winery.
Come Experience Harvest With Us
If you would like to experience grape harvest from a different perspective, spend a day outdoors, get your hands in the vineyard, and share the experience with our team, our volunteer harvest days are a wonderful way to do it.
Come with good shoes, plenty of energy, and a willingness to work as part of a team.
You may leave with a little fatigue in your legs — especially after a few hours harvesting in that crouched position! — but also with a new appreciation for the work behind every bottle.
Because harvest is about much more than picking grapes.
It is about taking part in the birth of a vintage.
And every vintage tells the story of a new year in the vineyard.
Interested in joining us for the grape harvest this year?
Email us at vignoblehemmingford@gmail.com and let us know if you’ll be coming alone or with others, how many people will be joining you, and your availability during the week or on weekends between September 25 and October 12, 2026.
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