In Italy, September is more than the beginning of autumn. In wine country, it is the season of vendemmia — the grape harvest — one of the most intense, demanding, and rewarding moments of the year.

The harvest does not begin everywhere at the same time. Every grape variety, vineyard, altitude, and exposure follows its own rhythm. In many wine regions, the first grapes to be picked are those destined for sparkling wines, harvested earlier to preserve the freshness and acidity needed for the base wines. Then come many of the white varieties, followed by the reds, which often remain on the vine longer to achieve greater ripeness, color, and structure. In Alto Adige, for example, harvest reports regularly show sparkling-wine grapes entering the cellar before the main harvest begins.

But vendemmia is much more than choosing the right day to pick a bunch of grapes. It is the final result of an entire year spent pruning, tying, watching the weather, protecting the vines, and waiting.

And in some parts of Italy, harvesting takes on an almost extraordinary dimension.

In the hills of Conegliano Valdobbiadene, vineyards climb steep slopes known locally as rive. Machinery often cannot reach them, so grapes are picked almost entirely by hand. In the most difficult vineyards, this is rightly called heroic viticulture. Harvesting means carrying boxes, climbing slopes, passing grapes from hand to hand and finding ingenious ways to move fruit through vineyards that seem to cling to the hillsides.

The same spirit can be found in the mountain vineyards of Trentino-Alto Adige, where steep terraces and high-altitude sites require a remarkable amount of manual work. Here, altitude and dramatic temperature changes help shape wines of freshness and personality, but working those vineyards demands precision, strength, and patience.

And then there is Valle d’Aosta, where vines grow on terraces supported by dry-stone walls, climbing from the valley floor toward vineyards reaching around 1,200 meters near Morgex, at the foot of Mont Blanc. Looking at these vineyards is enough to understand why the expression “heroic viticulture” feels completely natural here.

Yet despite all the effort, vendemmia has always been a moment of community. Families work together, generations meet among the rows, meals are shared, and the end of a long day often becomes an occasion to sit around a table and celebrate. In places such as Valdobbiadene, the harvest is still described as one of the great events of the year — the moment when months of work finally become something tangible.

There is fatigue, certainly. Sore backs, stained hands, early mornings, unpredictable weather, and long days in both vineyard and cellar.

But there is also something difficult to explain until you experience it: the satisfaction of seeing the grapes arrive safely in the winery and knowing that another vintage has begun.

Perhaps that is what makes vendemmia so special. It is not simply the moment when grapes are picked.

It is the moment when a year of work, patience, hope, and tradition finally comes home.

So, what are you waiting for? Join us and…