Issue 02 · October 2026

Frost in April, heat in August

From Jai

One thing I keep coming back to in my viticulture coursework is disease management. A lot of what we learned comes down to weather: warm, humid stretches are when mildew and rot get going, so a spring like this one, with an early warm-up followed by a freeze, or a summer of heat swings, changes how closely a grower has to watch the vines and when they spray. It made me realize that a wine’s story starts months before harvest, with a grower reading the weather and making calls long before anyone tastes anything.

The freeze

This spring New Jersey had a warm spell that woke the vines up early, then temperatures dropped into the mid-20s. Buds that had already started to swell didn’t survive. Local growers felt it hard:

• Brook Hollow Winery (Knowlton) said the freeze killed buds to the center, which could mean around 100,000 fewer bottles.
• Unionville Vineyards (Hunterdon) spent nearly $30,000 on frost candles across 40 acres and still lost about 30% of its crop.
• Bellview Winery lost roughly 80% of its early buds.

The good news is that the vines themselves mostly survive. What’s lost is this year’s fruit, and many wineries are getting through on earlier vintages.

The heat

Champagne had a spring frost too, then heatwaves. Harvest began August 6, the earliest on record, and was widespread by August 17, about two weeks ahead of 2025. Because the grapes ripened so fast, regulators allowed up to 15% alcohol for 2026 only, against the usual 13%. That’s a first.

A few things worth keeping in perspective: the average potential alcohol is still under 12%; only a small number of growers are affected; producers can blend with older, lighter wines; and Champagne requires at least 15 months of aging, so none of this reaches shelves before 2028. Still, one of the industry’s own leaders said a harvest like this could be the norm within 10–15 years.

From the Classroom: why heat means higher alcohol

Alcohol comes from sugar. Yeast eats the sugar in grape juice and turns it into alcohol, so more sugar in the grape means more alcohol in the wine. Heat speeds up sugar buildup, but flavor, tannin ripeness and acidity don’t keep pace: acidity drops in the heat, while flavors and tannins need time. So a winemaker can have plenty of sugar while the rest of the grape isn’t ready, or wait for flavor and end up with a high-alcohol wine. Picking day becomes a hard call.

Cheers,
Jai

Issue 01 · September 2026

Behind the Label

Welcome

If you’re reading this, you were probably at the party, or you’ve heard one too many stories about “the wine thing” over the years. Either way — welcome. This is the first issue of something new: a monthly note from us, about wine.

Why a newsletter? For a long time, Gulati Wines lived entirely in conversation — a bottle opened at dinner, a barrel update mentioned in passing, a label design texted to a friend for an opinion. The website changed that a little; now there’s a place for the story. But a website is static. A newsletter is a way to actually stay in touch — to tell you what’s new in the cellar, and, honestly, to share what I’m learning as I go deeper into this, one course and one vintage at a time.

Why now? A few things lined up. The site is live. I’m a few courses into real viticulture and winemaking education at UC Davis and Washington State, which means I’m reading and thinking about wine constantly, not just making it. And there’s a whole world of wine news, science, and stories I come across that never had anywhere to go before. This is that place.

What to expect: Once a month, something short — an update on what’s happening at Gulati Wines, plus one or two things from the wider wine world worth knowing about. Sometimes technical, sometimes just interesting. Always real, never long.

A Preview: What’s Coming Next Issue

Next month, we’ll dig into a story that hit close to home this year — a brutal spring frost that tore through New Jersey and mid-Atlantic vineyards, cutting crops by as much as 90% at some wineries just a short drive from here. It’s a reminder of how much weather, timing, and a little luck shape every bottle, long before anyone’s tasting it.

Cheers,
Jai