Louth winery sets Irish record with country’s biggest-ever grape harvest

Fairy Trees Winery in Dunleer, Louth, is setting a new milestone for Irish winemaking with what they say is the country’s largest grape harvest on record.

From now until mid-October, the winery’s team will hand-harvest over 15,000 kilos of grapes in what they say is “an achievement that sets a new benchmark for Irish viticulture and demonstrates Ireland’s ability to thrive as a cool-climate wine producer.”

This harvest arrives just as traditional wine regions like France face mounting challenges from extreme heat and wildfires. In fact, France 24 reports that France is experiencing its worst harvest in 70 years.

As Fairy Trees owner and winemaker, Bertrand Laclie, explains, “The old approaches to winemaking are starting to fail. Weather is changing and so are consumers' preferences. Fairy Trees wants to do our part to help the Irish wine industry adapt.”

Founded in 2020, Fairy Trees is a family-owned and operated winery cultivating more than 28,000 vines across 20 acres. As Ireland’s first commercial-scale winery, Fairy Trees embraces permaculture principles and remains proudly pesticide-free.

In addition to popular products such as Sparkling Irish Brut and Signature Series Bán and Dearg, Fairy Trees will soon launch Ireland’s first grape brandy and mistelle Irish wine liqueur.