Could it be that a few weeks down south for the vintage may bring about a lifestyle change for David Pike? We can only hope.
Could it be that a few weeks down south for the vintage may bring about a lifestyle change for David Pike? We can only hope.
MY body clock is changing and, in a strange kind of way, I like it. What I mean to say is that I am enjoying greeting the sunrise every morning.
Vintage so far has provided some magic sunrises and stunning sunsets. Overall, the weather has been perfect for working. However, the next few weeks will be vital in determining just how the 2002 vintage pans out for wine producers.
Already there are concerns about some parts of the extended Margaret River region being able to get their reds ripe enough to harvest. Parts of the eastern states are also undoubtedly in a spot of bother. Stories are emerging about parts of South Australia that will almost certainly struggle to get fruit ripe.
Others have suggested that, apart from being almost three weeks behind a normal vintage pattern, yields will be even further down in size than first anticipated. This may be a relief for some of those investment planted vineyards that still have a plentiful supply of wine from last year’s record harvest.
Why a relief? Well, firstly that they won’t have as much fruit to turn into wine and secondly, and more importantly, it also should increase the quality produced.
Given the amount of wine from 2001 still available on the bulk market, a vintage with reduced yields probably wouldn’t be a bad thing. In fact it almost would be a blessing if a few wineries struggled to produce their normal volumes.
Most wineries in Margaret River will have finished picking all of the white varieties by Easter. Semillon is the only white variety that may hang on to ripen into the first week of April. Most of the red varieties are progressing and many wineries have begun taking reds off the vine.
At Devils Lair we are looking forward to a relatively quiet week as most of the red varieties are still building up flavours and their sugar levels. In anticipation of this lull, I was involved in yet another very important cleaning job – preparing the red fermenting tanks for the eventual arrival of the reds.
Processing some semillon early this week I said that the usual swarm of bees that seems to follow previous vintages I have done were not out in force. It seems the bees have been preoccupied with the amazing blossoms of the gum trees at the moment and thus have left the grapes alone.
The yeast trials of Devils Lair’s premium block of chardonnay with which I inoculated different batches have just about finished their fermentation. It was an interesting exercise, seeing the way the different fermentation behaved over the past week or so. A few of the yeast strains took around five days to get going, while others started to rock after just two or three.
As I checked the progress of the various batches it also was interesting to see that each of the batches brought out different characters in the wine, with some bringing out the oak characters, while others exemplified fruit flavours. Grapefruit, white peach and nectarine seemed to dominate. The fermentations have been doing their thing, taking out the sugar for about 10 days, and are now showing a beaume level of around 1.8 degrees. They should finish their fermentation within a few days.
Just as the fermentation hits the closing stages the winemaker instructed that the barrels be inoculated with malolatic bugs (not really bugs, but enzymes), which will help the chardonnay take the lactic or green apple-like acidity out of the wine and help the wine become rounded.
When adding the malo-bugs I also topped up the barrels and stirred the lees, which involves giving all the living sediment resting on the bottom of the barrel a bit of a wake-up call – a technique that helps the winemaker gain complexity within the final product.
Working with barrels has given me new appreciation of the flavour spectrums that can be entwined into the wine. I have certainly been amazed at the significant differences differently branded barrels can impart on a wine such as the chardonnay I have been following. Simply nosing the barrels as you pull out a bung you are swamped by aromas that reflect the difference in the oak you are using.
Cleaning winery equipment on a daily basis isn’t the only reason that I am down here, but some of the wines we have sat down to ‘have a look at’ have been pretty good.
During my first week I was among a group who looked at 12 wines from the St Emilion and Pomerol districts of France.
Over dinner one night we took the theme of 1997 from around the world. Italy was the winner and, over a roast chicken, I think I had about four glasses on the go. The selection included wines such as the recent release of Cullen’s Cabernet Merlot, which although a stunning wine showed a little flat, and the current release of Cape Mentelle’s Zinfandel, which in the past has been a monster although this current release (the 2000) was a little tame. The pick of the recent wines I have tried over the past week was a wine from the generally disappointing 1999 vintage from South Australia.
Zema Estate 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon rating 17.75/20 rrp $21.99
A real surprise package given the general response to this vintage. Attractive and quite seductive sweet, savoury aromas that included touches of briary fruits and blackcurrants with a palate that shows softer tannins and supple fruit flavours that wouldn’t be considered the norm in this part of the world. Not a long-term cellaring prospect but well worth seeking out.
Although usually found in places such as La Vigna in Mt Lawley, I also have bought this wine from Liquor Barrons in Attadale in past vintages.
MY body clock is changing and, in a strange kind of way, I like it. What I mean to say is that I am enjoying greeting the sunrise every morning.
Vintage so far has provided some magic sunrises and stunning sunsets. Overall, the weather has been perfect for working. However, the next few weeks will be vital in determining just how the 2002 vintage pans out for wine producers.
Already there are concerns about some parts of the extended Margaret River region being able to get their reds ripe enough to harvest. Parts of the eastern states are also undoubtedly in a spot of bother. Stories are emerging about parts of South Australia that will almost certainly struggle to get fruit ripe.
Others have suggested that, apart from being almost three weeks behind a normal vintage pattern, yields will be even further down in size than first anticipated. This may be a relief for some of those investment planted vineyards that still have a plentiful supply of wine from last year’s record harvest.
Why a relief? Well, firstly that they won’t have as much fruit to turn into wine and secondly, and more importantly, it also should increase the quality produced.
Given the amount of wine from 2001 still available on the bulk market, a vintage with reduced yields probably wouldn’t be a bad thing. In fact it almost would be a blessing if a few wineries struggled to produce their normal volumes.
Most wineries in Margaret River will have finished picking all of the white varieties by Easter. Semillon is the only white variety that may hang on to ripen into the first week of April. Most of the red varieties are progressing and many wineries have begun taking reds off the vine.
At Devils Lair we are looking forward to a relatively quiet week as most of the red varieties are still building up flavours and their sugar levels. In anticipation of this lull, I was involved in yet another very important cleaning job – preparing the red fermenting tanks for the eventual arrival of the reds.
Processing some semillon early this week I said that the usual swarm of bees that seems to follow previous vintages I have done were not out in force. It seems the bees have been preoccupied with the amazing blossoms of the gum trees at the moment and thus have left the grapes alone.
The yeast trials of Devils Lair’s premium block of chardonnay with which I inoculated different batches have just about finished their fermentation. It was an interesting exercise, seeing the way the different fermentation behaved over the past week or so. A few of the yeast strains took around five days to get going, while others started to rock after just two or three.
As I checked the progress of the various batches it also was interesting to see that each of the batches brought out different characters in the wine, with some bringing out the oak characters, while others exemplified fruit flavours. Grapefruit, white peach and nectarine seemed to dominate. The fermentations have been doing their thing, taking out the sugar for about 10 days, and are now showing a beaume level of around 1.8 degrees. They should finish their fermentation within a few days.
Just as the fermentation hits the closing stages the winemaker instructed that the barrels be inoculated with malolatic bugs (not really bugs, but enzymes), which will help the chardonnay take the lactic or green apple-like acidity out of the wine and help the wine become rounded.
When adding the malo-bugs I also topped up the barrels and stirred the lees, which involves giving all the living sediment resting on the bottom of the barrel a bit of a wake-up call – a technique that helps the winemaker gain complexity within the final product.
Working with barrels has given me new appreciation of the flavour spectrums that can be entwined into the wine. I have certainly been amazed at the significant differences differently branded barrels can impart on a wine such as the chardonnay I have been following. Simply nosing the barrels as you pull out a bung you are swamped by aromas that reflect the difference in the oak you are using.
Cleaning winery equipment on a daily basis isn’t the only reason that I am down here, but some of the wines we have sat down to ‘have a look at’ have been pretty good.
During my first week I was among a group who looked at 12 wines from the St Emilion and Pomerol districts of France.
Over dinner one night we took the theme of 1997 from around the world. Italy was the winner and, over a roast chicken, I think I had about four glasses on the go. The selection included wines such as the recent release of Cullen’s Cabernet Merlot, which although a stunning wine showed a little flat, and the current release of Cape Mentelle’s Zinfandel, which in the past has been a monster although this current release (the 2000) was a little tame. The pick of the recent wines I have tried over the past week was a wine from the generally disappointing 1999 vintage from South Australia.
Zema Estate 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon rating 17.75/20 rrp $21.99
A real surprise package given the general response to this vintage. Attractive and quite seductive sweet, savoury aromas that included touches of briary fruits and blackcurrants with a palate that shows softer tannins and supple fruit flavours that wouldn’t be considered the norm in this part of the world. Not a long-term cellaring prospect but well worth seeking out.
Although usually found in places such as La Vigna in Mt Lawley, I also have bought this wine from Liquor Barrons in Attadale in past vintages.
