It’s almost here.
Just a couple more sleeps to go.
The wait will be over on Monday.
Yes, that’s right…
School goes back next week!
Oh, hang on… that’s not what I meant to tell you!
Something WAY more important is happening on Monday.
Our 2022 Chardonnay and Fumé Blanc will be heading down the bottling line!
What better way to celebrate the kids going back to school than with a glass of one of these favourites which have been MIA for longer than I care to admit?
We’ll have to wait another week or so to taste them for ourselves, but Rob followed them up to Boutique Bottlers in the Barossa and tasted them when they arrived.
Here’s what he had to say…
2022 Chardonnay
“I think it looks terrific!”
Do we need to say more? Maybe just a little.
“It has a lovely colour and is very bright. The nose really jumps from the glass with a beautiful combination of ripe fruit, nutty malolactic fermentation notes and very gentle oak aromas. Mouthwatering!!
“The palate is intense and long with a really nice soft acidity. It is very rich now, so when it’s bottled and settles down it will be so good!!”
2022 Fumé Blanc
“The colour is beautiful – very similar to the Chardonnay.
“The nose is a fabulous mix of tropical fruit and ripe peach with contributing notes of nutty malolactic fermentation and soft oak.
“The palate reflects the nose and it, too, is intense – maybe a little leaner than the Chardonnay, but with a long finish that really lingers.”
AH-MAY-ZING!! I can not wait to taste them both.
If you’re local and free on Saturday 11th Feb, why not join us for the launch? You should have an email in your inbox with all the details. If not, feel free to drop me a line.
If you’re not local or free, we’ll have a six-pack special for you. Keep an eye on your inbox for details.
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And before we go a quick update on that little red line…
Vintage 2022/23 update
If you tuned in last week, you’d remember I was cheering on the little 2022 growing season red line from the shoot growth graph in the weekly CropWatch Report.
And check out what it’s achieved over the last week…
Shoot length is now longer than all bar the 2020 growing season. Of note, is the fact that shoot growth has continued for longer than in previous seasons being four weeks later than the 2020 growing season.
I knew you could do it little red line!
E-L stage
Some varieties are still at E-L 31 (berries pea-size, 7mm diameter) but the majority are at E-L 32 (beginning of bunch closure, berries touching if berries are tight).
Berry set and early development is well advanced across the region.
There are a range of crop loads across the region ranging from average to below average. Bunch size is also variable, possibly in response to larger crops last season.
At present vines are 7-10 days behind in development in comparison with Vintage 2022. However, vineyards with light crops may catch up this delay as large canopies will have the capacity to accumulate sugars more rapidly.