Vintage Report by James Hook
Lazy Ballerina wines made: Shiraz, Grenache, Viognier, & Non-Vintage sparkling wines.
The McLaren Vale Wine Region experienced a drier than average growing season for the third year in a row. The continuation of dry conditions has contributed to generally low yields across the region.
The reported crush of winegrapes from McLaren Vale was 28,751 tonnes in 2020, down by 13 per cent compared with the 2019 reported crush of 33,055 tonnes. Over the past five years (up to 2019), the average crush for McLaren Vale has been 36,590 tonnes, making the 2020 crush 21 per cent below the five-year average.
Dry conditions during spring reduced the vigour of vines, while several days of very high winds in late November were seen to reduce the berry set of Cabernet Sauvignon and Tempranillo which were flowering at the time.
The summer of Vintage 2020 was a tale of two summers. Our “first” summer, the month of December, was the hottest on record.
December’s hot weather had vines showing signs of water and heat stress much earlier in the season than they would typically but also suppressed Powdery and Downy Mildew and there were very low levels of disease this vintage.
Fortunately, to break the record hot weather, the northern Australian monsoon season started at the start of January, and temperatures over southern Australia dropped correspondingly. We had 13 consecutive days below 30°C from 15–27 January. This was the longest such run in January since 1992 and longest in summer since December 2008. The mean average temperatures were 1.2 °C below average.
The start of February saw a monsoonal rain band move over South Australia and the McLaren Vale Wine Region experienced 20-30mm during three days of thunderstorms. It was just enough summer rain to freshen up vineyards, without the unwanted side effect of berry splitting and then botrytis bunch rot.
This trend of cooler weather continued through February and it proved much cooler than average, with no maximum temperatures above 35°C for the first time. February is “normally” the hottest month.
Grape picking took 5 weeks to complete starting at full pace in the first week of March and ending at the start of April. The report from winemakers on wine quality has been good, with winemaking made easier by cool weather and lower tonnages allowing for close attention at the winery.
OVERVIEW OF VINTAGE STATISTICS
The reported crush of winegrapes from McLaren Vale was 28,751 tonnes in 2020, down by 13 per cent compared with the 2019 reported crush of 33,055 tonnes. Over the past five years (up to 2019), the average crush for McLaren Vale has been 36,590 tonnes, making this year’s crush 21 per cent below the five-year average. Compared with the other major regions in SA, McLaren Vale had a relatively small reduction and reported a larger crush than the Barossa Valley and Langhorne Creek for the first time since 2004, and was second largest region by volume in the state in 2020.
The total estimated value of winegrapes from McLaren Vale in 2020 was $56.5 million compared with $59 million in 2019. The decrease in production was partly offset by an overall increase in the average purchase value of grapes, which increased by 10 per cent from $1771 per tonne in 2019 to $1951 per tonne.
There were increases in average prices for the three largest varieties: Shiraz up by 8 per cent to $2107 per tonne, Cabernet Sauvignon up 12 per cent to $1998 per tonne and Grenache up by 16 per cent to $2156 per tonne. The average value of Grenache was higher than Shiraz for the first time.
The price dispersion data shows an upward shift in purchase prices, with 47 per cent of red grapes purchased at $2000 per tonne and above, compared with 26 per cent last year.
According to Vinehealth Australia data, the total vineyard area in McLaren Vale as at 30 April 2020 is 7349 hectares, compared with 7337 hectares in 2019. The total area is around 100 hectares less than it was 5 years ago.