2007

No rain in 2006 led to the final reserves of sub soil moisture being depleted by early spring. Southern Australia is now in the grip of the worst drought since the white man invaded. Bush fires in the Alpine regions and across Gippsland. Severe frost damage across southern Victoria during September- October led to our smallest vintage ever. A very short growing season with constant stress led to sugar ripeness before flavour and/or tannin maturity. Sauvignon Blanc a pretty wine, Chardonnays fragile and should drink well over the medium term. Pinot Noir and Shiraz at best are average. A vintage from hell....

2006

Dry 05 winter and spring, very little rain through the growing season. We harvested earlier than ever, to avoid stress characters in the wines. Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay good to excellent (Macedon in particular an exceptional vintage), but it was perhaps too warm and early for great Pinot Noir. Heathcote Shiraz bright and vibrant, maybe a touch simple- time will tell. Werribee produced a tannic, savoury wine, will age well.

2005  

Another warm, dry spring and summer. Lovely year for Sauvignon Blanc in the Adelaide Hills, with concentrated flavours and good natural acidities. Early harvest in southern Victoria, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir ripening simultaneously and producing powerful wines with broad, full structure and moderate aging potential. Heathcote was again warm, and careful vineyard management was needed to avoid overripe, unbalanced wines. Pink Cliffs powerful and closed, One Eye as usual more weight and fat.

2004

Mother nature smiled and rain fell through the spring of ’03. Good crops, even, cool ripening and low disease pressure produced excellent wines across SA and Victoria. Chardonnay ripened with good acidity and concentrated flavours. Pinot Noir soft and supple, with ripe flavours and balanced acidity. In spite of some frost damage, Shiraz in Heathcote was simply outstanding- beautifully structured wines with fantastic colours, aromatics and palate weight- the best will age 20+ years.

2003 

In stark contrast to ’02, an incredibly dry, hot season. Most whites clumsy and unbalanced, the best are drinking well now. Reds tannic and tough, Mclaren Vale in particular suffering from heat stress and excessive alcohol. Geelong was very dry, growing Pinot Noir that is full bodied and tannic. Heathcote was hot and dry, many wines over ripe, alcoholic and lacking vibrance- thankfully not ours. Our final vintage from McLaren Vale.

2002

Will be remembered for disasterously low crops across southern Australia. A very cool, unsettled spring resulted in very uneven flowering. Cool conditions continued, producing concentrated whites (Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay in particular) and highly coloured, tannic reds. Most Pinot Noirs lacked balance, but Heathcote Shiraz outstanding, Pink Cliffs in particular. McLaren Vale supple and concentrated.

2001

Another warm, early vintage. Good spring rains in ’00 gave excellent spring growth and good crops. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Shiraz all ripened evenly and produced good wines with persistent flavours and excellent tannins in the reds. Geelong Pinot Noir outstanding. Our first vintage of Heathcote Shiraz produced excellent wines. McLaren Vale Shiraz big, alcoholic and tannic. 

2000

The first in our new winery. Warm and consistent across southern Victoria, moderate crops. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay excelled, looking excellent from the day of harvest. Most have developed rather quickly in bottle, perhaps because of low acidity at harvest due to warm nights through the ripening period. McLaren Vale warm, but once again rain at picking diluted flavours.

1999

Cool and long growing season, some disease pressure in Geelong and the Yarra Valley. Very good for Chardonnay, with excellent natural acidity and concentrated flavours.  Pinot Noir and Shiraz patchy. Late January and early February rains in SA affected McLaren Vale and Barossa, the best wines aging gracefully but many dilute and soft examples of Shiraz made.