Andrew Hedley’s vintage update from New Zealand

We had 30mm of rain yesterday, yet to have a grape in the winery, but miraculously the grapes seem to have survived very well, we were expecting some splitting and associated downstream problems from water uptake but all looked well this morning. The weather stations incredibly didn’t register a botrytis infection period as it wasn’t wet enough for long enough as the wind started to blow almost immediately the front went through. A lightning stike buggered up part of our phone system which we’re still trying to repair. It’s been another unusual growing season - there is no such thing as normal here any more - sugars were running way ahead of physiological ripening signs as we’ve had a warm march and warm-ish nights as well but there appears to be some balance creeping in now which is a relief. I had been worried about it being a relatively low acid season a couple of weeks ago but that has changed a bit into wondering about a higher alcohol/high acid season - aside form our riesling which I still think fits the lower acid/lower sugar bill - the seeds are already brown as usual and the stems lignifying. Hooray for old vines. Last year’s alcohols were up a touch on 08 and we may see a bit of that again this year in some varieties - crops are relatively low again and there should be good concentration in the wines as there was in 09 and I am more hopeful of achieving good balance in the grapes than I was a couple of weeks ago. But we shall see, far too early to make predictions though I have been reading a lot of big-company bullshit about how the grapes are the cleanest and best we’ve ever seen (does anyone fall for this crapola?) but I think they may shut up now after a few rain events .... We may pick some clay hillside Pinot Noir from a new vineyard for us at the weekend which is what passes for exciting here, and perhaps some of the earliest chardonnay I’ve had for a while and some Select Riesling - I’m guessing another 7.5%er (sorry).