The 2010-11 season kicked off in late August with our Chardonnay at Gillards Rd being one of the first blocks to have bud burst around the Valley. The reds soils on the hill warm up quickly and bud burst is often earlier here than in other vineyards. Spring was one of the wettest in years and created very challenging conditions for our vineyard team with them working hard when there were dry periods. The vineyards did however look fantastic with lush growth both on the vine and across the vineyard floor. Flowering was through mid October and this was later than the last few years, but closer to the traditional timing of the Hunter. The rain was lighter in this period and a good flowering and set occurred.
As we entered December the rain eased and the drier conditions were timely as we had large canopies which needed to slow down. A quick trim was carried in mid-December and early berry colouring and softening started in both the Pinot and Chardonnay prior to Christmas.
January remained dry and despite a prolonged hot spell ripening progressed well and harvest commenced on 27th February with our Gillards Rd vineyard picked in 3 sessions and Branxton in one run. Our vineyards were bountiful this year with a modest increase in tonnages which delighted our winemakers.
The junior vineyard crew – Callum, Hannah and Jack kept a close eye on the harvest activities before the fruit was whisked away to the winery .
