Vintage 09

[smithy]

Now thats vintage is nearly over ( should Finish Fri 3rd) its a chance to work out what its like.
For those that stuck it out and waited to pick, my guess is that there will be some sensational gear from 09.
For those that were short of water, smoke effected or those who just rushed in early after the heatwave back in Feb there will be some absolute thin gutless wines made.
Guess you really did need your cup of concrete!
Wish I'd listened to my own advice.....The early stuff was nice enough..good colours etc, but just a bit short.
The later picked reds are wicked.
Anyone else got some thoughts on Vintage 09?
Cheers
Smithy

[DaveB]

Hey Smithy,

It is looking fantastic here in the Barossa....yields are down I guess on average around 30% but the fruit looks awesome. Some of the most balanced we have seen. Really low VA's too. The Grenache and Mataro which is due to start coming in next week is going to be superb....looking at the Holton forecast it seems that we could have a dream run also.

Had a drink with Phil Lehmann and Ben Radford last week at they were stoked also....big thumbs up from them for Cabernet Sauvignon this year.

All the ferments are clean, no stickers, no heat spikes, great colour and extract all in all it's a cracker!

[Rawshack]

Potentially a shocker for the Yarra Valley and surrounding area's i.e. the Strathbogie Ranges. However, I read an interesting report on how smoke taint had affected some vineyards but surprisingly had bypassed neighbouring sites

If anyone has any update I'd appreciate it

[Davo]

Shocker in Langhorne Creek and McLaren Vale. Some didn't even bother to pick, others with 50% to 70% drop in yield and then fruit quality pretty poor.

As per DaveB, the Barossa looked pretty speccy in most parts but some of the very old dry grown stuff could be a bit iffy.

[smithy]

So its a Clint Eastwood year.
The Good, The bad & The Ugly!
Cheers
Smithy