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2015 vintage report for Margaret River (Western Australia)

Margaret River’s 2015 white wine vintage has been completed with many wine producers reporting their earliest ever finish, some as early as the first week in March.
Stuart Watson, Margaret River Wine Association president, said fruit quality was looking very good.
“Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon displays intense varietal characteristics such as crisp natural acidity on the palate accompanied by a citrus to lemon and lime fruit aromas on the nose,” Watson said. “Chardonnay also has a great length to its acidity with quite soft line of phenolics, while profile flavours cover the spectrum from early summer peach to nectarine as well as a fine contour of citrus.”
Quality was looking high, although Watson said yields were down across the board especially in Chardonnay and Semillon.
“This has been brought about by inclement weather at flowering during October and November, including cold night time temperatures and rainfall,” Watson said. “Thereafter berry development was hampered by wet and very windy conditions in spring and early summer.”
Since early March, Watson said an autumn weather pattern came into being and with the passing Cyclone Olwyn, the region experienced some rain with cooler night time temperatures.
“This has effectively extended the ripening period for red wine varieties quite nicely giving them more ‘hang time’ to enhance fruit development flavour profiles with softer tannin levels arising as a consequence.”