Sam, Peter and Tom Barry. Photo Matt Turner

Jim Barry Wines has completed its 50th vintage at its family-owned winery’s Clare Valley site built by Jim and Nancy Barry in 1974.

“Our winery has come a long way from when it was built 50 years ago,” said third-generation winemaker Tom Barry. “My grandfather, Jim, always embraced technology and instilled a drive for innovation in the subsequent generations of the family.

“We are always striving to create the best wine possible utilising the new wine technology that is available to us. This philosophy has put us in good stead to make great wine from this site for another 50 years at least,” he said.

The Jim Barry winery under construction.

He commented that the 2023 was the latest the winery had experienced due to cooler conditions in the summer months, but the longer hang time had resulted in excellent fruit flavour in all varieties.

“The Riesling is packed with flavour and phenolic ripeness, with great acid,” he said. “The balance achieved between fruit concentration and acid is outstanding.”

Proprietor Peter Barry said the 2023 vintage was reminiscent of those in the early 1990s.

“Picking in late March/early April was the norm and we saw some outstanding vintages throughout this period,” Peter said. “The cooler weather has meant extra work in the vineyard to keep disease at bay and ensure ripening. We used our learnings from the 2017 vintage to ensure our vines remained healthy through the season.”

Tom Barry said that despite the late start to the 2023 vintage, it was more compressed than the 2022 season, with the vintage completed in approximately eight weeks (four weeks shorter than 2022).

He added that recent improvements to the winery site had ensured the winemaking team could handle the compressed time frame.

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