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1999 vintage report for Adelaide Hills (South Australia)

Although far from the ‘vintage from hell’ the 1999 vintage in the Adelaide Hills Wine Region was certainly difficult and not helped by disease and bird pressures, said the region’s president, Chris Laurie. The vintage was always destined to be below average tonnages, due to poor set following flowering. This was exacerbated by an extremely dry and hot growing season. ‘We were looking for quality to make up for the lack of quantity,’ said Chris. ‘We were well on course to achieving this, with early ripening varieties coming off in splendid condition, until the third week of March when Hughie intervened with intermittent rain of over 100 mL in the ensuing three weeks.’ Disease pressure from botrytis increased in a way not seen for many years and, despite everyone’s best endeavours, losses of both quality and crop occurred in various parts of the region, with Chardonnay and Semillon the most affected. When the weather improved, four weeks of Indian summer meant that those varieties which survived the cool weather and disease pressure went on to reach optimal Baume with surprisingly good acid levels. ‘It is difficult to draw a line through the entire region, variety by variety,’ said Chris. ‘However Sauvignon Blanc in most areas came off before the rain and shows excellent varietal character. Chardonnay and Semillon seem to have been the most weather-affected varieties. Reds, particularly Pinot and Cabernet, show excellent colour with good varietal definition.’ Summing up, Chris said there was a drop of 30% in yield. Those areas which were able to pick early and late in the vintage have produced excellent wines, albeit in greatly reduced quantity. A bright spot was the marked absence of European wasps compared with previous years.