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2009 vintage report for Padthaway (South Australia)

Contributed by David Edwards, acting president, Padthaway Grape Growers Association

Growing season: The 2008-09 growing season had 25% less rainfall than the long-term average (LTA), with the majority of rain falling in December. Prior to the December rains the actual rainfall was 70% below LTA. Average minimum and maximum temperatures were very close to LTA and the number of frost events was very minimal with only those areas that are reliably frosted being slightly damaged.

The low rainfall in November meant that there were no issues with flowering or fruitset.

Temperatures in November and December were average to slightly cool, providing good conditions for even ripening. The heatwave that carried through from late January into early February caused some problems, mainly with white varieties that could not stand-up to the intense daytime heat and the lack of cooling at night, but the majority of red varieties had passed through veraison and were able to continue ripening if they had an adequate canopy.

In mid-March, 20mm of rainfall fell in parts of Padthaway which pushed ripening and flavour development back by approximately two weeks but caused no real harm to the quality of the vintage.

Vintage: Vintage 2009 commenced in the second week of February which was similar to previous vintages in the region. With the rainfall in mid-March slowing ripening in some vineyards, the vintage did not conclude until the last week of April, two weeks later than average.

Yields and quality: Key regional varieties had mixed yield results this year. White varieties such as Chardonnay and Riesling had yields reduced by around 20% while Sauvignon Blanc yields were similar to LTA.

The region again produced some good quality Chardonnay, with the usual premium areas showing positive signs with good flavour development. Sauvignon Blanc is another variety which over the past couple of years is starting to show some good quality signs from this region. Red varieties also had a mixture of yield results with Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz only slightly down on LTA, and Merlot and Pinot Noir both slightly up on LTA.

The region is normally best known for its premium quality Shiraz production. However, this year the region is showing signs that Cabernet Sauvignon will be the standout variety with most growers reporting Cabernet results matching, if not better, than Shiraz. I suggest consumers keep a lookout for the Padthaway 2009 Cabernet Sauvignons as well as Shiraz and Chardonnay.