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2010 vintage report for McLaren Vale (South Australia)

Supplied by McLaren Vale Grape Wine and Tourism
Growing season: Above-average rainfall in winter and autumn set vines up well with healthy canopies and allowed the soil to store water. Conditions since the mid 2000s have seen a trend of earlier budburst, flowering and harvest with shorter ripening seasons. The 2010 vintage was no exception, with budburst beginning in late August leading to flowering and veraison occurring earlier than what was previously considered normal. Spring began with wet and stormy conditions. Strong westerly winds caused small amounts of shoot damage in some vineyards but, in general, McLaren Vale vineyards experienced an even start to the season. A series of hailstorms on 26 September damaged some vineyards between McLaren Flat, Willunga and McLaren Vale. In the worst-affected blocks, shoots were broken and inflorescences damaged. This led to some leaf botrytis, which caused affected vines to lose leaves and slowed growth. Chardonnay vineyards were affected most with some poor berry set which led to a reduction in Chardonnay crops. Summer weather came early with consecutive days of around 35oC in November which, for the most part, did not cause any problems with the exception of Grenache. The flowering Grenache ‘shattered’, dropping premature berries and reducing yield dramatically, but this had no lasting effect on quality. All other varieties set well. As summer progressed, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon developed well and held their crops. Heavy rainfall during December helped ‘brighten’ vines up and kept them growing until around Christmas, setting them up well for ripening. Powdery mildew pressure was higher than in the last few seasons due to the overcast weather and high humidity that came with the December rain. December’s rain also triggered a downy mildew event. Some vineyards in the Range Road area developed oilspots that could be easily seen. A couple of oilspots were also seen on Seaview Road, north of the McLaren Vale township. Despite high risk weather in December, dry weather between January and harvest prevented any commercially-significant outbreaks of downy mildew.
Vintage: No further rain interrupted harvest and winemakers were able to take their pick of fruit when they wanted. February and March were mild and calm with cool nights. The cool nights helped keep vines fresh with heavy dews occurring in the morning.
Yields and quality: The estimated total tonnage for McLaren Vale of white grapes crushed is about 4000 tonnes and red grapes crushed is about 34,000t. Crops were balanced and the wines emerging from the red varieties particularly are of a high standard. Skins were very thick and dark with a good level of tannin. Cabernet Sauvignon is regarded as the standout variety from the season showing outstanding varietal character and tannin.