Tuesday 3 March 2015

What’s the best thing about vintage? The excitement of seeing the months of hard work & tender loving care in the vineyard come to life - actually turning into something we can bottle. The whole bunch ferment Shiraz (from the re-worked Bethany Estate block) came out of tank to be pressed today - tasting the wine - while still inside the grape itself was a pretty amazing experience!

Amazingly, after the weeks of long, long hours & hard work our minds are all still pretty sharp. We blitz the traditional morning-tea quiz (from the Advertiser) - with not a single question answered incorrectly. Well done team!

And as for the intake today? 5 tonnes of Grenache!

Wednesday 4 March

Okay - maybe we’re looking at a Grenache fortnight now… A big intake of hand-picked Grenache from one of our lovely local growers comes in today & keeps the guys busy - all day… Yet again.

Thursday 5 March

I’m sure glad Mark loves Grenache so much - he’s definitely been immersed in it for quite some time this vintage. More hand-picked Grenache - this lot from another grower is in today.

Exciting news on the kitchen front - the bare room is now officially an actual, working kitchen! The sinks are plumbed, the benches, rangehood & oven are all in. Hopefully we can find time in the coming week to christen it with our turkey… maybe. If not, having Tracy Collins & Pete Little christen it at the party next Sunday is still pretty awesome!

Friday 6 March

…aaaand here we go again. Yet another parcel of Grenache comes in fresh from the vineyard. I do admire the canny way in which there always seems to be a break in deliveries, morning pump-over rounds are completed, the tanks to put into barrel are empty, the press has finished its thing… all in time for lunch at the Clubhouse. Smooth boys, very smooth…

Saturday 7 March

Happy long weekend! Here’s some Grenache for you! Another 18 tonnes are delivered today. The good news is this is the last for the weekend - and as its destined for dry-red it can go straight into tank from the crusher (less work today- the pressing will come later)

Sunday 8 March

Again the Sunday rule holds true - back to skeleton staff just tending to the babies in their tanks & off again to enjoy the sunshine.

Finally reliable weather forecasts come in for the big party next Sunday… 28ºC and sunny… perfect much?

Monday 9 March

Hang on - what’s this? 2 days of no intake? Things MUST be winding up… although I am sure this lull won’t last for long. Total intake for this year so far sits at just over 400 tonne - pretty good going for 5 weeks & only 4 winery staff!

Our lovely Jo still looks after us on Public holidays - with a delicious, zingy baked strawberry & vanilla cake. Perfection!