LANGTONS National Vintage Report for 2023

2023 was a la Nīna year across Australia, achieving a near-monochromatic pall of a wet winter and peripatetic spring across the country, oscillating between cold, wet, humid and wetter before mostly segueing into a prolonged ripening pattern of drier, albeit, considerably cooler weather than the respective regional norms. This attenuation was necessitated by late bud burst and stunted flowering, and the need to stave off ever present botrytic and disease pressures while abiding by the commercial prerequisite of physiological ripeness in the fruit. It was also a reflection of nature’s whims and a changing, more extreme climate. It was at this point, around harvest time, however, that certain premium regions diverged from others. 

 

Before taking a deeper dive, as a general overview the national grape harvest was among the smallest, most disease-sodden and latest vintages in 20 years. The red crush was down by 26% and the white, by 22, to a measly 1.32 million tonnes. Inland, industrial producers, already on their knees due to punitive Chinese tariffs, were brought to the brink if they weren’t already there, with a total decrease of 45%. Producers in premium regions experienced seasonal dynamics that were more European in many ways, demanding assiduous attention to detail throughout the growing and production phases. Quality viticulture was paramount to quality wine. In essence, well ventilated open canopies were intrinsic to minimising disease, while exposing fruit to photosynthetic requirements. Yield control was an imperative. Those who took these strictures a step further to a forensic level, particularly with superior sites, were primed for even greater success. 

 

While this may sound tendentious, it is vintages like these, well capable of producing a raft of aromatic, detailed and stunning wines, that sort the viticultural wheat from the chaff. Interestingly, perhaps the most transparent of Australia’s cultivars under vine, grenache and pinot noir, are experiencing by far the greatest exponential demand. While responsible handling of the fruit in the cellar and judicious craftsmanship is important, Australia has for too long placed too great an emphasis on winemaking over the management of the soil and land. 2023 was a calling card for courage, integrity, respect and better quality vineyard sites. For the observant, many fine wines were the result. Whites, largely being the winner. 

 

So let’s take that deeper dive. Tasmania and Margaret River experienced nigh on normal quantities of wine produced. Margaret River certainly experienced cooler conditions and more ‘luncheon claret’ styles of wine, perhaps, are in the pipeline. Vive la difference! Yet it was far less troubled than elsewhere. This said, these regions are responsible for a mere 3 and 1% of the national crush respectively. Elsewhere, Chris Tyrrell of Tyrrells, reports a stellar vintage in the Hunter Valley with the caveat that the abstemious selection of fruit was key to success. The outcome seems incredulous given that the rain throughout spring verged on a sub-tropical deluge! Post-flowering, however, saw largely dry conditions and ultimately optimally ripe grapes to service the tensile semillon and mid-weighted, savoury shiraz that define the region. 

 

In South Australia, growers in the Clare were the most optimistic, with Peter Barry of Jim Barry Wines, ever the town crier: ‘The latest ever’ and ‘superb riesling!’, he enthuses. The significantly cooler Adelaide Hills was challenged, although Michael Downer of Murdoch Hill cites a suite of fine whites and ‘delicate, aromatic reds’ as the foundation for the year. Coonawarra saw yields down by circa 44%, challenging fruit sourcing. Further south in McLaren Vale, the cooler, longer year served to keep pH’s low (although not as low as 2022) which, according to Steven Pannell serve as a ‘trigger for tannin’, that gritty, sandy backbone that drives the region’s world class grenache. The best should be aromatic and highly refined. The Barossa was an outlier, diverging from other regions with incessant rain leading up to and toward the end of vintage. This resulted in bloating of fruit and a prolonged vegetative cycle. More grapes kept appearing! Subsequently yields here were up by about 32% Many bunches of grapes were left on the vine at harvest, a phenomenon previously unseen.

 

In Victoria, Beechworth chardonnay is purportedly a standout with a ‘pure seam of flavour and acid’, according to Keppell Smith of Savaterre. Higher altitudes and granitic soils assisted with ripening. Geelong and the Bellarine Peninsula, the Yarra Valley, Great Western and Mornington Peninsula all report the superiority of white wines over reds. Later ripening grapes such as cabernet were extremely challenged, according to Mount Mary’s Sam Middleton, while the earlier ripening pinot noir will be responsible for many fine wines. Perhaps the most incisive summation of 2023 was voiced by Martin Spedding of Ten Minutes by Tractor on the Mornington Peninsula when he opined that ‘…more than anything it will come down to how well each producer confronted all the ups and downs of the season and how well they danced with the La Nina.’