Although often overused in the wine industry, ‘challenging’ is an apt descriptor for vintage 2013 in the broad region of New England.
The season saw it all: wind, rain, sun, storms, cloud, hail, wet, dry, tempest, hot, cool…. not necessarily in that order.
“We had a very good start to vintage,” said Topper’s Mountain owner, Mark Kirkby. “There was excellent fruit set and a sensible amount of rain.”
From March however, the season dried out, with excellent ripening conditions carrying though to the end of vintage.
“We picked our first grapes for sparkling base on the 22nd of February,” said Mark. “We had to be very selective when harvesting the whites, ensuring we dropped bunches affected by botrytis. Our sauvignon blanc ended up looking particularly good.”
The red varieties were not ripe enough during the wet periods to be affected by botrytis, with Topper’s Mountain barbera, tannat and pinotage being harvested on the 22nd of March. “These varieties are undergoing wild ferment now, and are looking fantastic.”
“Our tempranillo and nebbiolo are still on the vine, however it is shaping up to be our best vintage to date.”
Other vineyards in the region were not so lucky, with the season described as ‘extremely variable’ by Ken Hutchison from Splitters Swamp Vineyards. “The quality is reasonable, with careful vineyard management focussing on the control of disease and birds.”
A number of vignerons decided not to harvest given the extreme conditions and the toll taken on the fruit. “Due to the wet and then hot weather, we were not happy with the quality of our grapes and so decided not to harvest,” said Rolf Blickling from Blickling Estate in Bendemeer.
Both Deetswood Wines and Kurrajong Downs at Tenterfield also decided not to pick any grapes after severe damage to the fruit and vines from a hailstorm that hit the vineyards in January.
For more information, samples, interviews or images please contact:
David Cumming at Define Wine: P: 0414 736 342 or [email protected]
Mark Kirkby at Topper’s Mountain: P: 0411 880 580 or [email protected]
TOPPERS MOUNTAIN was planted in 2000 & 2002 and is located in the cool climate NSW wine region of New England. The vineyard is situated at an elevation of 900 metres on the western edge of the New England tablelands. Topper’s Mountain is a leading exponent of alternative varieties including Petit Manseng, Tannat, Tinta Cao, Touriga and Pinotage. The vineyard is owned and operated by Mark and Stephanie Kirkby and their three daughters.
