Sunday, February 03, 2008

This week: 1st. Febuary 2008

Weather Report Week Ending 1/2/08
Maximum Temperature for the week 34.5C (94F) on Wed. 5 readings above our monthly average of 29.4C.
Minimum Temperature for the week 12.7C (55F) on Mon. 4 readings above our monthly average of 14.5C.
Rainfall for the Week 2.2mm (6 points) 2 days of rainfall recorded.
Weather data thanks to BOM & Nuriootpa Viticulture Research Centre.

A carbon copy of the last 3 weeks, weatherwise in the Barossa Valley. We have been having warm but not too hot days and relatively warm nights, just what the vines need for maximum flavour accumulation. No useful rain to speak of – most of what was recorded came overnight Sat. and was all evaporated the next day.
This week in the vineyard:
As I reported mid week we have now commenced our harvest. In only one night’s picking we got approx. 12% of our crop off. All of our Sauv. Blanc and Pinot Noir has now been picked and we have also picked all of our Chardonnay for Barossa Valley Estate (we have Chardonnay for 2 other wineries still to be picked). We will be picking Chardonnay for Peter Lehmann wines early this coming week. We continue to sample all of our grape varieties to determine the optimum time to pick. We have even already sampled Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. The next few weeks will be the busiest of the year for us in the vineyard, but I will endeavour to post whenever possible to keep you informed of any developments. The photo shows a harvester working in one of our neighbour's vineyards.

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