Perfect conditions for a small but stellar harvest
Perfect conditions for a small but stellar harvestMarlborough Vintage 2024
Jules Taylor Wines began its Pinot Gris harvest at Meadowbank. Lesley Ravohoso, from Vanuatu, was part of the Vinecraft picking crew. Photo Lisa Duncan
Marlborough’s 2024 vintage could have been “dialled up” for winemakers, says Blank Canvas co-owner Matt Thomson of low yields, warm days, ultra dry conditions, and an autumnal shift to cold nights in March. “You couldn’t have asked for better from a timing point of view.”
Loose grape bunches from a poor flowering reduced disease risk, while the region’s drought conditions in the lead up to harvest prevented the growth of botrytis spores, as did cold March nights, resulting in the healthiest harvest of Matt’s winemaking career, “by some margin”. Meanwhile, the fruit was “amazing”, Matt adds. The winemaker has 63 vintages under his belt, with 32 of them in Marlborough, and reckons this could be the pick of them. “You don’t know until the wines are made and finished, but this feels like the best vintage in those 63 harvests. It’s quite incredible.”
Inflorescence counts, which are an early indication of potential yields, revealed lower than typical bunch numbers, and lower than typical berries per bunch, says Forrest Wines winemaker Beth Forrest, who is chair of the Marlborough Winegrowers board. That situation was exacerbated by patchy flowering in spring 2023. “While it was not exceptionally cold or exceptionally wet, it wasn’t exceptionally warm either, and there were a couple of cold snaps.” The lighter yields will result in a financial hit for the region, but the season could provide a valuable reset for the long-term health of the wine industry, given current discussions of oversupply. “I think it is a positive outlook for the longevity of the industry, following two slightly bigger harvests,” Beth says. “It’s Mother Nature creating a balancing effect.”
Flavours across the fruit spectrum developed in all varieties, says Jules Taylor. Photo Lisa Duncan
According to VineFacts weather data, the three-month rainfall total as of March 19 was well below half of average (42%), while evapotranspiration was well above average at 111%. Charlotte Tomlinson, a hydrologist with the Marlborough District Council, says little “top ups” of rain in the catchment at fortuitous times meant many of the region’s grape growers escaped water restriction and by the time the Wairau River was fully restricted in late March, harvest was well underway.
Pernod Ricard New Zealand Group Winemaker Jamie Marfell says the relentlessly fine weather resulted in the easiest harvest in his 34 years of Marlborough winemaking. Low crops and “stunning” quality will see Pernod Ricard Winemakers directing a good proportion of its fruit to higher tier wines, to maintain vintage release dates in those brackets, he says. Slowing orders for New Zealand wine are likely to mean a later than typical roll over date for some wines, with 2023 wines in market longer, which will help cover the shortfall of 2024’s vintage.
Jules Taylor of Jules Taylor Wines notes that a couple of very cold nights at the start of October resulted in a little frost damage for some, particularly in the Southern Valleys of Marlborough. That was followed by inclement weather over flowering, leading to light crop levels. But the 2024 wines from Marlborough should taste “spectacular”, she says. “The wines are beautifully rich and ripe, and flavours across the fruit spectrum have developed in all varieties.”
It’s also good news for Foley Wines, which owns Grove Mill and Vavasour Wines. Group winemaker Stu Marfell says crop levels were down in the Awatere and Wairau Valleys, and the hot, dry summer spurred rapid ripening. But in early March “the switch got flicked from summer to autumn overnight”, in perfect timing for the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay harvest. The classic autumn conditions from there on in, with a strong diurnal range, are perfect for Marlborough grapegrowers, ensuring “really good acid and so much flavour”, but also called for frost fighting measures on the coldest nights, Stu says. “It’s cool climate winemaking; that’s what we do.” The quality of fruit this season has given winemakers opportunity to make excellent wines, he adds. “Everything is superpowered; bright and intense.”
Bragato Research Winery
Harvest is the busiest time of year at the Bragato Research Winery, with hundreds of ferments for industry research projects and commercial trials. The catch? The winery’s 17 litre tanks require just 40kg of whole cluster grapes. This means different variables can be tested under rigorous conditions on an accessible and manageable scale. Here, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology student Rhea Gaikwad works through the 2024 vintage. Photo Richard Briggs