Vintage 2023 Updates from our Winemaker, Stuart Pierce
Posted on June 08 2023,
At a glance…
As we reach the end of vintage for 2023, the final parcels of Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec have come through the winery for processing. They are now fermenting on skins, soon to be pressed. Our white varietals, including the hand picked Chardonnay, have finished their alcoholic fermentation and have had some lees stirring.
The season and sites…
This vintage, we were truly blessed with some of the best weather conditions one could hope for. We saw some lovely long periods of warm sunny days throughout Margaret River, punctuated by a handful of brief local rain events. In the vineyard leaf plucking and removal were essential operations carried across most varieties and this has led to optimum ripening conditions. Fruit yields across the board have been above normal, and despite the low levels of gum blossoms there has been very minimal bird pressure on the vines. I am expecting a stellar year for the whites, particularly the Chardonnay.
The varietals…
It seems to be a year of firsts, kicking off with our sparkling base. This is the first year we have made sparkling base from specially selected plots of Chardonnay off Karaseks and Pinot Noir off the Fishbone property (100% Margaret River). As a sparkling base, these two varieties were handpicked early in the season to retain the natural acidity, preserve the ‘greener’ flavour profile, and to maintain optimal alcohol levels. This base will spend the best part of the year in tank and on lees to develop texture and secondary flavours before fermentation in bottle begins. This is also the first year we are making our Fishbone Estate Rosé from Tempranillo that was picked mid-season, and will be bottled mid-year. I don’t want to give away too much at this stage, but I am quietly confident that the Rosé aficionados out there are going to be very happy with this pour.
And, to finish off the firsts, we will be launching our first Vermentino off the Fishbone Estate. When we first planted the vines, this was the intention, so we are excited that 2023 will be the inaugural year for the single site variety. Up until now, the fruit went into the Estate Rosé, but now that the vines have really matured and come of age we are going to be making it into a lighter, aromatic but flavoursome Vermentino.
Final remarks…
From what we are tasting, 2023 is shaping to be an outstanding vintage for all varieties across Margaret River, attributable to the excellent weather we have had building up around ripening and through to harvest.