
2021 was slightly less sunny than the golden 2020 growing season . Vineyards in the south east suffered a succession of late April frosts which forced greater reliance on secondary buds making for a more drawn out fruit set and ultimately lower yields. Harvest came slightly later than usual, although well inside the range of the last decade, in the second week of October. Bunch weights in the Pinot noir and Chardonnay were good, with phenolic ripeness giving good fruit flavours, especially in the Pinot noir, although sugar levels were at the lower end of the recent range. Good base wines were produced, but in smaller quantities than usual. We continued our project of densifying our main vineyard, planting more Pinot noir. The weather conditions in the round proved very favourable to developing the young Chardonnay and Pinot noir vines planted this year and in 2020.