Vintage 2025 is off to a flying start, with Chardonnay picking kicking off last Wednesday and the team already making great progress across the vineyard. Early conditions have kept the team on their toes, but the fruit quality is looking exceptional, setting the stage for another exciting harvest. Here's Chief Winemaker, Tim Shand, with a few insights...

"Chardonnay picking kicked off last Wednesday, starting slowly before picking up pace across the vineyard. The warm nights made the decision tricky - acid levels were dropping, but flavours weren’t quite there yet. It felt like we were edging towards the start line, only to have everything accelerate once we did.

One standout was V12, one of our few spur-pruned blocks. Its even ripening and lush canopy meant we could pick earlier than usual, and the fruit looked exceptional. By Saturday, we were into the icon blocks - Broadvale Block 6 and the western half of Block 5. Block 6 held true to its style with bright acidity, and malolactic fermentation is already on the way for this batch.

Meanwhile, Block 5 is heading to barrel with incredible depth and classic citrus tones, showing none of the caramelisation that can come through in warmer vintages. Next up: finishing Blocks 5 and 6, then onto B10, B11, and B9. If the weather holds, we’ll keep back part of B10 to build more ripeness and volume in the Voyager Estate blend.

In a bit of a surprise, our Sparkling Chenin came in early this year - usually, it follows Chardonnay. It landed in the ripe peach zone but still with beautifully fresh acidity. With the warm conditions, the team has been covering serious ground with hand-picking, and the fruit quality has been outstanding. The netting crew has been working hard to stay ahead, and their next focus will be protecting Cabernet and Semillon. More to come soon!"

As harvest draws near, the vineyard is alive with activity - from meticulous fruit sampling to last-minute preparations, all in pursuit of the perfect pick. Head of Viticulture, Mike Saunders, provides an update ahead of next week when the first grapes will come in.

"The golden spell of weather continues, and harvest is inching closer. We began sampling select Chardonnay blocks this week, and it looks like the first pick may be just around the corner!

Juices from yesterday’s samples are showing lovely concentration, with acidity dropping quickly. This can be influenced by thinner canopies and increased sun exposure, as well as crop load. Careful timing will be key to ensuring balance and freshness in the wines.

Tim and I are walking the blocks daily, tasting fruit and sampling to pinpoint the perfect moment to pick. After seven months of nurturing, it’s all about precision now - no pressure!

Meanwhile, the Vineyard Team has stretched every last scrap of netting across the vines as birds continue to target the fruit. With fewer natural food sources this season, even unexpected visitors have been sneaking in. If you hear clapping and calls from the vineyard, that’s the team in action, keeping our grapes safe.

Harvest prep is also well underway. Trailers are being serviced, the harvester is getting a thorough check, and the Winery Team is busy cleaning bins and prepping presses - there’s a real energy in the air.

Over in Broadvale Block 7, our young vines are thriving now that the kangaroos have been netted out. We’ve selected the strongest shoots and begun guiding their growth. As the season unfolds, we’ll continue hand-weeding and training them, deciding post-harvest whether to cut them back or let them reach wire height. Watch this space.

Looking beyond harvest, we’re already planning for the vines’ winter dormancy. Soil tests from last year have helped us craft a custom organic fertiliser blend, ready to be applied as soon as picking is complete. Autumn’s root flush is a critical growth period, and ensuring the vines have everything they need now will set the stage for an even, healthy budburst next spring. We're always thinking a season - or two - ahead!"

Chief Winemaker, Tim Shand, shares the latest from the vineyard as the team prepare for a lightning quick harvest...

"A hot spell this week has us thinking about when harvest will begin.

The rain that was forecast to push south from Cyclone Sean never quite materialised—we would have welcomed it! January has only delivered 5mm so far.

What we have had is humidity, but only a couple of really hot days. The season has been warm, but (touch wood) we’ve avoided heat spikes. Veraison is nearly complete in Chardonnay and well underway in Shiraz, Cabernet, and Chenin Blanc, setting us up for picking in the first or second week of February. While this timing is on par with a typical start to vintage, everything suggests that once we begin, it will be a fast-moving harvest. Cabernet, in particular, is veraising early, a sign that it won’t lag this year—likely a reflection of the warm winter, which has thrown some varieties out of their usual rhythm.

In the vineyard, the old Chardonnay blocks are looking clean and healthy, while Cabernet is beautifully balanced and full of life. The team has done an excellent job with canopy management and regular passes through the vineyard, and so far, conditions have been ideal.

Weevils made their presence known in December, particularly in younger Chardonnay blocks and the Old Block Cabernet. Mike and the team worked through the nights trialling different organic approaches, gaining valuable insights for the seasons ahead. That experience has sparked new ideas for how we’ll manage them next year—always learning, always adapting.

With no marri blossom yet, nets are going out fast—particularly to protect against ringnecked parrots, who are keen this year.

The vineyard crew has also been busy thinning fruit, and a green harvest is on the horizon for Cabernet, trimming away the last of the lagging bunches as veraison wraps up.

Irrigation has been approached differently this season, with longer, less frequent watering to encourage deeper root growth. The vines have responded well to the change, and this shift should enhance both fruit concentration and site expression in the finished wines. Meanwhile, water reserves in the dams are holding better than this time last year—good news for the vineyard team.

At Broadvale Block 7, the young Chardonnay vines are thriving under daily watering and a thick layer of mulch. Planting them in the warmest part of the season to avoid pest pressure was a calculated risk, but it has paid off.

In the winery, we’ve bottled the 2024 Chardonnays, and only an organic audit now stands between us and the first pick of the season. We’ve also welcomed a few new faces to our vintage team. All signs point to an exciting harvest ahead!"