Vintage refers to the grapes harvested in a specific year, capturing everything from the vineyard to the bottle. It is a reflection of the climatic conditions experienced throughout the growing season, as well as the care and craftsmanship employed by winemakers to transform grapes into wine. With this in mind, let us take you on our journey through Vintage 2024!

Vintage 2024 commenced at Taylors in mid-January with the harvest of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir for sparkling base. Grapes for sparkling wine bases are generally harvested earlier to ensure they have low sugar levels and high natural acidity.

JANUARY

Over January the weather in the Clare Valley estate was more or less in line with the long-term averages, although rainfall was slightly below average. There were only 5 days where we got over 35°C so overall, it was quite pleasant. Meanwhile, down south at our Faraway vineyard in Wrattonbully, the weather was a tad milder with only 3 days over 35°C and above average levels of rainfall throughout the month. Veraison (grape colour development) progressed at a smooth and steady pace in both regions.

FEBRUARY

Over the Leap Year month of February, it started out in a similar fashion with relatively mild weather conditions prevailing across both the Clare Valley and Wrattonbully and unusually, there was no rainfall recorded for the month in both regions. At the end of February though, a heatwave descended in the Clare Valley, and we sweltered over 10 days with temperatures reaching as high as 40°C.

Our winemakers had been predicting a ‘fast vintage’ this year where the grapes ripen quickly and all at once. And they were proven right as the harvest kicked into overdrive during February. By the end of the month, most of the white varieties – Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris had been picked and quite a lot of the reds such as Shiraz, Merlot, Tempranillo and Pinot Noir.

MARCH

By the middle of March, there was only a few red varieties left to pick, such as Malbec and the last of the late ripening variety, Cabernet Sauvignon, which we anticipate will be harvested by Good Friday or April Fool’s Day at the latest. March weather started out quite warm and dry but then this week we’ve had some cool temperatures and a weekend of stormy weather, so Mother Nature has finally decided to grant us with some autumn weather.

At this stage of the vintage, the winemakers are talking enthusiastically about the quality of the fruit they are seeing come into the winery and say the outlook for the wines from this year is very positive. Unfortunately, though, the amount of fruit we were able to harvest from our Clare Valley estate was reduced due to a frost event that affected most of the region on the 26th of October 2023. So great wines will be crafted, that’s for certain. We just may not have as much as we’d hoped.

Stay tuned for April updates!