As Victorians welcome the official end of summer, wine growers throughout the Macedon Ranges have turned their attention to this season’s harvesting.
The Wood family from Kyneton Ridge Estate have been busy harvesting their grapes for their pinot noir and chardonnay vintages, after an early start to the season.
Following its establishment in the1990s, the family purchased the vineyard in 2019. It has historically focused on pinot noir, chardonnay, shiraz and sparkling wine.
Patrick Wood said they’re harvesting is three weeks ahead of where they were last year, and a lot is down to heavy rainfall at the end of last year and vigorous vine growth.
“Usually we are picking around Easter and we tend to be [one of] the earlier picks in the region… [but] by the end of the month it looks like we’ll have most of the grapes in,” he said.
“It’s been a challenging year… but I think the wine is going to be fantastic, we’re seeing great fruit and flavour development.
“We’ve been so busy with it, it’s a bit challenging to stop and smell the roses… it’s the time of year when everything is happening.
“Kyneton Ridge Estate produces at this stage about 11 or 12 wines, but at the winery here we do a bit of contact making, so it’s closer to about 30 to 40 batches.”
Zoe Moffatt
