What's been happening at Whisson Lake

April 18, 2010. How and why we bottle in the old fashioned way at Whisson Lake

April 17, 2010. New skins for new wine! The White Label 2009 arrives!

I will tomorrow be starting the bottling of our White Label 2009. The eagerly awaited labels arrived yesterday, hand delivered by our printing partners at Studio Labels and a first batch of 300 bottles for our en primeur customers will be put under Diam (the uncorkable cork) tomorrow. The weather this last week of Autumn has been absolutely perfect for decanting the wine off its sediment with high pressure and settled, fine, and dry conditions dominating.

Such high pressure systems cause sediment to fall to the bottom of the barrels and this allows us to remove the clear wine from on top. While our gardens could do with a few more Autumn rainstorms the weather has at least been propitious vis-a-vis the finishing off of our 2009s. I will update this page with pictures of bottling once this is under way tomorrow.

April 13, 2010. "Dead" dog turns out just to be sleeping!

Cellar Manager Tom Munro's dog Zipper is a sure barometer of tension and, as can be seen from the photo of her (above), there's not much to be worried about at the moment. Ever one to pick the most incovenient spot on which to slump for a cool siesta in the shade, Zipper can be seen here to have parked her arse right against the ubiquitously useful pallet-jack! But no matter what you tell her, Zipper is sure to be highly annoyed when you ask her to move - she should really have been born a royal!

March 10, 2010. Snip! squelch! slurp!It's that time of year again! Pass your bucket for our very own crush festival 2010

As I write these words, we are currently waiting for the sun to come back after what has been a much-needed rainy interlude. Summer arrived suddenly and early here back in November 2009 and the weather continued hot and dry from this point onwards but while such conditions were ideal for flowering and the general growth of our vines, for ripening grapes properly more temperate conditions are required. And fortunately such conditions arrived here with a strong autumnal feeling on Friday March 5. Since then we've had 20mm of rain and night time temperatures down to single figures. These cool temperatures are vital for helping the grapes to build up good scents and thick skins with lots of colour to give the wine. Fine ripening weather is already starting to show the first signs of its arrival and by the end of this week I'll be out picking again.

September 30, 2009. The Battle of the Bottle. While most people are naturally more interested by the wine that is in the bottle rather than the actual glass container itself, you may, however, be interested to know about the recent decision taken by Australia's two glass manufacturers (Amcor and OI) to discontinue production of many of the bottles designed for use in conjunction with cork (or cork-type closures such as the Diam "uncorkable cork" that we use at Whisson Lake). The companies' rationale for this is simply that so many winemakers have turned to screwcaps that there is no longer enough demand to justify their having a big portfolio of cork-sealed bottles. This is particularly relevant and irksome to Whisson Lake as we are completely committed to Diam and the decision has recently been taken by OI to delete the cork/Diam-sealed bottle design we have used for the last ten vintages. Not only does this mean a disruption to our "brand identity" but, from what I can tell, the only way we will be able to get a decent Burgundy-shaped bottle is by importing one from Europe (which will more than triple our bottle bill). And the fact that an incredible range of bottles for cork is still available in Europe - a massive market for Australian wine - is of interest in itself. While Australia has championed the new screwcap technology it should still be pointed out that screwcaps are only used on about 15% of all wine made in the world. In addition, could Australia's scientifically-justified assault on the reputation of cork perhaps have something to do with the current malaise in which Australian wine finds itself on the international stage? In short, from London to New York Australian wine is being served up in the mainstream and specialist press a swingeing list of bad reviews. The chief criticisms are that Australian wine is boring and only of interest to uneducated palates. That is what is being said. Reading between the lines, what is also being said is that wine lovers around the world have come to the realisation that so much Australian wine is manufactured industrially and that an industrial wine is not wine at all. And the problem, I think, with screwcaps is that they are the instantly recognisable hallmark of an industrially-made product. Cork, on the other hand, is an equally comprehensible symbol of tradition and, in the fine wine market at any rate, tradition is an element of the fundamental value of wine. The fact that you are using a corkscrew to dislodge a chunk of bark from the neck of the bottle tells a story which is centuries old. Scewcaps represent the erosion of this story. Scientists and statisticians may be able to prove with numbers that the screwcap is "better" than cork but what the numbers do not disclose is the real value of wine.

August 6, 2009. Bottling by hand. In our quest for the most gentle ways to handle our wine we have come up with a bottling solution that turns back the clock on bottling technology by around 100 years!

The wine is transferred from barrel, 200L at a time, to the stainless steel tank (shown above) that is then raised up on our manual forklift to above head height. The wine then flows by gravity through a small tap at the bottom of the tank (which has been fitted with an extra long spout) straight to the bottom of every bottle. In this way, the wine undergoes no aeration during bottling and it is this which leaves our Pinot Noir un-traumatised by the potentially turbulent bottling experience.

Once each bottle has been filled, a Diam cork is manually inserted into the neck of the bottle. In this way, each bottle takes roughly 50 seconds to fill and seal. It's slow work but it's worth taking 50 seconds of trouble to preserve the characteristics of a vineyard which has taken 25 years to reach its prime!

Above: corking.

July 3, 2009. Labelling by hand. When we say that Whisson Lake wines are "hand made", that doesn't just include all aspects of vineyard management (pruning, plucking, picking, etc) and winemaking but also includes every aspect of packaging. At the moment we have been putting labels on 3,000 bottles of wine from 2006, 2007, and 2008. It's slow going but satisfying to put the icing on the cake of 12 months' work. After long sessions in a freezing warehouse and when all the bottles have been lined up in their new shiny labels, you go home with numb hands and a happy heart! Thanks are also due to Pete and Nick at the Ashton Cold Store who have allowed us to use their space as our packaging workshop!

Bottles of Black Label 2008 in their new look labels (a design that replaced the old "Pinot Gaz" label).

June 20, 2009. It's a long way to the top! Vineyard warrior Gal Ziv has an uphill task in front of him as he contemplates pruning the rest of the Whisson Lake Pinot Noir vineyard. 

The vines he is working on are the ones that have been "grafted over" to a highly esteemed French form of Pinot Noir called "777". 777 derived from cuttings taken from perfect specimens of Pinot Noir found growing in the vineyards of Burgundy's legendary Domaine Ponsot (Morey St Denis). There are many different forms of Pinot Noir (such as 777) and it is possible to physically cut the top off one vine and "graft" on a small bud taken from a different form of Pinot Noir vine. In Spring, the new bud, which has been inserted into an incision made in the old wood, bursts to give forth the new and preferred form of Pinot Noir. People normally either "graft over" to completely switch from one grape variety to another more fashionable one (e.g. from Chardonnay to Sauvignon Blanc) but in this case in the Whisson Lake Vineyard, the original plantings have been grafted over to 777 from a different form of Pinot Noir because 777 gives wine that is richer in colour and flavour (due to 777's smaller berries and thicker skins).

Pruning is slow, repetitive, hard, and sometimes lonely work - notice the small radio hanging around Gal's neck for company. This is not a lazy luxury but a genuine life support device. Courage, Gal!

June 5, 2009. Here are a couple of shots of the Whisson Lake barrel cellar at the moment.

While it may not look like a scene of great action in the Whisson Lake cellar at the moment, what these photos don't show is the silent, subtle and vitally important work currently being carried out inside these barrels of Pinot Noir by the malolactic bacteria. These microscopic bugs come to red wine every year and effectively soften the wine by converting the hard malic acid (found in apples, for instance) into the soft lactic acid (found in milk). Because Lachie spent some time insulating the doors of this barrel cellar, a tiny bit of the warmth of summer remains in here and it's just enough to keep these "malo bugs" doing their thing - even though it is stone cold outside and the rest of nature has fallen into its winter sleep. In addition, this barrel cellar was cleverly dug deep into the side of the very steep Whisson Lake Vineyard and the deep soil piled up above also adds to the insulation. As a result, it is a wonderful barrel cellar and the wine can go on living far into winter. 

The top image is of an "airlock" that allows the carbon dioxide gas produced by the malo bugs inside the barrel to escape at the same time as it prevents air from getting into the wine from outside. In the second photo, the chalk writing tells me that this barrel contains wine from; a section of the vineyard where we grow a variety of Pinot Noir called "Triple 7"; as well as some Pinot Noir from our highest "Top Block"; and that the barrel was topped up with 50 litres of our early-drinking Pinot Noir called "Black Label" - this is what the letters "BL" refer to. The wine in this particular barrel smells pungently aromatic and the palate is very soft. It will all probably go into our final blend for the 2009 Black Label because it does not have the kind of tannic palate structure that we look for in our top wines - but it is a very charming wine nonetheless, just not something to cellar for a decade. The barrel is from our favourite French cooper, "Tonnellerie d'Aquitaine" and it was new this year. The wood gives a home to the wine and controls its deveopment, especially at this early stage in the wine's life when it is still very much alive with the malolactic fermentation. The wood takes away the unusual smells that arise from fermentation, it also keeps the wine (and malo bugs!) slightly warm, and it helps the wine to clarify naturally. A good barrel is a winegrower's greatest tool.

May 22, 2009. After 2 months of non-stop winemaking the strain is starting to show on cellar manager Tom Munro! 

Pictured here dispatching two of the last remaining cases of Whisson Lake White Label Pinot Noir 2005, Tom is doing his best to smile. Ouch! His puppy Zipper, by contrast, looks naturally happier and more cute by the day.

20.05.09 Whisson Lake now has a home on Facebook! Click here to check it out! Whisson Lake Vineyard's Profile

19.05.09 If you like driving your Lotus very slowly along country roads, remember to speed up if you see a tractor with forks lowered coming up fast from behind! Or face the consequences!!

In reality, this photo shows the momentous transfer of viticulturist Mark Whisson's Lotus from its home of many years in the barrel cellar to its new quarters in a recently refurbished garage at the bottom of the vineyard. Truly one of those things you rarely see on a Pinot vineyard. Does this sort of thing happen in Burgundy?!?!

08.05.09. Autumn colours at Whisson Lake.

07.05.09 Wine with a view wrap. Just a quick note of thanks to all of you who made it along for the Wine With A View event that took place on Sunday, May 3. With the fine weather (and consequent availability of the verandah) there wasn't space for many more people and the wine tasting area - as the art exhibition hall - was packed from start to finish. Around 200 to 300 people came  along, much money was raised for the Victorian bushfire appeal and by the end of the afternoon there were some very merry faces around!

In addition, Ian from the Auswine Forum came along and was good enough to write some excellent tasting notes, which can be found here: http://forum.auswine.com.au/viewtopic.php?t=9874

27.04.09 - 2009, the year of the sinfully dark Pinot Noir.

Every year you hope for the new vintage to be dark in colour, but this year Nature delivered quintuplets where just an only child was expected! 

21.04.09

An formidable array of winemakers from the highest part of the Adelaide Hills will be showing off their wares at a one-off art exhibition/wine tasting to be held at the Natural Resource Centre, Norton Summit, on Sunday May 3. Entry is by gold coin donation and all proceeds will go towards the environmental work being carried out to restore the Victorian landscapes that were devastated by this year's tragic bushfires. The winemakers involved include: Basket Range Wines, Whisson Lake, Deanery Vineyard, Lucy Margaux Vineyards, 5 Blind Mice. Some of the Adelaide Hills' most talented artists will also be exhibiting and selling their paintings and photographs and live music will be provided. All are invited to attend. Contact Tom for more information on 0421 739 789.

14.04.09

As well as bringing in the harvest, I have also recently become the guardian of a five-month-old Border Collie x Kelpie called "Zipper".

Zipper is proving to be a good winery dog in that she has the ability to sleep no matter what is going on around her. She can be seen here standing on one of the new 500 Litre barrels that we have recently taken delivery of to house the wine from 2009. At the moment the 2009 wine is undergoing its secondary "malolactic" fermentation in other older barrels. Malolactic fermentation is a spontaneous natural process in which the grapes' harder-edged malic acid (which is also found, for instance, in Granny Smith apples) is converted into the softer tasting lactic acid (also found in milk). Because temperatures in the 6 weeks prior to harvest 2009 were so mild there was much malic acid in Whisson Lake grapes and the malolactic fermentation is proving to be long and it is also bringing about a radical transformation in the wine.

Zipper would like to thank you for the attention, affection, and tummy rubs that she knows you will lavish her with next time you meet!

tom

12.04.09

 It has been an extraordinary month for Whisson Lake because so much has happened so quickly. Vineyard Manager Mark Whisson and I took the decision to pick this year's Pinot Noir on Sunday March 22 and the harvest began the following morning.

 The signs at this stage suggest that 2009 is an exceptional year for Pinot Noir from the Whisson Lake vineyard.The berries and bunches were small, the aromatics fresh and intense, and the colour in the skins was darker and more vibrant than anything I have ever seen before from Pinot Noir. The high quality this year comes thanks to the mild weather we have enjoyed since the second week of March. In addition, we were picking the Whisson Lake vineyard around the Autumn Equinox, when night and day are of the same length and the vines reach their living peak before they start their slow decline into winter hibernation.

The grapes were de-stemmed and crushed into 500 Litre oak barrels for fermentation. Natural yeast started the fermentation quickly and the sweet fruit began its transformation into savoury wine. 

And at the same time as the 2009 crop has been coming in, the 2008 wine has been going out! We bottled our "Black Label" Pinot Noir last Monday March 30 and this is now available to buy direct from the vineyard for $20 per bottle or through Secret Wine Buisiness (www.secretwinebusiness.com.au) for the same price.

Now that harvest is over, the leaves in the vineyard are giving their final blaze of Autumn colour before falling to the ground as the cold nights and gentle breezes have their effect. It is the end of 2009 but the start of the new vineyard year that will culminate in harvest 2010. Nature and man have done their work and the wine from 2009 augurs well. And as winter tightens its grip, now is also the time for eating warm, eating well, and chasing away the blues with rich red wine. Cheers!

Wishing you all the best, Tom Munro, Cellar Manager.