Description

Notwithstanding a very cold week in March where temperatures oscillated between -5°C and -9°C, winter and spring were very mild in 2018.

That said, bud burst occurred on 16th April, about 6-8 days later than normal. These warm temperatures were accompanied by significant rainfall: during the period from October to March we registered 142mm more rain than average and this culminated with fifteen days non-stop rainfall between mid-May and mid-June (164mm).

These wet and warm conditions encouraged very quick vegetative growth and required attentive work in the vineyard to keep pace with this development. Whilst surprisingly we avoided a powdery mildew outbreak, downy mildew caused significant disease pressure.

The flowering took place early, quickly and evenly. The vines were in mid-bloom on 30th May and finished flowering on 1st June.

From mid-June onwards the weather changed. Whilst temperatures remained high, very dry conditions were experienced with only 47mm of rain in July and 13mm in August.

Thanks to plentiful water reserves in the soil, vine growth continued and, by 27th July, half of the berries had changed colour. The berries finished ripening in August without hinderance despite the hot and often scorching weather.

The harvest was early and we started picking on a record-breaking 30th August and continued non-stop until 3rd September. The berries unveiled beautiful aromas, thick skins and ripe tannins.