Sirromet Wines began its 2012 Vintage harvest this week, picking 16-tonnes of Chambourcin red fruit from vineyards at the company's headquarters at Mount Cotton near Brisbane.
Fruit from 10-hectares of vines was picked on Monday and Tuesday, mostly by a diesel grape harvester, and then crushed and stored in tanks for eventual use in Sirromet's sweet-style 'Love My' range.
Chief winemaker Adam Chapman said Sirromet would begin harvesting its 100-hectares of vineyards at Ballandean on the Granite Belt in February, starting with Verdelho, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Viognier white fruit, while red fruit would be picked from March to May, as in past years.
Chapman said Sirromet's vineyards had been largely unaffected by almost 500ml of rainfall on its Mount Cotton property and 45ml at Ballandean in the past week.
"There was no damage at Mount Cotton because our vineyards are on slopes and there was a 90-percent (water) run-off, while the rain at Ballandean was minimal and topped up growth on the vines," he said.
"Overall we have had excellent growing conditions at our vineyards since September (2011)."
"Temperatures on the Granite Belt have been considerably cooler than the same period of the previous vintage. There has been good moisture and water in the ground which helps vine growth and leaf/fruit ratio."
Chapman said Sirromet expected to crush a total of 400-tonnes of fruit from the 2012 Vintage, the bulk of it from the company's cool-climate vineyards at Ballandean, located at 820-metres altitude..
Varieties being harvested from Sirromet's four vineyards in the 2012 vintage are:
MOUNT COTTON (10-ha): Chambourcin
SEVEN SCENES, BALLANDEAN (52-ha): Chardonnay, Shiraz, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot
ST JUDE'S, BALLANDEAN (25-ha): Pinot Gris, Viognier, Chardonnay, Verdelho, Nebbiolo, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon
NIGHT SKY, BALLANDEAN (23-ha): Chardonnay, Verdelho, Pinot Gris, Viognier
Chapman said Sirromet's preparation for the 2012 Vintage included collecting fruit samples from its vineyards for laboratory testing at the Mount Cotton winery to pinpoint the best time for harvesting.
The laboratory analysis tests fruit for sugar, pH and acid levels, and taste and flavour. These procedures are undertaken by Chapman, and on-site staff chemist Jessica Ferguson.
"Our fruit at Ballandean is still in the early stages of ripening, but right now the Verdelho is looking very good," said Chapman. "It has nice tropical flavours, citrus and apple tones, and the analysis is promising."
As in past years, fruit harvested from Sirromet's vineyards at Ballandean will be transported by a fleet of refrigerated trucks in a 220km/three-hour drive to the winery's production centre at Mount Cotton. The grapes will then be crushed and stored in tanks.
Sirromet has 97 wine tanks on-site at Mount Cotton with a total capacity of 2.16-million litres. The largest tanks hold 120,000-litres each
Sirromet has won a total of 27 gold medals since opening in 2000, eight of them in overseas wine competitions in 2011. The winery is owned and was founded by Gold Coast businessman Terry Morris. In addition to vineyards, Sirromet's winery headquarters at Mount Cotton includes production, bottling, and packaging facilities, barrel rooms, cellar door, Restaurant Lurleen's, administration centre, worm farm and waste recycling plant.