After a winter that was cooler and wetter than average, spring brought the coolest and wettest conditions on record in our Crayères Vineyard (cooler than the 2017 and 2023 seasons), delaying budburst and flowering. Flowering was very efficient in December across all our blocks, leading to a good set for all varieties, and canopies remained balanced during the cooler spring months, with little vegetative growth. Summer was warm, with some hot days in January, but delayed budburst and flowering pushed veraison into late in the season.
The grapes ripened in the cooler autumn months, with some beneficial rain and cooler days early autumn and some warm weather mid to late April, which allowed our red varieties to ripen to perfection.
Overall, the 2026 growing season (October 2025 to April 2026) was 3% warmer and 20% wetter than average, with a wet and cool spring, a warm and dry summer and a wet and warm late Autumn. This cooler-climate vintage, with a warm and dry summer, turned out to be the latest harvest for all our varieties.
Our Sauvignon Blanc was hand-picked on the 26th and 27th of March, the latest since 2008, on a very cool day – indeed, the hardest picking day with cold rain and winds. The fruit had a remarkable acidity and low sugars, and the flavours were perfectly ripe. Because of the cooler spring months, we had a well-balanced canopy with optimal bunch exposure, allowing for perfect ripening in March. Half of the fruit was whole bunch pressed and is now finishing a slow fermentation in oak. The other half was crushed and destemmed before pressing and is fermenting in tank and old oak.
Our Cabernet Franc was hand-picked in late Autumn conditions on the 27th of April, the latest ever, with good yields. The quality of our Cabernet Franc is, yet again, truly exceptional, with strikingly ripe red berry flavours, good acid balance and great tannin profile. The Cabernet Franc has started fermentation in tank, and the colour and flavour are very promising.
Our Cabernet Sauvignon was hand-picked in late Autumn conditions on the 28th of April, with the western portion of the vineyard being picked on the 30th of April, also the latest since 2009. The very long hang time, the long period between veraison and harvest (two months), and the slow ripening through the cooler months of March and April, with a push of warmer weather in late April, were ideal for the Cabernet Sauvignon. We harvested some perfectly ripe fruit with very powerful varietal expression, great colour and good tannins.
Comparison of previous vintages in the Crayères Vineyard, Wrattonbully
Growing season (October to April) heat summation (DD) base 10°C
| Year | 1980-2026 avg | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017 -2018 | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | 2020-2021 | 2021-2022 | 2022-2023 | 2023-2024 | 2024-2025 | 2025-2026 |
| Wrattonbully (Joeville), CliMate data | 1497 | 1869 (*25%) | 1514 (+1%) | 1795 (+20%) | 1630 (+9%) | 1481 (-1%) | 1469 (-2%) | 1566 (+5%) | 1409 (-6%) | 1504 (+0%) | 1791 (+20%) | 1501 (+0%) |
% of 1980-current average rainfall during growing season (October to April)
| Year | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | 2020-2021 | 2021-2022 | 2022-2023 | 2023-2024 | 2024-2025 | 2025-2026 |
| Wrattonbully (Joeville), CliMate data | 51% | 151% | 86% | 73% | 80% | 87% | 67% | 146% | 97% | 82% | 127% |
Late Spring (October – November) heat summations (DD) base 10°C and rainfall (mm)
| Year | 1980-2024 avg | 2015 -2016 | 2016 -2017 | 2017 -2018 | 2018 -2019 | 2019 -2020 | 2020 -2021 | 2021 -2022 | 2022-2023 | 2023-2024 | 2024-2025 | 2025-2026 |
| Wrattonbully (Joeville), CliMate data | 276DD | 427DD | 217DD | 422DD | 291DD | 252DD | 342DD | 217DD | 256DD | 270DD | 332DD | 215DD |
| 89mm | 22mm | 130mm | 112mm | 63mm | 66mm | 91mm | 60mm | 164mm | 113mm | 110mm | 176mm |
Heat summation was 22% cooler than average at our Crayères Vineyard, with the wettest October and November (twice the long-term average). Rainfall was also 27% above average for the all growing season. Overall, the vintage was exactly on average heat summations, but the delayed onset of budburst and flowering gave the season the hallmark of a very cool vintage, with a ripening happening late in the cooler months, truly ideal for our Sauvignon Blanc and our Cabernets. It was the latest pick for all our varieties.