The countdown is on until the 2021 vintage in Coonawarra, which will set the region a buzz during the peak of grape harvest. While the industry has faced a dramatic slump in exports to China during recent months, local vignerons are predicting an above average season.

Coonawarra Vignerons Association President Pete Balnaves said the impending season was looking good. “We have had some ideal conditions so far this year which meant we have slightly above average crops, the season so far has been relatively early,” Mr Balnaves said.

“It’s looking like the 2004 vintage at this stage.” Mr Balnaves said vintage would start mid-March, which was a critical time of the year when all the work that had gone towards getting the fruit to the required quality levels for vintage came into play. The harvest will run for approximately six weeks.

“It has been a reasonably cool season so far and the heat spike last weekend required careful management, as vines must be prepared with an increase in irrigation to allow for hot weather,” he said. “It shows you the importance of good forecasting and the availability of high-quality water.

“There’s good demand for high quality fruit. “I’d be surprised if there’s any excess fruit that’s not harvested up and sold. “Last year was quite a light year, so some wine producers will be trying to pick up that under-supply from last year.”

Historically, Mr Balnaves said it was common to have backpackers working in the wineries and in the vineyards. “Recently, even before the pandemic, there’s been very few backpackers around, probably due to the changes in the backpacker tax imposed a couple of years ago,” he said.

“It was always good to have the backpackers as they become ambassadors for the area once they left. “The reduction of backpackers I do not see as being an issue for vintage. “Most of the harvesting is now done by machine and only selected parcels are done by hand.

“The wine needs to warrant the cost of hand picking, because hand picking can cost up to $1000 a tonne, while machine picking might cost you $150.”

Mr Balnaves said with vintage came the Coonawarra After Dark Weekend celebrations, where wineries opened their doors for visitors to get involved with vintage and see how the winery functioned, interact with winemakers and sample wines.

This year’s event is due to proceed, with COVID-safe requirements being put in place by participating cellar doors and venues.