The Vineyard in May

Winderdoon Vineyard in May. The nets have been removed . Notice the Scott Henry canopy with vines having grown from ground to 3 metres making use of maximum sunlight available.
Pruning In The Cellar Overwintering your Vineyard
I have developed a fairly comprehensive page on pruning techniques suitable for a small cool climate vineyard. They may be found here. Feel free to question me on any of the techniques outlined.
Now that your new wine has settled down and hopefully completed its malolactic fermentation, you need to give it a 2nd racking before adding oak chips for flavour.Carefully and gently siphon the wine into new containers. Eliminate great quantities of air by keeping the siphon outlet blow the surface of the wine entering the new container. Fill the containers to within 10% of their capacity and replenish your airlock with a fresh solution of KBMS.Add chips in clean stockings suspended in the wine with nylon fishing line. This will allow the seal to remain airtight.I usually add oak chips at the rate of 1 gm per litre for a bout 3-4 weeks. Taste your wine after 2 weeks, then again at 3 and 4. Withdraw the chips when the taste is right. You need just a hint of oak. Don't be tempted to make it too strong.

Overwintering your Vineyard

Once you have pruned all your vines and made adjustments to the trellis, you should clean up underneath the vines to ensure weed growth will not take unecessary nutrient from the emerging vines in September. I use a broad hoe to do this job. I also apply a spary of lime sulphur to the freshly pruned vines to kill any scale that is harbouring over winter and to inhibit any Powdery Mildew spores that are now dormant on the newly laid canes.

Next Month


Preparing for the new seasonIn The CellarBottle WashingLabels