Winemaker, Chris Pfeiffer says local wineries will bounce back from recent frost.
Winemaker, Chris Pfeiffer first moved to the Rutherglen area in 1974, and says “one of the nicest parts of the world” still has much to offer.
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With temperatures dropping to minus two degrees on November 12, the worst since the minus seven of 1996, patches of vineyards in the Rutherglen region were left frost bitten and potentially fruitless.
Despite the problems such patchy frosts present, Chris Pfeiffer sees long term prosperity for local winemakers.
“The fruitfulness in a grape vine is laid down the season before,” he said.
“The first problem we have is the loss of yield, but the vines will be ok, they’ll come back.”
The biggest short term problem winemakers face after a vineyard is frosted is management.
With frost only occurring in patches, they must decide how to manage the damaged portion of vines alongside the undamaged ones, which according to Chris, is where it becomes a headache.
“Your problem is how you look after them, because the unaffected vines still need to be maintained to keep crops disease free,” he said.
“Whereas you have to maintain the affected vines differently to guarantee your crop for next year.
“If the secondary shoots then have fruit they’re not going to ripen at the same time as the others, so how do you handle that when we all want to machine pick because hand picking is too expensive.
“It creates more work, which means the fruit you pick is going to cost more, and in this current environment you don’t want your cost of wine going up.
“So, we’ll give it a few weeks and see what we’ve got before making a decision.”
Chris’s upbeat outlook is backed by more than four decades of experience.
With many in the Rutherglen area being boutique wineries, relying on cellar doors and memberships, he says it’s the tourism industry that drives sales more than wholesaling, and wineries will bounce back from these sorts of disasters.
“Wine stocks in Australia equate to greater than 12 months of sales,” he said.
“So, we can absorb that shortfall in wine production.
“But it’s critical for us (the Winemakers of Rutherglen) to work together.”
Chris Pfeiffer and the healthy vines at Pfieffer Wines.
Winemakers of Rutherglen is an association of 17 of the more than 20 wineries in the local area which are tapping into tourism to ensure the long-term survival of the local wine industry.
“Rutherglen is buzzing at the moment,” Chris said.
“Our winery, like all the wineries in this region, offers more of the premium end of the range.
“We’re looking to maximise the potential out of the grapes so we can continue to produce the wine that maintains our reputation.
“We’re still positive because we make a lovely product.”
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