This year we are celebrating our 40th vintage at McLeish in the Hunter Valley and we are excited to celebrate this milestone with you.
20th of December 2024
The growing season has been superb as we recorded good Spring rainfall that lead into a moderate Summer. The harvest will begin in early January and the white varietals are showing good balance of acidity and ripness. The red varietals still have a bit of hang time, with the fruit looking clean and progress to harvest is looking good.
13th of January 2025
The estate Semillon and Chardonnay has been gradually ripening with a very warm / hot start to the year – kaolin clay (sunscreen) has been applied to the vines on the 2nd of January as we experienced a string of 40 degree days up until Tuesday 7th and that week when a cool change started with rainfall of 26ml followed by 13ml on Sunday 12th. We anticipate harvest will start this week as the moderate warm conditions begin again.
20th of January 2025
The joy of vintage comes from the anticipation, along with copious amounts of good wine and food – the fuel! Following on from our last update we have had a huge week of unpredictable events and the ‘fuel’ has been needed!
After a mild start with cool conditions and 26ml of rain across the 13th – 15th, we took the opportunity to hand harvest the top tier Chardonnay block 1 on the 16th of January, the early morning pick saw a large crew hand harvest an above average yield of pristine fruit.
The night prior (15th) a massive storm swept across NSW brining a further 39ml rainfall and on the estate, we experienced damage to trees. Fortunately, the stars aligned with picking and processing taking place outside of the rainfall window. Block 2 and Block 4 Chardonnay was hand harvested on the 17th on a misty day in Pokolbin before more rainfall of 17ml across the 18th/19th of January.
I am so pleased that as I write this update there are blue skies and the estate Semillon vineyard is looking ready to hand harvest this week!
11th of February 2025
Between January 21st and 28th, all estate Semillon grapes were hand-harvested, at impressively high tonnages. The favorable growing season, characterized by good spring rainfall leading into a warm summer, contributed to a harmonious balance of acidity and ripeness in the fruit. As we have finished the white grapes for harvest I am pleased with the quantity and impressed with the exceptional standard across all varietals.
In early February, we focused on our selecting picking red varietals for our low baumé wines. The base for the Dwyer Rosé which is based on the estate Merlot grapes, was picked on February 3rd. Shortly after, on February 5th, we harvested the grapes for our sparkling vintage Shiraz base.
Mild ripening conditions accompanied by isolated storms set the stage for our red grape harvest. The Cabernet Sauvignon was brought in on February 8th, followed by the Merlot on February 10th. The fruit exhibited fantastic flavor profiles, promising exceptional wines for this vintage.
As we continue through the 2025 vintage we look forward to sharing the updates as we move closer to conclude the season.
