Misha's Vineyard

Vineyard Manager Rich Williams gives an update of early summer activities on the vineyard

So far the start of the 2012 season at Misha’s Vineyard has been really mixed. In my last update, rain was falling and we received over 40mm in one day – which is not typical of Bendigo. The dry and even start to the season quickly changed to being varied and wet which more than topped up our soil moisture reserves. Since that rain, the winds have picked up and kept the vineyard crew on their toes ensuring all of the emerging vine shoots are safely tucked up in the trellis where they would be safe…we thought! They survived a powerful south-west wind gusting almost 90km on the 25th of November But then in the early hours of the 28th of November, a big norwestly hit with the intensity of a high-pressure water blaster and it knocked out a few large shoots and damaged some of the leaf structure. We will compensate for this later in the season by manipulating the cropping level to some degree although the vines have a way of repairing themselves by pushing secondary growth to replace lost spur position. This will mean extra work tucking and thinning later. We have also stepped up our irrigation yet again as the ground dries out to evaporation with the winds.

Shoot thinning has progressed very well, starting with the younger vines of the House Block, moving up the vineyard from early areas of advancement. We moved back down from the Top Block to complete the Sauvignon Blanc on the 24th of November. This year we had a team of 15 people who handled the pressure well and since then we have dropped the staff number back to eight (our lucky number!). The crew is predominantly French and I’m hoping they are not here to sabotage our wine! Just as a test, they were given the task of bud rubbing all the suckers from the base of the vines which is really back-breaking work. But these battle-hardened veterans completed the job and I’m now very confident of their best intentions! So with the vineyard now all tidied up, we’re about to carry out our second herbicide spray.

Our organic trial blocks have given us mixed results and we have learnt a lot since heading towards this spray-free regime. We believe that it’s mainly the age of our vines that are not handing the environmental stress of both the weather conditions and the fragile soils they are on. Perhaps the large area we chose was a little bold for our first trial but we soon narrowed it down to a more manageable area as soon as it was evident that some vines were not performing as well as others. There are marked differences row to row when comparing our two methods of farming. (And the jury is still out on whether organic grapes make better wine anyway!) We have found one of the organic trial blocks has given us some very good control on one of our more vigorous areas – Olly’s prized Abel Pinot Noir vines – and this has lead to less lateral growth and less wind damage as the vines had less turgidity to them hence they could handle the wind a little better. The variation in our soils has been the largest challenge; they just do not have the fertility and structure to support the vines during times of stress. The biggest learning – do not do partial trial blocks of organic vines as it leads to greater variability in the block and is hard to manage! Used as a tool to devigorate those vines in a block where the spring growth has resulted in very fast growth, could be very successful but it is very difficult to give some vines more water and Nitrogen than others and it means that either some will get too much and others not enough. As soon as we saw that some vines were suffering we went through the rows and sprayed the under-vine area with herbicide, removed suckers and dropped bunches on the short shoots to focus the vine’s energy in the right areas but unfortunately they still suffered a little in the process. There will be improvement as flowering finishes and the vines go into a period of accelerated shoot growth but they will not benefit from the same healthy start that the herbicide-treated vines had. Lesson learnt!

We are over half-way through flowering now and things have gone slightly differently this year to last year. Pinot Gris seems to be flowering much earlier than normal but in general the vineyard has flowered consistently from the bottom of the vineyard up to the top. I have found that vines that were cropped slightly heavier are behind the vines that were not. Overall temperatures during flowering have been on the warm-hot side suggesting big bunches which we remember well from last year. The younger blocks have already had bunches on short shoots removed and we’ve also done that on some of the blocks that do reach full canopy height. This should give these vines more strength and energy to promote stronger shoot growth.

We have been on the ball with our sulphur spray regime given the weather conditions – it pays to have your own canopy sprayer so you can spray when you need to. I am happy the vines are receiving the appropriate coverage given the growth, although I will always remain on the edge of my seat after last January’s overcast conditions which required real vigilance to protect against disease. We have begun some lateral thinning and minor leaf plucking on some more advanced blocks to refine the openness of the canopy which will aid in light and spray penetration. So far it is going well but will continue to tuck up growing shoots as required. Generally across the board we have 2 – 3 wires up and just starting to get the wire to the fourth clip height. We may start trimming just before Christmas but I would say the majority will be done after Christmas/New Year. Also this week we will have everything mown and tidy and will be very much up-to-date. I’m looking forward to a stinking hot summer this year! Generally given the weather conditions, the vineyard is looking very good. Fingers crossed for the rest of the season.

All the best for the festive season on behalf of the vineyard staff at Misha’s Vineyard.

Tags: central otago, Central Otago Pinot Noir, Misha's Vineyard Wines, mishas vineyard, Rich Williams

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The Season has started! An update post Bud-burst from Vineyard Manager – Rich Williams

Bud burst is finally here on the vineyard. We had our first buds appear on the 23rd of September which is pretty much on schedule. Starting in the usual spots in the House Block Pinot Noir, Lake Front PN Abel/ 6, and the Ski Slope PN 6. From here has progressed evenly up the vineyard over about a week. Sauvignon Blanc was the last to push but this is very normal for this variety. Growth so far looks relatively even on both spurs, cordon extensions, and canes.

It was a cracker start to the Spring with warm temperatures and less wind than usual. The soil was very dry for this time of year so the irrigation was on early on some of our blocks with light soils ensuring the vines had plenty of moisture to the rootzone. Our Aquaflex soil moisture sensors help us understand our different soil types and improve our water use on the vineyard so as to not over irrigate and cool down the soil which is a fine balancing act. As I speak, rain is pouring down and temperatures have cooled down considerably giving a typical yellow look to the leaves as growth slows.

Work disbudding canes and extensions during pruning has paid off with improved growth overall in these sections. Comparisons of the different techniques are clear to see in the images below. This will inevitably give a better and more even start without the pressure of immediate shoot thinning to take the pressure. We have started removing lower buds on the underside of extension canes to ensure they catch up early but the advantages of early bud removal during winter dormancy has its merits. Inflorence position has a close basil proximity indicating smaller sized bunches for the season ahead which is what we want for concentrated wine flavours.
This last month we were audited by Sustainable Wine NZ and passed with flying colours. The auditor was very impressed with the amount of detail we had gone into and we did more than enough to fulfil our obligations towards the scheme.

Work has progressed very well with the internal roading and drainage around the vineyard. We have tried to improve water runoff from the steep vineyard faces and direct it into guttering away from the roads. This will improve erosion if we get large amounts of rain like we are now experiencing. I intend to apply a liberal layer of gravel to these areas in the coming days to permit a safer and more enjoyable drive around the perimeter of the vineyard and stop the dust blowing onto our precious fruit once it is harvested. Irrigation has been installed around Ah Foo’s hut which was trenched in under the road from a redundant water line. This enabled the first native planting of Kanuka, Kowhai, and native tussock around the old hut. Once established it should increase shelter in the area and the Kowhai will eventually encourage native birds to feed – though hopefully not grape eating ones!

We have also taken our first step towards organic viticulture. This year will be a learning year to see what works best as far as weed management techniques are concerned. While our canopy spraying regime is straight forward, it is our weeds that need to be tamed in order to take that leap and be chemical free. So far we have used the weedeater to maintain the undervine area on our blocks which will go into our top tier Verismo Pinot Noir. While this was a slow process by hand, it will allow us to undergo some further investigation into the best under vine mower to use so that we can eventually move the rest of the vineyard into that program over time. There may be many rocks to pick up and the irrigation line may need to be raised however it will be in the best interests of the soil and our sustainable environmental involvement.

So we are all on track for the coming season. Our wires have been dropped ready to cater for growing shoots. All damaged posts have been repaired with some minor maintenance to the wind shelter rows. Irrigation lines have been flushed to remove excess build-up of silt and grime within the pipes to stop the dripper emitters from being blocked up to permit more even distribution of water to the vines. Herbicide spraying has been carried out on all sections other than our organic trial blocks. Our first application of sulphur to prevent powdery mildew has been done and will look to do our second this week if the weather will allow.

Sadly we say good bye to Sue who has been with us for 2 years now and will be heading across the Tasman to Perth for a bit of a change in lifestyle. Next month we will be appointing a new caretaker to the team who will help out with some of the rabbit control, maintenance, and tractor work.
Other than that, we’re ready for whatever the season will bring.

Rich.

Tags: central otago, central otago pinot, Central Otago Pinot Noir, Misha, mishas vineyard, Rich Williams

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Vineyard Manager Rich Williams give an update on the pre-budburst activities on the vineyard

Pruning on the vineyard is all but finished. We just have a few touch ups and blocks we are getting just right. It’s been an outstanding winter this year. While we have had plenty of snow low down on the vineyard, it hasn’t stayed around for long. We’ve had plenty of cracker frosts early on in the morning, but as the sun pops up above the mountains, it thaws to be a lovely day. The best thing about this winter is that we have not had the weeks and weeks of fog that we normally get.

This year we are two people down for pruning. Ryan has moved on and Ernst has been away since before harvest so we have been forced to cope with our small team of 3 and do our best under the circumstance. Thankfully our new Felcotronic electronic pruners have performed outstandingly and allowed us to speed up our work while protecting our now ageing joints from the burden of repetative strains which is common with pruning.

This year we have used a tractor mounted pre-pruning machine to trim off all last seasons growth to a shorter length so that the crew can follow up behind and tidy the spurs to 2 buds. It has been a lot easier to not have to pull these old shoots out by hand. The Sauvignon Blanc which is cane pruned has come up very well. At first I felt there may be a drastic yield reduction in order to get some strength into some of these vines on light soil. This year I have reduced the bud number considerably to force the vines into producing better apical region shoot growth to allow for stronger canes to be laid next year. Also using the disbudding technique to space out the buds on weaker canes accordingly and has come up better than expected and there will still be a sizable crop.

The young House Block has progressed well with the Pinot Noir completed early on and the Riesling just. This was a little more time consuming with additional laydowns and disbudding, and all fruiting wires being strained up to accommodate the vines now permanent form. I am very pleased with the amount of wire fill through here and the strength of the vines going forward. The under vine area has filled out with suitable low growing weed growth that is holding the ground together well preventing soil erosion.

Fertilizer this year is being applied via a tractor mounted spinner rather than a fast but expensive helicopter application this year. Using the tractor takes a lot longer and calibration is tricky, but I am satisfied it is going on well and even. This year we continue to improve on our base elements as well as some vital trace elements.

Both Dress Circle and High Wire blocks are looking great with full wire fill. These blocks struggled as their exposure to the wind can leave them a bit ragged but are now at their full potential. They are finally gaining good strength to cope with the elements. Spur spacing and bud number through here is spot on. The Top Block, being slightly older is at a consistent level and gaining in strength every year. In the Fruit Bowl block I have experimented with some Scott Henry style of pruning in the vigorous middle section of the block whereby 2 additional arms have been laid in order to further increase variability.

We have had 500 sheep in around the vineyard for the last month tidying things up. They have done a great job providing valuable manure for the vines. The next month on the vineyard will be all about maintenance. There are plenty of posts and end assemblies to fix. We also have some work to do on our internal vineyard roads where plenty of January rain has washed things out. Fixing some of the drainage will be on the priority list followed by a nice coating of gravel. Also some planting of Kanauka around Ah Foo’s house.

So lots to do – never a dull moment on the vineyard!

Take care – Rich

Tags: Ah Foo, central otago, central otago pinot, Central Otago Pinot Noir, mishas vineyard, Rich Williams

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The kōwhai is one of Otago’s best known and loved indigenous trees and is ingrained in our history and Maori culture. Kōwhai trees once flourished throughout Otago with golden flowers lighting up the hills in spring, attracting visitors and birds. Over time the agricultural development reduced the number of kōwhai to just a few stands in some of the less developed gullies and hillsides.

Project Gold is a Department of Conservation (DOC) initiated project dedicated to the protection and enhancement of kōwhai trees in Otago. In September Vineyard Manager Rich Williams and owner Andy Wilkinson attended a session by Department of Conservation on the process of establishing new stands of kōwhai in Central Otago and decided to purchase seedlings for spring planting.

Two areas have been initially identified – Ah Foos House – our replica gold miners hut on the rocky outcrop in the Top Block, and the entrance road into the vineyard. Ah Foos seemed the ideal starting point. A new irrigation line was installed and trenched into the hard rocky ground to ensure the kōwhai along with some other native bush species also planted in the surrounds would be able to get a good start. Rich and vineyard hand Sue Reid planted a perimeter of plants around the outer boundary and some more plants in alongside the walls of Ah Foos house. We hope the gradual development of these small stands of native plants will enhance the natural look of the vineyard and encourage native birds – tui, bellbirds and kaka to the hills.

As DOC has stated in its literature, this is a community program to encourage people and businesses to plant small stands in their gardens or on their properties. Just a few trees planted in every part of Central Otago in support of the larger programs along the Central Otago Rail Trial and in public areas will bring a new interest in this spectacular New Zealand native.

Tags: Andy Wilkinson, central otago, Kōwhai, mishas vineyard, Project Gold, Rich Williams

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A Small Advantage

If small is beautiful, then when you have 631 of New Zealand’s 697 wineries categorized as small, then you’d have to logically conclude that New Zealand wine is essentially…beautiful. Of course that’s no surprise at all for Kiwis but what may be surprising is how small can also be viable – especially in these tougher times!

In the July issue of Wine Business Magazine, Misha looks at four boutique New Zealand vineyards and looks at what makes them different – and successful. If you’re a boutique producer and charging premium prices for your wine, it’s a given that you need to be producing outstanding wine. But in an increasingly competitive marketplace, you also need to have that sector factors, stories and advantages that set you apart as a producer and make your products unique and special.

To read the full article download the PDF version below.

A Small Advantage- Download PDF

To subscribe to WBM – click here

Tags: central otago, Central Otago Pinot Noir, Greywacke, Kevin Judd, Misha, Misha Wilkinson, mishas vineyard, Nick Mills, Rippon, Sam Neill, Two Paddocks, Urlar, WBM, wine Business Magazine

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Andy and I have just been around New Zealand with the Negociants New Zealand team on their annual trade tour. We think they’re the best distributor in the country – biased? Of course! But they have the most amazing group of wineries in their New Zealand portfolio and on this tour we were also joined by some buddies from across the ditch! On the tour we were travelling with the likes of Two Paddocks (owned by the charming Sam Neill who took some time off Hollywood activities to pour wines on the tour), Rippon, Alpha Domus, Vinoptima, Palliser, Fromm, Greywacke, Nautilus, and Saint Clair to name a few. And from Australia, the wineries joining us this tour were Vasse Felix, Jim Barry Wines, Henschke, Yalumba, D’Arenberg etc. With a stellar line-up like that, it’s no wonder we had an amazing turn out of trade customers in each city!

The trade events were held in some fab places this year – the Royal NZ Yacht Squadron in Auckland, the Otago Golf Club in Dunedin (spectacular views of the golf course), and The George in Christchurch (where he had less of a trade event and more of a group ‘hug-in’ to let our Christchurch friends’ feel the love’ after their traumas.) Andy and I headed back home after Christchurch along with our friends from Two Paddocks and Rippon since flights out of Christchurch were cancelled due to the ash cloud from the erupting Chilean volcano. But Olly, our guru winemaker, was in charge for the Wellington leg of the trip which was held at the InterContinental Hotel and he also did the Pinot Noir Masterclass. (You can read a review from Raymond Chan about that here http://www.raymondchanwinereviews.co.nz/blog/pinot-noir-masterclass-negociants-nz-roadshow.

What’s really nice about doing these roadshows is the ability to meet with so many of the restaurants and wine retailers that have chosen to serve and sell our wines. It’s also a great opportunity too show our wines and tell the story of Misha’s Vineyard to those who don’t know us yet. We had so many wonderful customers come and say hi – thanks to all of you who did!

The best thing though about being on tour is the feeling of camaraderie that we share as a portfolio of wine brands under the Negociants NZ banner. It really is an organization with a family feel – everyone is just so nice and it’s so much fun being on the road as a team. It’s only our second year on the Negociants national tour but it’s something we love doing and we’re already looking forward to next year’s tour!

After a week like that, it just makes me think…I really love my job!

Tags: central otago, central otago pinot, Misha, mishas vineyard, Negociants New Zealand, Wine Distributor

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Winemaker Olly Masters gives a brief summary on the Misha’s Vineyard 2011 vintage

Overall I think the season and vintage have gone well, a settled and warm Oct/Nov/Dec got us off to a flying start and we had 1119 degree days in total – which is on the warm end (Martinborough got 1220 DD, Marlborough 1010 DD). This includes 52 DD in April which not all the grapes got. Interestingly Marlborough and Martinborough only got 3 and 1 respectively for April. The benign first half gave way at Xmas with winds arriving, again the Pinot Gris was the main block to suffer the impact but many other areas only just achieved full canopy. Summer rainfall was 273mm which was certainly useful canopy wise but the greyer warm weather through Jan/Feb didn’t lessen Vineyard Manager Rich Williams disease worries!

We saw more shrivel than usual in the Pinot Noir this season which may have been from early season heat and/or the higher than usual Summer moisture. However this is not a problem for the wine, and in fact may add some further complexity into an already good vintage.

Canopy and crop management over the season required ongoing attention from the vineyard crew, there was little bird damage and we didn’t lose anything significant to disease – which is great news in what was a tough season for many!

Crop intake was fairly in line with estimates, the Pinot Gris was down a bit, mostly as we went back in and dropped more bunches where the canopy wasn’t up to it. Gewurztraminer also came in lower than initial estimates which I think is more to do with the difficulty around measuring variation in “fruit bowl” section of the vineyard.

In general all the whites came in with good fruit characters and nice overt varietal flavour. There was more variation in the Pinot than usual which reflected the larger range in cropping levels we were carrying – but certainly there will be a lot of good Pinot.

Tags: central otago, central otago pinot, mishas vineyard, Olly Masters

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A Post-Harvest update from Vineyard Manager, Rich Williams

The 2010/11 harvest this year, I was very happy with. We had an enthusiastic team of about 15 workers who could easily pick 12 tonnes a day and ensure only quality fruit picked. On the whole I was very happy with the standard in a season that was full of challenges but came through with some stunning results and free from disease until the very end. The autumn brought about relatively settled weather after a very wet Summer. 1120 GDD were recorded this season which was slightly lower than last year even though our daily average temperature was 3 degrees warmer. This allowed for good flavour development and lower than normal acid levels across the board.

It was great to see the young House Block produce some amazing fruit for the first time this year. The 198.19 Riesling Clone was a real jaw dropper as well as the Pinot Noir 114. I was even quite happy how the unusually fickle Clone 4 turned out in the end as it trailed the 114 by quite a bit at one stage and was very different in flavour comparison. I thought the Sauvignon Blanc turned out extraordinarily well this year providing nice grapefruit and mango tropical fruit flavours with a hint of red pepper.

The hill slopes of the Highwire Block and Block 2 performed well, as did the Abel and Clone 6 in the Lakefront Block. Clone 5 in the Top Block that was taken back to 1 bunch per shoot also came through outstandingly well. I can’t wait to taste the wine that Olly and the team at the winery can come up with.

Nets are finally off the vines. Always a tedious time dodging the wind and rain and the relative humidity has been high, meaning nets stayed wet. The workers got a little cold and wet in the process but battled on in the conditions. This now marks the end of a successful 2010/11 season. Many thanks to the team and all those that gave a helping hand in this year’s vintage.

Pruning is now underway in the vineyard. I am trying a different tact now that the majority of the vineyard is fully established with almost complete wire-fill. We are targeting the odd spots that still need a bit of TLC such as areas like the Horse’s Head in the Top Block and the Pinot Gris in the Dress Circle where wind has prevented the vines from developing a full wire.

Giving the vines some extra strength by one on one pruning is the key this year. Correct bud number per vine is up to the skill of the pruner that will inevitably give the vines balance as the plants develop in maturity. We have always grown them a bit close to the hip on these lighter soils and just a little bit more vigour will promise a more even and fuller canopy, promoting fruit ripening and plant strength. As soon as we complete lay-downs in some blocks, a tractor mounted barrel pruner will trim last year’s dormant canes close to the cordon. This will enable the team to do a follow up pass and prune the vines back to a determined number of buds/spurs. This year we are blessed with the purchase of some of the most state of art battery powered Felcotronic pruners. A real investment into the prevention of worker repetitive strain injury which can hinder the even strongest pruner.

Last year I trialled a disbudding technique through the cane-pruned Sauvignon Blanc and this made a real difference in vine strength. Because the younger House Block this year struggled with power early on in the season. I intend to carry this idea through and try to gain some strength on these young vines, establishing a strong and uniform cordon using this disbudding technique. It will also buy some time come Spring and will mean some of the shoot thinning will already be done.

This year I also intend to assign the workers different blocks and will be assessing the work closely. This will hopefully produce more even pruning and will be allow each worker to put additional effort into their own patch.

Sadly we say goodbye to our Japanese friend Ken who has been with us since last November and plans to return back to Japan and start an online wine buyers site now that he has a good understanding how wine is made. Also we soon say goodbye to Ryan who has been with us for a complete year. Good luck to them both.

Tags: central otago, Central Otago Pinot Noir, mishas vineyard, Rich Williams

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Harvest Update

The 2011 growing season has thrown some interesting weather at us. The first half of the season was warm and dry but in January temperatures dropped and have stayed unseasonably cool and wet for much of the rest of the growing season. Overall we have still managed to come through with a great finish to the season due to some diligent vineyard management and keeping crops low. We’re delighted with the amazing fruit that’s been picked so far. This year’s harvest started slowly on Wednesday 30th March with a short day as we took a little Pinot Noir from the House Block. They were just 4 year old vines and their first “producing” season so we had to ensure the vines had a well balanced yield given the youth of the vines. Over the next couple of days we picked mainly Pinot Noir including the Abel clone of Pinot Noir from our Lakefront block– always a lush and flavorsome section of the vineyard! After three days of harvest we had partially picked 4 of our 8 clones of Pinot Noir – with still a lot of vineyard to go! Winemaker and official harvest scheduler, Olly Masters, tasted a lot of fruit on the Monday of Week 2 of harvest, and as usual, Olly is not in a rush to get the fruit off the vine as he waits for the berries to develop the flavours he’s looking for so we didn’t resume picking until Wednesday.

The first white varietal to be picked was the Sauvignon Blanc on our “Ski Slope”. It’s an interesting area to harvest. We pick mostly downhill as the bucket runners would simply not manage to get full buckets up the steep slope to the tractor and trailer and our picking crew would struggle to climb uphill as well. Thank goodness for the Misha’s Vineyard mini-bus to get them from the bottom of the hill to the top in order to start another downhill run. Ski Slope also tests the brakes on the tractors with two 400kg harvest bins on the trailer facing straight down the slope to the lake. The Sauvignon Blanc from Misha’s Vineyard is quite different from the more typical Marlborough style of Sauvignon Blanc produced in New Zealand. It’s more tropical and luscious than herbaceous and grassy. We think it’s the stunning view these vines have that makes the difference!

Friday started with 7 1/2 tonnes of Clone 667 Pinot Noir from Lakefront then we switched to Gewürztraminer – all .95ha of it in our “Fruitbowl” section of the vineyard. Gewürztraminer is one of the best varietals for being able to taste the wine flavours in the fruit before processing. It has really delicious lychee and musk flavours with a fruit sweetness that makes you want to munch on bunches while you’re picking!

Thanks to this year’s hardworking harvest team from Germany, Poland, Japan and of course New Zealand. It’s tough getting up in the cold to be picked up in town and driven up on site ready to start snipping at 7:30am. The starts can be quite icy until the sun starts to warm the air, but of course running up our hills warms everyone up!. However the spectacular view from Misha’s Vineyard on a beautiful Central Otago day is worth it!

Tags: central otago, central otago pinot, Central Otago Pinot Noir, Gewurztraminer, mishas vineyard, Olly Masters, Sauvignon Blanc, Wine Harvest

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Is Central Otago Pinot as Good as it Gets?

Central Otago is a phenomenon in the wine world – a region that produces an infinitesimal amount of wine in global terms but a region which is not insignificant in terms of its reputation.

In the February edition of Wine Business Magazine Misha looks at whether the quality of its wines live up to the hype! The article explores the region, the organizations and the fast transition from pioneering wine district onto the centre stage of world wines.

To read the full article download the PDF version below.

Is Central Otago Pinot as Good as it Gets? – Download PDF

To subscribe to WBM – click here

Tags: central otago, central otago pinot, Central Otago Pinot Noir, Misha, Misha Wilkinson, misha's, mishas vineyard, new zealand wine, pinot noir, WBM, wine Business Magazine, Wine Business Monthly

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