Grapegrower & Winemaker - September 2016 by Provincial Press Group

SEPTEMBER 2016

Emerging vineyard technologies > Cellulose gum for tartrate stability

> Did the #16AWITC kill Twitter?

> Treasury F16 result a delight

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contents features SEPTEMBER 2016

44 54 68 72 82 91 95 97

Pest & Disease Irrigation Winery Tanks Crushing & Pressing Oak Bottling & Packaging Education Design as strategy

COVER Spring has arrived on the back of a wet winter. The green shoots are a perfect metaphor for the early promise of a great season.

Emerging vineyard technologies > Cellulose gum for tartrate stability

news

> Did the #16AWITC kill Twitter?

> Treasury F16 result a delight

grapegrowing

From the editor .........................................7 How confused can wine consumers get?

Movers & Shakers.....................................8 Regional Roundup: North Island .............. 12 Industry ‘cautiously optimistic’ as winegrape prices increase ..................14 Treasury delivers impressive annual result ..........................................15 People & Places: The biggest industry event on the calendar ................16 16

Recent and emerging technologies to optimise yield, quality and production efficiency in vineyards ............23 EPA report concludes glyphosate an unlikely carcinogen ............................30 Vintage report - what lies beneath ..........32 Agricultural robotics and drones ..............33 Vineyard hi-tech health ...........................35 Terroir and Other Myths of Winegrowing 36

My View: Heather Webster .....................18 Work together to share the risks and the profits

Mark Matthews generates some controversy

Young Gun: Chris Molineaux ................... 41 Optimising grape harvest for wine style

regulars 6 What’s online 19 WGGA:

99 Industry profile

The Australian Grower

68 Ask the AWRI 4 Grapegrower & Winemaker

100 Calendar 101 Marketplace classifieds

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September 2016 – Issue 632

September 2016: Issue 632 winemaking

sales & marketing

Cellulose gum, an effective solution for tartrate instability in wine .....58

Wine packaging steps into the digital age .................................92

European trends in the use of mannoproteins

Shiraz, the King ......................................64

How winemakers can beat counterfeiters ..................................93

McAtamney’s Market Report Did the #16AWITC just kill Twitter? ...........66

business & technology

Quicker, more effective maceration ..........70

De Bortoli Wines keeping it in the family ...........................97

Derwent Estate impresses with Bucher Vaslin ..................................72

Alcohol reduction using Spinning Cone Column Technology ........................80 80

Mount Majura Vineyard releases 'NINO' .......... 98 The state of the barrel market .................84

PUBLISHER AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE Hartley Higgins

PRODUCTION Simon Miles

GENERAL MANAGER Peter Muscet

CIRCULATION: Melissa Smithen subs@winetitles.com.au

EDITOR Nathan Gogoll editor@grapeandwine.com.au EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Denis Gastin, Dr Steve Goodman, Dr Terry Lee, Paul van der Lee, Bob Campbell MW, Prof Dennis Taylor, Mary Retallack and Corrina Wright EDITORIAL Emilie Reynolds journalist@winetitles.com.au ADVERTISING SALES Maria Stephenson sales@grapeandwine.com.au September 2016 – Issue 632

WINETITLES MEDIA ABN 85 085 551 980 630 Regency Road, Broadview, South Australia 5083 Phone: (08) 8369 9500 Fax: (08) 8369 9501 info@winetitles.com.au www.winetitles.com.au @Grape_and_Wine Printing by Lane Print Group, Adelaide © Contents copyright Winetitles Media 2014. All Rights Reserved. Print Post Approved PP535806/0019 Articles published in this issue of Grapegrower & Winemaker may also appear in full or as extracts on our website. Cover price $8.25 (inc. GST) www.winetitles.com.au

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your say what’s ONLINE High hopes for organic vineyards in Riverland South Australia is often synonymous with producing world-class wine, and the peak body representing the Riverland’s wine industry believes the region has all the ingredients to become a world leader in growing organically. Winemakers and grape growers in the region were out in force recently to learn more about bringing organic practices and soil health to their vineyards, reports the ABC.

Expanding the Marlborough wine industry To grow any further, the Marlborough wine industry needs accommodation and it needs labour. Reporter Oliver Lewis takes a look at the challenge facing the $1 billion industry. Behind every bottle of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, the wine that put New Zealand on the map, lies the unseen work of thousands of pairs of hands. From a handful of vineyards in the 1970s to the engine room of the pumping wine export economy, the Marlborough wine industry has transformed the physical and social landscape of the region, reports Stuff.

Len Evans Tutorial claims Maurice O’Shea Award THE TRUSTEES OF THE LET Foundation were delighted to receive the 2016 McWilliam’s Maurice O’Shea Award in late July. This prestigious award, first presented in 1990, acknowledges the significant contribution of an individual or company to the Australian Wine Industry. It pays homage to the legendary Hunter Valley winemaker Maurice O’Shea who hand crafted distinctive dry red and dry white table wines at his Mount Pleasant winery between 1923 and 1956. The sterling silver trophy was presented to the Len Evans Tutorial at a gala dinner in Adelaide on 25 July. In attendance to receive the award on behalf of the LET Trustees were Sally Evans and Iain Riggs, and long-term tutor Ian McKenzie. The Len Evans Tutorial was launched in 2001 by the late Len Evans OBE AO, himself a recipient of the O’Shea Award in 1991. His principal aim was to increase the knowledge and tasting ability of future wine show judges. Since then, 180 elite scholars have been through the tutorial, including winemakers, viticulturists, retailers,

Iain Riggs named ‘Legend of the Vine’

Pikes Wines scores $320,000 government grant Pikes Wines has been awarded a $320,000 Regional Development Fund grant to open a visitors’ centre. It follows the family-owned and run company receiving a $184,477 Regional Development Fund grant in 2013 to assist in the set-up of a microbrewery at the vineyard. The visitors’ centre will showcase regional and local produce, and offer a function space with seating for up to 130 people, reports Drinks Central.

Daily Wine News is a snapshot of wine business, research and marketing content gleaned from international wine media sources, with a focus on Australian news and content. To subscribe visit www.winetitles.com.au/dwn. 6 Grapegrower & Winemaker

restaurateurs, sommeliers and wine writers. Held in the Hunter Valley, the annual five-day tutorial features a series of blind tastings, master classes and judging sessions. The program is designed to define quality by exposing the 12 carefully selected scholars to the great wine styles of the world, guided by the industry’s greatest palates. Graduates of what has been named by James Halliday as “the most exclusive wine school in the world” now judge at a multitude of key wine shows across the country, several of which are currently chaired by past LET scholars. As a not-for-profit organisation, the LET relies on the support of the industry to run. The LET trustees would like to thank the many sponsors, donors, tutors and volunteers past and present who have ensured that Evans’ vision has been sustained. His dream of developing an elite squad of high caliber wine professionals who will make a real difference to the industry, raising quality levels higher, and spreading the word about world class Australian wine to a global audience is now a firm reality.

THE DRIVING FORCE behind Brokenwood Wines and one of the industry’s most passionate advocates, Iain Riggs, has been named the 2016 NSW Legend of the Vine by Wine Communicators of Australia. The award was appropriately presented at WCA’s annual KPMG Sydney Royal Wine Show Trophy Winners Lunch in late July. Riggs has been involved with the show for more than a quarter of a century and was Chairman of Judges for six years. www.winetitles.com.au

“Legend is a frequently overused word these days but Iain really ticks all the boxes,” said WCA National Chair, Angus Barnes. “He is a winemaker, a wine judge, a wine educator and a true believer in our industry and its people. When he talks, others listen. “The Legend of the Vine award was created in 2014 to acknowledge individuals who have not only made an outstanding contribution to the Australian wine industry but who have also helped chart its course and take its message to the world.” Riggs has been Brokenwood’s chief winemaker and managing director for more than 30 years and is Chairman of Trustees of the Len Evans Foundation, which conducts the prestigious Len Evans Tutorial. He also succeeded Len as Chairman of the Hunter Valley Wine Show in 2002 and has since had the Iain Riggs Wine of Provenance Trophy named in his honour. Iain is the fifth person to be awarded Legend of the Vine status in NSW. Previous recipients were Chris Anstee (2012), Philip La“fffer (2013), David Lowe (2014) and Rob Hirst (2015). September 2016 – Issue 632

from the editor

Nathan Gogoll Editor

How confused can wine consumers get? AS IF IT WASN’T hard enough for a consumer to navigate the wine aisles of their favourite liquor retailer already, ABC’s The Checkout program just chipped in to complicate it further. The topic: Wine show awards The verdict: They’re about as valuable as encouragement awards for kids in kindergarten. Wow. I can hear wine show organising committee members groaning and judges hitting their clipboards into their foreheads. It was Thursday 4 August when the Checkout went to air with their satirical take on what consumers needed to know about wine show awards. Haven’t heard of The Checkout, well here’s their own explanation of what they do: The Checkout is a satirical consumer affairs series presented by Julian Morrow and Craig Reucassel from The Chaser team, Kirsten Drysdale, Kate Browne, Scott Abbot, Zoe Norton Lodge and Ben Jenkins. From cradles to graves, everyone’s a customer – and we have the right not to remain silent. Each week, The Checkout takes a no-holds-barred, irreverent and entertaining approach to explaining and exposing the ways that all of us are being ripped off. The Checkout is consumer affairs TV for the twenty first century offering a revolutionary new wonder diet of information and entertainment that’s clinically proven and 26% fat free. Don’t get ripped off, watch The Checkout. When they tackled wine awards there were small snippets of relatively useful information, such as: “Wine awards are not like the Olympics… these medals don’t represent first, second or third place. For first place you want a trophy, a trophy means it was ranked the best of all the wines it was up against.

September 2016 – Issue 632

“By contrast, gold medals go to every wine that gets above a certain score and the same goes for silver and bronze.” As well as some useful statistics, like this one: “There are a lot of wine shows out there, 67 in Australia alone.” And that’s almost an accurate number, by the way. We listed an additional six ‘international’ wine shows that are based in Australia in our sister publication, the 2016 Australian and New Zealand Wine Industry Directory. Of course, not every wine is eligible to be entered in every wine show – but the Checkout didn’t delve into that issue. Instead they offered consumers this insight: “Theoretically, every wine could come away with some bottle bling… and they often do.” Nice theory, that one. (“I agree with you, in theory. In theory, communism works. In theory,” said Homer Simpson, noted academic.) Ever heard of a wine show where every wine entered scored a medal? Nah, me neither. But the conspiracy deepened: “There’s a reason they give out so many awards – it encourages more wines to enter. And to enter costs money.” Then pointing out one major international wine award generated more than $3.5million through entry fees last year (an amount I haven’t verified). If they hadn’t offended every single person involved in a wine show by now, The Checkout concluded with this gem just to make sure: “Wine awards aren’t necessarily hard to get; many wines don’t even try; and the entire judging process is hopelessly subjective and compromised.” If they had singled out a smaller group of wine shows, the show would have been facing a defamation case. But if you look at the motivation behind what they did there are a couple things they wanted consumers to understand:

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• The winery paid to enter the wine show and paid for the stickers because it wanted the award to persuade consumers to choose its own medal winner over other alternatives; however • A wine award sticker on a bottle doesn’t necessarily mean the wine is any better than another bottle sitting next to it on the shelf. While this might be seen as a valuable insight for consumers, the way the wine show system was attacked by the program was fairly unwarranted. Yes, from time-to-time I’ve heard grumbles about wine show entry fees propping up the major agricultural show societies; it’s been put to me there are too many wine shows in Australia; and I’ve even had a suggestion that, collectively, the wine industry should do something more constructive with all the money it spends on wine show entries. But I reckon the industry has been taking all this seriously and shouldn’t have to put up with the sort of criticism delivered by The Checkout. Actually, if you look through The 2015 ASVO Wine Show Best Practice Recommendations (available via the ASVO website, www.asvo.com.au) you will be able to see just how seriously the industry takes this topic – the latest report is 69 pages long. I’ve pulled out just a couple of grabs from that report: • The aim is to have trade and consumers respect the show system as one of the best independent sources of reliable information about the diversity and quality of Australian wines; and • Ultimately the exhibitors and consumers will decide whether a show has relevance. I reckon the wine industry has got this covered, but thanks anyway The Checkout. Enjoy the read

Grapegrower & Winemaker

movers & shakers Big red from Down Under to be Graham Norton’s Own TALK show host and wine lover Graham Norton is releasing a South Australian Shiraz following the international success of his Sauvignon Blanc. The Irish comedian teamed up with New Zealand’s Invivo Wines in 2014 and has sold more than 500,000 bottles of their 2015 Graham Norton’s Own Sauvignon Blanc By Invivo in Ireland, the UK, Australia and New Zealand since its release in October. The inaugural Graham Norton’s Own 2015 Shiraz will be released this October and is a blend of grapes from South Australian regions Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale and Langhorne Creek. Invivo co-founders Tim Lightbourne and Rob Cameron recently returned from Norton’s summer house in County Cork, Ireland, where they spent an afternoon tasting and blending samples for the Shiraz and the 2016 Sauvignon Blanc, which will be released in September. Lightbourne, Invivo’s Marketing Director, said there had been strong calls from customers to release a Graham Norton’s Own red wine.

“We considered doing a Pinot Noir but a lot of our customers were after a heavier type of red and we also needed the volume to support that so we looked to South Australia,” he said. “We asked Graham if he would be keen to make a South Australian Shiraz, which he was really excited by, so we took six or seven samples from across South Australia and he chose his favourite blend. “It wasn’t a hard sell for Graham, he knows the area and he was definitely keen.” Invivo were looking to produce about 300,000 to 400,000 bottles of the Shiraz, which will retail for AU$20 a bottle. Cameron, who is also a winemaker, visited South Australia in August to finalise the Shiraz blend. He said South Australia was a logical choice for a bold yet approachable red wine. “South Australian wines are consumer friendly, loved worldwide and the quality for the price is exceptional,” Cameron said. “It’s going to be classic Shiraz – big, juicy, lovely ripe fruit. It’s not a huge tannic wine so it’s going to be fairly user friendly but it really delivers power,

mouth feel and palate weight. “We hope it’s going to go as well as our Sauvignon Blanc but I guess we’ll see in the coming months.” Cameron said coming to South Australia to blend a wine for the first time had been “fantastic” for the New Zealand winemakers. “There’s some of the most classic and famous wines in the world here – there’s so much quality, diversity and history so it’s been a great experience,” he said. Norton’s involvement with Invivo began in 2014 when he stomped their Sauvignon Blanc grapes on the set of his show. The stomped juice was taken back to Invivo at Te Kauwhata, about an hour south of Auckland, and added to the wine tank. The Graham Norton’s Own brand was well received in New Zealand, paving the way for the highly successful 2015 release. The UK’s Independent newspaper named last year’s release number three in the top 15 Sauvignon Blancs in the UK. Marie Claire magazine declared it “One of the most successful celebrity wine collaborations ever”.

Howard Park Wines celebrates 30th Anniversary HOWARD PARK WINES has released a limited edition version of its flagship Abercrombie Cabernet Sauvignon and Mt Barker Riesling to commemorate its 30th Anniversary. The selected wines were the first two varieties Howard Park released thirty years ago. The limited edition version have been reworked with retro style labels to pay tribute to the winery’s original artworks by Alexander Hill and Denise Bowen. Owned and operated by Burch Family Wines, Howard Park Wines sources almost all of its fruit from the group’s

own collection of vineyards. Jeff Burch, Burch Family Wines owner, said the knowledge and experience gained over the past 20 years spent sourcing fruit from the Margaret River and the Great Southern regions has allowed the company to build an intellectual database. “We’ve spent 20 years of the journey buying all of our fruit from top quality vineyards throughout Western Australia,” Burch said. “Now we source 95 per cent of the fruit we use from our own vineyards.” Burch said the company was involved

in the production of its wines from the ground floor. “From the time the grapes are first planted, to rolling out the finished product, we’re implementing quality control measures throughout the entire process,” Burch said. “No one else has spent 30 years developing that resource, and now we’re seeing the benefits.” The retro labelled 30th Anniversary wine from Howard Park Wines is only available through mail order and the cellar door, so make sure to visit the Burch Family Wines (www.burchfamilywines. com.au) website for more information.

Serious employment breaches found in Marlborough vineyards WIDESPREAD employment breaches have been uncovered by an investigation into labour contractors servicing the Marlborough wine industry. A joint operation between the Labour Inspectorate, Immigration New Zealand and Inland Revenue in Marlborough vineyards has found contractors failing to pay their workers minimum wage, holiday pay, or keep proper employment records. Of the 10 independent contractors visited, two were breaching minimum wage, holiday pay, and record keeping requirements, with another seven asked to supply additional records.

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Kevin Finnegan, Labour Inspectorate regional manager, said with only one contractor found to be compliant, it showed the industry needed to start taking action to ensure contractors were meeting employment standard. “Minimum employment standards are basic requirements all employers need to fulfil – it’s simply unacceptable to fail to pay minimum wage, holiday pay, or keep up to date records of employees,” Finnegan said. “By engaging with contractors who choose to ignore employment standards, the New Zealand wine industry is exposing themselves to reputational damage.” www.winetitles.com.au

Finnegan said the wine industry should take ownership of the issue to prove it has been taken seriously. This included seeking assurances from their contractors that all minimum employment standards are being met. “We take these kinds of breaches very seriously, and will be continuing to work with other agencies to target problem sectors to ensure at-risk workers across New Zealand receive their minimum employment entitlements.” Nine contractors from the Regional Seasonal Employee (RSE) scheme were also visited, with all nine found to be compliant with employment standards. September 2016 – Issue 632

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on the grapevine Family of Twelve appoint Judy Finn as new chair FAMILY OF TWELVE, a group of twelve New Zealand wine producers, recently announced Neudorf Vineyards’ Judy Finn as its new chair. Finn has taken over from William Hoare of Fromm Winery in Marlborough to become the first women to be elected to the position. In a statement released by Family of Twelve, the group described Finn as a “driving force in the evolution of New Zealand’s quality wine industry and a true pioneer in Nelson”.

Outside of Neudorf, Finn is passionate about the Nelson region having served on the Nelson Tasman Tourism Board and as a Trustee of the Suter Arts Gallery in Nelson. Judy also served as a director on the Board of Wellington’s highly successful Pinot Noir 2013, 2010 and 2007. Judy’s journalism background saw her serve eight years on the board of Radio New Zealand Limited and four years on the board of Television NZ. “The Family of 12 is a special group – 12 strong individual brands who work

together promoting New Zealand and fine wine,” Finn said. “We respect each other immensely and want the world to understand New Zealand does not just make good wine – it can make great wine, wine which stands alongside the best in the world. The joy of being part of this group is the camaraderie, the viticultural and oenological intelligence and best of all, the sharing of a memorable story over a glass.”

Lynda Schenk appointed executive officer at WCA LYNDA SCHENK has been announced as the new Executive Officer at Wine Communicators Australia (WCA), taking over the role from Nick Carne. A wine marketing specialist with more than 20 years’ experience, Schenk also founded the Adelaide marketing consultancy Purple Giraffe Marketing two years ago. “I am delighted to be working with the amazing team of volunteer contributors

at WCA and to steer the ship in growing the value proposition to our members,” she said. Angus Barnes, WCA chairman, thanked former executive officer Nick Carne for his contribution to WCA and said Carne was instrumental in growing WCA’s winery membership base. “2015 was a significant year for growth for our membership base and we look forward to continuing and building

on that success,” Barnes said. “We are delighted to have found such a wellqualified executive to fulfil this pivotal role for the next phase of WCA.” WCA’s annual program includes networking events, webinars and lunches in association with three major capital city wine shows – Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. It also runs the annual Wine Communicator Awards and Legend of the Vine Awards.

Casella Wines toasts purchase of large scale Riverina vineyard CASELLA WINES has further expanded its Australian footprint with the acquisition of Dunvar, one of New South Wales’ largest vineyards. CBRE’s Agribusiness team recently offered the prominent Riverina District vineyard for sale on behalf of Belvino Investments. Dunvar comprises a 902 hectare landholding with 608 hectares planted to Shiraz (170 hectares), Pinot Grigio (236 hectares) and Chardonnay (202 hectares). All vines were planted in 2002 and are fully productive. CBRE’s Col Medway and Richie Inglis steered the sale campaign for the property, which is situated in one of Australia’s most agriculturally diverse

regions, approximately seven kilometres from Darlington Point. “There was extensive industry interest from existing and new players, with interest in viticulture and wine assets having turned the corner,” Mr Medway said. “The property is underpinned by high quality fit-for-purpose infrastructure and substantial water entitlements, with a further 120ha available for additional plantings.” The sale was negotiated on behalf of Belvino Investments, a company which invests in vineyards across the major wine regions in Australia and New Zealand. Typically the vineyards are purchased, improved and sold. Belvino Chief Executive Nick

Gill commented; “We had a planned investment strategy for Dunvar with a set timeline. After acquiring the property from the receivers we embarked on an extensive development plan focused on the property’s production and profitability.” It is the latest acquisition for Casella Wines, which recently acquired full ownership of Morris Wines from Pernod Ricard Winemakers. Water availability is a key feature of Dunvar, which has 1,372 megalitres General Security Water Entitlement (Murrumbidgee River), 333 megalitres Lower Murrumbidgee Deep Groundwater Licence (Zone 1) and 1,888 megalitres Lower Murrumbidgee Deep Groundwater Licence (Zone 2).

Negociants and Coravin announce partnership Negociants Australia and Samuel Smith & Son have today announced a formal national distribution partnership for the Coravin pouring systems, which is effective immediately. The Coravin gassed needle-based pouring system allows for wines under cork to be poured for a long time with no oxidation to the wine. The system means that stores, venues or consumers can have multiple bottles opened without spoiling. Ken Withers, General Manager Negociants Australia said, “We are proud

10 Grapegrower & Winemaker

and delighted to announce the newest addition to the Negociants and Smiths family in the form of ‘Coravin’. “Given our fine wine focus and commitment to great wine experiences it makes sense that Coravin joins the family.” The system was recently mentioned by multiple winners in this year’s Gourmet traveller ‘wine-list of the year awards’ as a key contributor to their restaurant’s success. Christian Pillsbury, Director of Sales www.winetitles.com.au

Asia Pacific commented, “The secret to any success starts with finding the right partner. We at Coravin couldn’t be happier to have been chosen by Negociants Australia and Samuel Smith & Son. Whether it’s 100 selections by the glass or the ability to steal a glass from the special bottle you’ve been saving, Coravin and our new Distributors will change the way Australians drink wine.” Anyone interested in the Coravin pouring system can contact Negociants Australia for more information. September 2016 – Issue 632

Wine bosses at Cloudy Bay and Yealands step down TWO HIGH-LEVEL EXECUTIVES have stood down from their respective roles within the Marlborough wine industry. Cloudy Bay Vineyards estate director Ian Morden and Yealands Wine Group chief executive Jason Judkins have both resigned from their positions. As reported by The Marlborough Express, Cloudy Bay Vineyards estate director Ian Morden in August after seven years at the label, which is owned by luxury goods company Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy. Jason Judkins, Yealands Wine Group chief executive, also announced his resignation after nine years. The Marlborough Express reported Judkins informed staff of his decision to leave in August, however was not expected to exit the position for at least six months. Founder Peter Yealands said he would be sorely missed from the wine company. Yealands said Judkins had been influential in establishing a strong company culture during his tenure, which started in 2007. “We’ll struggle to find someone as good as he was, but we will given time,”

Cloudy Bay Vineyards estate director Ian Morden

Yealands said. “He’s looking forward to a bit of a holiday and spending more time with his family.” Judkins was chief executive when Yealands Wine Group was bought by Marlborough Lines, which acquired an

Yealands Wine Group chief executive Jason Judkins

80 per cent shareholding last year. The deal, which saw the lines company pay $89 million, reduced the shareholding of Yealands from 75 per cent to 15 per cent, with Judkins holding the remaining five per cent.

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Sorry Angels, not much to share.

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disturbing of the wine. Feedback from Peter Lehmann Wines, “there's a noticeable difference, with improvement in colour and flavour intensity.”

The hyper-efficiency of Climate Wizard means that it cuts cooling costs by 80%*, which means no costly power upgrades are necessary for your barrel storage. *Compared to conventional systems, performing the same duty.

climatewizard.com September 2016 – Issue 632

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

REGIONAL ROUNDUP

Regional roundup: New Zealand’s North Island Wellington Wine Country a winner THE ESTABLISHMENT of Wellington Wine Country Limited to market wine produced across the greater Wellington region has been a brilliant example of regional collaboration with big benefits to all concerned, according to Chris Laidlaw, chairman of the Greater Wellington Regional Council. “Wellington Wine Country Limited will streamline and strengthen the marketing efforts of wine producers in Gladstone, Martinborough, Masterton, and Kapiti, adding huge value to the industry and to the region as a whole,” Laidlaw said. “Integrated marketing will reinforce the image of Wellington region as a place where fine foods and wines stand out as part of the suite of cultural and physical attractions,” he said. Laidlaw said it had taken something of a leap of trust for

many in the Wairarapa, in particular, to recognise that people in markets abroad recognise Wellington as a regional destination. “Wellington Wine Country Limited will enable all winemakers in the region to collaborate more effectively under a single banner yet retain their subregional identity, just as St Emilion or St Esteph do, for instance, within the wider Bordeaux region,” Laidlaw said. “It will help foreign buyers, who easily confuse the words Marlborough and Martinborough, or who can find the word ‘Wairarapa’ a bit of a challenge to pronounce; and it will help us to market the region as a destination with many options. “It’s a regional no-brainer, and we should all congratulate the winemakers on their initiative.”

Vinomofo launches in NZ AUSTRALIA’S number one online wine retailer has kicked off its New Zealand operation with a recent launch party in central Auckland. Vinomofo, which offers members the opportunity to buy wines from New Zealand, Australia and international markets,

already has nearly half a million regular users in the Australian market. Co-founders Justin Dry and Andre Eikmeier launched the New Zealand site to a crowd of excited wine lovers and entrepreneurs from New Zealand’s start up community.

Andre Eikmeier at the launch of Vinomofo’s New Zealand arm.

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September 2016 – Issue 632

Dry said start-ups were dear to Vinomofo’s heart because that was how the team at Vinomofo saw themselves. “We love the environment and the energy start-ups bring, the way they work together, the way they epitomise the best things about building a product and a company and taking on the world,” he said. Eikmeier said the launch of the New Zealand site marked the company’s first steps into the global market and he was excited for the company but also for the customers. “For us it’s about find and building that tribe of wine lovers who want to do good things in the world,” he said. “We want to step up and explore and have fun and our customers, our tribe, want the same thing.” “We have a team of buyers who look at the market and what they want, who are passionate about bringing new and unique brands out into the open and who go out of their way to find interesting wines that customers might not have seen before,” Dry said. Eikmeier said Vinomofo were committed to offering the best wines available to the market. “These are the wines we drink. If we don’t love it, we don’t sell it. Less than 5 per cent of wines that cross our tasting bench actually make it to the website. Our tribe of mofos know that we go out of our way to make sure the wine they get is wine they want,” he said.

Entries Now Open Including two NEW award categories for 2016

New Zealand wine exports up 10% NEW ZEALAND’S wine industry is well on track to reach its target of $2 billion of exports by 2020, according to Chair of New Zealand Winegrowers, Steve Green. New Zealand Winegrowers’ Annual Report shows exports have risen 10 per cent in the last year to just under $1.6 billion, marking the 21st consecutive year the industry has experienced significant export growth. “The on-going progress towards the $2 billion goal is founded on our reputation as a wine exporter of the first rank, known for crafting and marketing distinctively New Zealand, high quality, high value wines,” Green said. “This continued strong performance is testament to underlying market and consumer demand for our wines in key markets.” With demand strong the improved supply from Vintage 2016 is expected to lift export volumes by a further 10 per Including cent over the next 12 months.

ENTRIES CLOSE: 3 OCT 2016 WINNERS ANNOUNCED: 15 NOV 2016

Entries Now Open

two NEW award categories for 2016

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Entries Now International Wine Challenge trophies ENTRIES CLOSE: 3 OCT 2016

Open

Join the conversation #winechicksrule #AWIWA WOMENINWINEAWARDS.COM.AU

Including two NEW award categories for 2016 MATUA HAS BEEN AWARDED four trophies at the 2016 WINNERS ANNOUNCED: 15 NOV 2016 International Wine Challenge (IWC) based in London. Matua’s flagship Syrah, the Matua Single Vineyard Hawkes Bay Syrah 2014, took home the International Syrah Trophy, ENTRIES CLOSE: 3 OCT 2016 New Zealand Red Trophy, Hawke’s Bay Syrah Trophy, and New WINNERS ANNOUNCED: 15 NOV 2016 Zealand Syrah Trophy. An initiative of: Greg Rowdon, Matua chief winemaker, said Matua’s Single Vineyard Hawke’s Bay Syrah has had a history of success at international shows. An initiative of: “2014 is only the third vintage that we have made a single Gold Partners: vineyard Syrah at Matua and it consistently performs beyond our expectations at wine shows,” he said. An initiative of: Partners: “Winning four trophies in London at the Gold IWC takes things to the next level. We only make our Single Vineyard wines in small quantities made from hand-selected fruit parcels from our Individual Gold Partners: best vineyards - they are like our babies, soAward it’s Sponsors: great to see them Individual Award Sponsors: being so well received internationally. Furthermore Syrah isn’t a variety that New Zealand is well known for producing – so it’s Individual Awardisn’t Sponsors: fantastic to be able to prove to the world that New Zealand just about producing great Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir.”

Join the conversation #winechicksrule #AWIWA

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September 2016 – Issue 632

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

news

Taylors welcomes Rugby players to the family THE RUBGY UNION PLAYERS’ ASSOCIATION (RUPA) have announced a two-year partnership with one of Australia’s finest family winemakers, Taylors Wines. As part of the arrangement, Taylors will be the exclusive wine partner of RUPA, the annual RUPA awards, and also the presenting partner in a new RUPA award; the Taylors Wines People’s Choice Wallaby of the Year. Mitchell Taylor, Taylors Wines managing director, said he was thrilled to partner with the Rugby’s professional players. “Taylors has proudly been the wine behind the Wallabies since 2015 and in partnering with RUPA, we’re really excited to broaden the reach of our association with Rugby. We have some really innovative Rugby-themed activations for the upcoming Test matches in Australia and working with RUPA is another key plank in our strategy.” Ross Xenos, RUPA chief executive officer, said Taylors Wines and RUPA had many shared values, above all a shared appreciation of Rugby and wine, which

Taylors Wines have been announced as the exclusive partner of the Rugby Union Players’ Association.

lent themselves perfectly to a partnership of this nature. “Rugby prides itself on being a values-based, highly skilled game for all shapes and sizes of athletes,” Xenos said. “Taylors have shown through their

commitment to the game and now to RUPA, that they are also driven by a family values-based approach, and they are clearly able to skilfully take grapes of all shapes and sizes and produce a worldclass Australian product.”

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September 2016 – Issue 632

Treasury Wine Estates delivers impressive annual result Nathan Gogoll reports

MICHAEL CLARKE, Treasury Wine Estates’ CEO, said he was “delighted” with the 2016 financial results which he said showed “momentum across our business is accelerating”. The headline news from was the doubling of net profit after tax and earnings per share. Reported Net Profit After Tax (NPAT) jumped to $179.4m and Earnings Per Share (EPS) topped 25 cents. Treasury reported Earnings Before Interest, Tax, SGARA and material items (EBITS) of $342.0m, up 52% on a reported currency basis and slightly ahead of what had been anticipated back in July. The Treasury board declared a final dividend of 12 cents per share, bringing the total dividend for F16 to 20 cents per share; representing a six cent per share increase (+43%) and a 67% payout ratio. “TWE is now delivering consistent earnings growth and margin accretion on a more balanced, sustainable and quality earnings basis,” Clarke said. Two elements of company’s cost savings program (which it labelled ‘supply chain optimisation’) were highlighted by Meehan: • Treasury had met a targeted 30% reduction in stock keeping units (SKUs – which in this case means different wine labels); and • “The wonderful wines we’ve produced have gone into the balance sheet at lower average production costs.”

THE NUMBERS Excluding the earnings contribution of Diageo Wine $33.2m, Treasury delivered EBITS of $308.8m in F16, up 37% on the pcp. The company also delivered outstanding EBITS margin accretion, up 3.2ppts to 15.3% while also reporting improved Return on Capital Employed (ROCE), up 2.8ppts to 9.6%. In F16, each of Treasury’s regions delivered strong results, demonstrating the benefits of having repositioned the business to deliver consistent earnings growth, sustainably. • Australia & New Zealand (ANZ) reported EBITS growth of 4% to $92.3m, driven by strong volume growth of Treasury’s ‘priority brands’; • Asia reported 40% EBITS growth to $102.0m while also delivering EBITS margin broadly in line with the pcp; September 2016 – Issue 632

• Europe reported EBITS of $47.7m; more than double the pcp. Excluding the Diageo Wine acquisition ($11.3m), Europe delivered strong EBITS growth and margin accretion, despite a reduction in volume; and • Americas reported a 64% uplift in EBITS to $136.3m, reflecting portfolio premiumisation, continued reshaping of Treasury’s portfolio, six months contribution from the Diageo Wine acquisition ($21.7m) and favourable foreign currency movements.

DIAGEO ACQUISITION Michael Clarke said the wine brands in the Diageo portfolio had not been “looked after” and the initial work involved re-negotiated relationships to “move stock with retailers ahead of new releases and new campaigns”. “We reduced complexity and improved the mix and the profitability with the discontinuation of 11 non-core Diageo wine brands,” Clarke said. “We were well ahead of our planned performance within the first six months. We are now working to make sure the new look US portfolio has a fast start to F17.”

SUSTAINABLE GROWTH TARGET “I am very pleased with our performance in fiscal 2016,” Clarke said. “We have a refreshed ‘priority brand’ portfolio and momentum is continuing to build across our regions and importantly, our results are being delivered sustainably.” Clarke said he was extra pleased to deliver such a result during a period when “we delivered a significant cleanup of the business”. “We are a small company, we over index,” Clarke said. “We are doing the right things to retain talent. “We make sure we get access to luxury fruit as we are step-changing pricing. “We are creating value for everyone who touches our business.”

LOOKING AHEAD “The transition from an order-taking, agriculture company to a brand-lead marketing organisation is progressing,” Clarke said. “There is momentum across all portfolios. We are excited about the year ahead.” The focus will clearly be on generating the best possible margin from every sale, with Clarke confirming Treasury was “walking away from underperforming volume sales”. “With the wine we have available, we will go to the market with the best margin,” he said. “The ‘muscle’ in our business is being improved to sell at ever higher margins as we get our hands on more luxury fruit.” Clarke said there had already been great success on sales above $10 per bottle, but he remained committed to a disciplined approach to the commercial portfolio. It’s all very positive, according to Clarke. “I guarantee in February you will fall off your chair again,” he told an investor briefing – pointing toward a predicted F17 half-year result. www.winetitles.com.au

Grapegrower & Winemaker

people & places

The biggest wine industry event on the calendar MORE THAN 1100 Australian and international wine and viticulture representatives arrived in Adelaide in July for five days of major industry events. There was a big focus on the latest in information and technology across the grape and wine value chain at the 16th Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference (AWITC), which incorporates the Winemakers’ Federation of Australia (WFA) Outlook Conference. Across a dozen plenary sessions – featuring 16 international and more

than 40 local speakers, a program of 38 workshops and an extensive technical poster display – the focus will shift between both business and technical aspects of grape and wine production. Dan Johnson, AWITC chairman, said delegate numbers and exhibition sales were both well beyond expectations, “which speaks to the value members of our industry put on this triennial event”. “This year’s AWITC has exceeded expectations across all fronts, with a sold-out trade exhibition, high quality

Marlize Bekker, AWRI research scientist, presenting workshop 19 ‘Oxygen and sulfur: a breath of fresh air?

presentations and excellent audience participation and feedback. “I’d like to thank all of the speakers, committee members, staff and volunteers that have contributed to such a positive event for the Australian wine community.” Johnson said the balance of business and technical content provided “a bridge between the business and production sides of our industry” at a time when it is increasingly important to have an understanding of the whole value chain.

Vilma Hysenaj and Simon Norstegaard (both from the AWRI) check out some of the winemaking equipment on display at the trade exhibition.

You couldn’t miss the Della Toffola stand on the trade floor (it took synchronised cranes and a semi-trailer to install it).

16 Grapegrower & Winemaker

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September 2016 – Issue 632

Michael O’Brien (Kumatpi), a senior Kaurna man, delivered the Welcome to Country and shared his cultural knowledge during the official welcome.

Professor Roger Boutlon, from the University of California (Davis), gave a keynote address during Session 11: ‘Designing the wineries of the future for quality wine production’.

Dan Jago, from Berry Bros. & Rudd (London), gave his ‘perception (and reality) of Australian wine in global markets’ presentation during Outlook Session 1.

Kim Chalmers, from Chalmers Wines Australia (Mildura), presented on ‘regional adaptation: alternative varieties in Australia during Session 5.

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my view Work together to share the risks and the profits Heather Webster is the new chair of the Wine Grape Council of South Australia (she is also the current Chair of Langhorne Creek Grape and Wine and a grapegrower). She thinks there’s a bright outlook for the Australian wine and viticulture industry.

THIS MONTH I am shining with optimism for the wine industry. Recently, I joined the record number of over 2000 participants at the 16th Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference. The days, sessions and displays were brimming with skilled and committed people who were presenting, selling or sharing research, innovations, ideas and products. There was also information from and about international markets, trends and research. It was rich, diverse and inspiring. There was something for everyone with an interest in the wine industry. Secondly, the release of the 2016 Vintage Report from Wine Australia headlined a rise of six per cent in the national crush to 1.81 million tonnes and small, but encouraging, increase in average prices. These are positive signs in an industry struggling with high cost structures, fierce competition and fragmented value chains. In addition to these challenges, wine faces pressure within a diversifying beverage market. As exports increase, the uncertainties generated by taxation, trade agreements, exchange rates, the anti-alcohol lobby and leakage of profits from complex business structures add to that complexity. It is tough enough coping with the vagaries of the Australian climate, but more and more skills and information are needed to operate successfully in our complex natural, social and business landscape. Thirdly, the River Bremer has just flooded Langhorne Creek, my adopted home town. Langhorne Creek loves floods and we will celebrate again the perception of pioneers who recognised the potential and planted vines here in 1854. Many of their descendants are still proud vignerons and skilled water managers in the region. Water management is a key challenge for the wine industry everywhere. In this moment of reverie, I am conscious of the unusual time lines of the wine industry in Australia. It is, at

18 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Heather Webster

It is my opinion that the wine industry will grow and thrive when all elements of the industry work together and share the risks and the profits. the same time, both old and new. Grape growing in Australia is only about two hundred years old, but we have the oldest soils in the world on our geologically ancient continent. On those ancient soils we grow vines which have been cultivated in Europe for many thousands of years. Thanks to our isolation and good biosecurity practices we escaped phylloxera and have some of the oldest vines in the world. It is a curious blend of extreme old and new. Into that mix, I hope we continue to bring the Australian freshness and love of ’having a go’ with new varieties, new techniques and new attitudes in this ancient industry. Together these three events are cause for optimism and illustrate a few of the many dimensions of the contemporary www.winetitles.com.au

wine industry. Each wine region brings a unique story and style to our national production. Together we are producing and exporting an ever increasing range of varieties and styles and testing them in local and international markets. And together we need to succeed to support the regions in which we live and work and the state and national economies of which we are such an important part. It is my opinion that the wine industry will grow and thrive when all elements of the industry work together and share the risks and the profits. Each element, the growers, wine makers, technicians, packagers, marketers bring special skills to the mix. We need innovation, quality and efficiencies to succeed in the everchanging global market in which we are operating. We do not need negativity, power struggles and exploitation. Most of all we need value chains and informed decision making. The rewards generated by our wonderful wines need to support research, investment and to pay a fair share of tax, but most of those rewards must accrue to the individuals and the families all along the production and distribution line which bring their hard work and passion to this fabulous industry. We are inter-dependent and that must be reflected more in the business structures we create and the way we work together. I believe we each have a responsibility to engage, to share, to build, and most of all to be positive. In taking on the tough job of chairing the Wine Grape Council of South Australia, and joining the national board of Wine Grape Growers of Australia, I am committing my efforts to improve representation for growers, to build knowledge and to understand and to advocate for this complex industry. I am doing this because I believe it is important and hope you share this view. Together we have much to be proud of, together we are strong. September 2016 – Issue 632

September 2016

The only way is up SHORTLY BEFORE WRITING this latest edition of the Australian Winegrower WGGA released its strategic proposal to members, with a view to changing and improving the national grower advocacy body. This started with an honest and critical appraisal of WGGA’s ten years’ of existence, and a candid assessment of the lack of traction in forming a truly sustainable and national advocacy body. This critical assessment in no way reflects badly on the intent of the people involved in the first ten years of operation (I am after all, one of them), but rather it looked honestly at what could have been done better, and then sought the best way forward for grower representation and the industry as a whole. The huge variation across business models in this industry on a national level meant that the national body in its form was not seen as relevant to all winegrowers in the country. This was manifest in the inability to attract financial support from all national representatives sitting at the WGGA executive committee for over a decade. Despite the good intention of many grower representatives and the staff at WGGA, the organization had been depleting its reserve, and has now reached the point where without significant change there would have been no alternative but to wind up. This has raised concerns among those who have been carrying the burden of funding for WGGA, as they are facing their own budget pressures. The number of growers continues to decline in some regions, and more growers are deciding to withdraw their funds from representative bodies in this high-pressure business climate. Any situation where non-funding members have the same voting rights as contributors to the organization creates tension. The executive committee of WGGA has unanimously agreed on a new direction, the major changes from the status quo are: • Replacement of the current executive committee structure with an independent board, with skills in grape growing, winemaking, marketing, supply chain, legal and other areas relevant to the wine industry supply chain; • Membership would change from a mix of direct membership and membership of representative associations, to members being only representative associations;

• These membership organizations would meet annually as a council of members to elect the independent board, and to vote on policy issues that are deemed to be of major industry importance (such as tax policy); • Voting on the council would be proportional, and based on a council member’s contribution to the operating budget of the national body, and its membership base; • The policy vote provides the independent board with guidance, and the independent board would then operate in the best interests of growers from a national perspective; and • The new body would be WGGA, trading as ‘Australian Vignerons’. This structure provides independent governance, and retains a representative component with the council of members. The previous mix of membership created an environment where the national body might be “competing” with a regional or state body for members. Under this new arrangement, Australian Vignerons would be strongly encouraging active and able winegrowers to contribute financially and support their regional and state bodies, and in turn strongly urge the members of those bodies to support Australian Vignerons. The aim of this change is to put the national grower organization on a stable and sustainable financial footing, and to collaborate and exploit efficiencies where possible to make advocacy more effective. Often such major changes attract resistance, as many people do not like change. What must be realized here is that the status quo was not working, and continuing under the previous settings would result in the unavoidable wind-up of WGGA. This proposal was formed executive committee, and has received their unanimous support. The executive committee represent the growers from regions and member bodies across the nation, and is the representative body that is charged with the responsibility of addressing this issue. All are acting in what they strongly believe is the best interests of the nation’s growers.

Level 1, Industry House, National Wine Centre Cnr Botanic and Hackney Roads, Adelaide, SA 5000 Telephone (08) 8133 4400 Fax (08) 8133 4466 Email info@wgga.com.au Website www.wgga.com.au

WGGA News

ARE WGGA PLANNING TO MERGE WITH WFA?

Member profiles

Not at this stage. There is a range of opinion across the state and regional representative bodies in regard to whether WGGA should merge with WFA or not. Some have suggested that WGGA should “just get on with it and merge”, while other state “we will not be a part of any organization that has winemakers at the table”. During the “Grape and Wine” industry reform process, a survey found that nearly 90% of over 400 respondents were in favour of having a single industry advocacy body. It would be irresponsible to ignore such strong opinion.

BRETT PROUD

However, we must also realize that the advocacy bodies are in a state of flux. While not authorized to speak on behalf of WFA, at the time of writing Tony Battaglene was still acting CEO, with the Federation still to announce who will be the permanent CEO. WGGA has had some been going through the process of sorting out its core functions and the best possible structure to meet the demands of the changing face of the winegrower population and dealing with serious challenges to financial stability. This must be sorted out before any thoughts of a merger can even be considered. However, in the interim period WFA and WGGA are committed to working closer together on operational issues where there is clear benefit in doing so. This makes sense at current times when there is great strain on operating budgets; that both organizations get the greatest efficiency of operation possible.

GREATER ENGAGEMENT NEEDED

Region: Riverland, South Australia Business: Family grape growing business. Brett can trace his family’s grape producing history in the region back to the 1920’s. In order to get become efficient and to be sustainable at low grape prices, Brett and his brothers Andrew and Philip formed the collaborative business “Sherwood Estates”, transforming the separate properties into a single corporate entity operating 200ha of vineyard, which includes a board of directors. The business has developed beyond the simple business of selling fruit directly to wineries operating in the region to now include joint venture arrangements producing wine directly for export to China. Production: Sherwood Estates produces approximately 5000 tonnes per year. Region: Riverland Approximate area: 21,000ha

Often is seems that growers are content to let industry representatives look after their interests. While it is flattering to be entrusted to this degree, what is really needed is for all growers to be engaged as much as possible at the regional, state and federal level with the organisations and the people who represent their industry.

Annual production: 517,577T in 2016

At the time of writing this report, I have not received any feedback nor any comment in response to the Special General Meeting notice. This is the most important issue in the last ten years of the growers’ national grower advocacy body. Inquisitive and involved growers will hold the members of the executive committee and the Executive Director to account for what they do. That is the way it should be. Growers need an efficient and effective national body, not vice versa.

Calculated average purchase value, 2016:

We need to see an increase in the level of engagement of winegrowers in the operation of their industry. How varied is the Australian Wine Industry? I love winegrowing country; A land of hills and plains; Of regions different and diverse; With different rebate pains. (Apologies to Dorothea Mackeller) As suggested in the June edition of The Australian Winegrower, One of the reasons that we have so many problems with getting uniform agreement around policy at national level is that there is so much variation across the wine community. This is evident when comparing members of WGGA’s executive committee, and the regions they hail from. Regional production figures are from the Wine Australia 2016 vintage report.

Wine growers: Approximately 1,000 Wineries: 25, varying in size from boutique producers to annual crush in excess of 200,000T. Cellar Door Outlets: 11 White varieties: $280/T Red Varieties: $342/T Total: $310/T Summary: Most businesses are producers of wine grapes that sell fruit directly to wineries, and do not own a label or produce wine. Australia’s largest grower co-operative, CCW Co-operative, produces approximately half the region’s production and has approximately 600 grower members. The region is production oriented, with much of the wine produced sold to export. Tourism is not a significant part of the wine industry due to the location three hours’ drive from Adelaide, the state capital, but there is a focus on raising the profile and the number of cellar doors in the region. The Riverland is the largest region (by production) in Australia, and as there is such a large amount of fruit that is purchased by a relatively small number of moderate to high-throughput purchasers, the strategic outcome of a large number of growers is influenced by a small number of wine companies.

BEN ROSE Region: Yarra Valley Business: Grower, Viticulture Consultant, Valuer. Ben was involved in planting some of the first grapes on his family’s

WGGA News

then 10 hectare property in 1979, one of the first vineyards to return to the Yarra Valley. Since that time the property has grown to about 40 hectares and Ben’s involvement has never ceased. In that time the vineyard has transitioned from wide ‘T’ trellis through the age of Scott-Henry to higher density vertical shoot positioned plantings involving superior clones and rootstocks. Varieties include Pinot Noir & Chardonnay, Shiraz, Sauvigon Blanc, Semillon and small parcels of Gewürztraminer, Riesling and Savignan. Production: The majority of production is sold under contract to corporate winemakers, while some select parcels have been sold to local boutique wine makers. Region: Yarra Valley Approximate Area: Around 2,500 ha. Annual Production: 3,925T in 2016 Wineries: Approximately 130 Cellar Door Outlets: About 80 Calculated average purchase value, 2016: White Varieties: $1,510/T Red Varieties: $1,741/T Total: $1,614/T Summary: The Yarra Valley has traditionally been known for cool climate grapes and wine, with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay making up over 60% of the production. The Yarra has two main areas being the Valley floor, producing some very smart Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz in addition to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and the upper Yarra, cooler than the Valley floor and now recognised for reliably producing high value Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Many vignerons produce grapes for commercial sale and also make wine; with the proportion between the two enterprises varying markedly. There are also wine grape growers who do not make wine, and there are winemakers who do not grow grapes. Being only 45 minutes from the outer suburbs of Melbourne (and Melbourne CBD on a good day) the Yarra is very well placed to attract, entertain and please day trippers from Melbourne; it is tourist orientated. The many cellar door outlets provide a wide choice and diversity of product with many sporting cafes and restaurants. More recently breweries and cider producers have entered the market with great success. There are also whiskey and gin producers in the Valley. Clearly the business profiles in these two regions are wildly different. This story is similar across the country, with a wide range of different business profiles in between. This raises two issues:

1. The need for an effective national advocacy body Clearly there will be different perspectives in relation to the national issues with such diversity of business operations. It is

essential that the national grower body is as well-resourced as it can be, and that the board operates with the national perspective front of mind. It is also important that as many regions as possible join their representative body, to ensure that the concerns and input of their growers is heard across the nation, and taking into account these diverse backgrounds.

2. Finding a ‘one size fits all’ WET rebate package is extremely difficult There will be a huge range in the impact that the proposed changes in the rebate settings will have on such a diverse range of businesses. Wine companies, growers, winemakers, will be affected differently from reduction in the rebate cap and changes to eligibility. This in turn will have markedly different regional impacts. It is commendable that the government is committed to consultation on these issues, and it is essential that the resultant measure take into account all of the inputs across the industry. The recent debate about WET rebate has been characterised by members from the regions most potentially affected effectively ‘defending their position’, and resisting any change. This is totally understandable, in particular during such trying times in the industry, that the removal of a rebate which may be providing the buffer between survival and loss, would be a bridge too far for many sound, valuable regional businesses. This debate and a lot of the commentary on anti-social media has been unnecessarily divisive. This stems from the fact that many of us in the wine community know a lot about our own region, and of neighbouring or similar regions, but know little about ‘the other’ part of the industry. One of the great challenges that we find in a national body is taking into account these many and diverse views. That is the role of a national body; compiling and distilling the many views from regional and state representative groups and forming a national position to present to the federal government. Often these issues can lead to unnecessary antagonism and acrimony, and should be tackled with the realisation that we are all in this together. The fact that the federal government has committed to consult with the industry is a good thing. The alternative would be no consultation at all, and the likely outcome would be where some sections of the industry, or even all of it, would be unduly harmed in the process of reform. It seems inevitable that there will be some pain of adjustment in this reform process. Expecting to unravel the current problems with WET rebate in a totally pain-free manner is probably unrealistic. The best outcome that we can hope for is that the pain is spread as thinly as possible, so that genuine regional businesses that contribute so much to the aspirational lifestyle appeal of Australian wines, wine businesses, and growers can come through the other side in a stronger, more successful state. Our ability as a wine community, to arrive at that outcome will require empathetic listening to the concerns of other regions, and to try and understand where they are ‘coming from’ in this regard, and to adopt a truly national perspective. We must realise that a failure to make any headway may lead to a situation where we might lose our seat at the table in the consultation process, and that may lead to the worst possible outcome. It would also negatively impact future ability to negotiate with the government. Andrew Weeks Executive Director Wine Grape Growers Australia

WGGA News

Vinitech Sifel Winners Announced It is with great pleasure that WGGA can announce that the successful applicants for the trip to the Vintiech salon at Bordeaux were Mary Retallack and Krys Smith.

has also completed the Len Evans tutorial, and was a founding member of the WGGA decision support network. Mary is also a former winner of the RIRDC Rural woman of the year in 2012.

This was an extremely difficult process, as all applications were of exceptional quality. Any of the applicants might have been chosen on the strength of their submissions. Promosalons, the generous sponsor of these tours recognized the large number of high calibre applicants and as a result offered two positions for 2016.

Krys Smith is a Viticulturist and Winemaker at Charles Melton Wines in Tanunda. Following completion of a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Oenology Krys has work experiences in South Australia, Tasmania, France and Portugal over several years. Krys is a member of WGGA, the Barossa grape and Wine Association and ASVO, and brings a strong overall view of both growing and making grapes and wine, and has a real passion for the industry.

Mary has a long experience in the wine industry, with a background in viticulture consultancy that is active in almost every winegrowing region of the country. A graduate of the 2007 Future Leaders’ course, Mary has contributed at a high level to Australian growers and to WGGA for many years, including involvement in the “VineBiz” business management tool. A former GWRDC board member and former non – executive director of the AWRI, Mary now serves on the Wine Australia board. Her most recent work includes completing a PhD studying beneficial insect movement in vineyards. She

We wish both applicants the best for the trip, and look forward to their reports following their return, and know that many growers across the country will benefit from their sharing of knowledge. Thanks to Sandra Trew and to Promosalons, for providing this wonderful opportunity.

Farewell and Thanks to Justin Jarrett Justin has decided to retire as a WGGA executive committee member to dedicate more time to his wine label, See Saw Wines, and his regional wine organization in Orange, NSW.

Being a member of WGGA is voluntary, and requires considerable work in addition to the ‘day’ job. It often means commitment by and inconvenience from families as well.

Justin’s decision to further his own wine label rather than only grow wine grapes is a business model that is becoming more common, as discussed above.

We thank Justin for his past commitment to WGGA, and wish him, Pip and family all the best in the future with See Saw wines and their changing vineyard business.

This kind of work is not the sort of thing that you can afford to be faint-hearted about, and WGGA understands his need to devote more time to his business. This has become more focused on trying new technology, and exploring emerging grape varieties suited to the Orange region.

Justin’s replacement is Martin Gransden from Cumulus Vineyards. Martin is a keen and strategic member of the executive committee, and has already hit the ground running.

WGGA Associate Members

WGGA proudly acknowledges its associate members: • AHA Viticulture

• Lallemand Oenology

• Vine Sight

• Belvino Investments

• Omnia Specialties Australia

• Vitibit

• Broke Fordwich Wine Tourism Association

• Performance Viticulture

• Withnell and Co Solicitors

• River Murray Training

• Woodshield

• Gaetjens Langley

• SCE Energy Solutions

grapegrowing

The KLIMA cane-stripper lifts the fruiting wire clear of the canes and then cuts, strips and mulches the unwanted material.

Recent and emerging technologies to optimise yield, quality and production efficiency in vineyards Tony Proffitt from AHA Viticulture/Precision Viticulture Australia, Dunsborough, WA was invited to give a presentation at the International Cool Climate Wine Symposium held in Brighton, UK during May 2016. The following article encapsulates the information shared with delegates. IN RECENT YEARS there has been a rapid increase in capacity to obtain and deliver information that is important for managing vineyard crops. There have also been major advances in machinery, sensing technologies, vision systems and image analysis, some of which are being integrated with mechatronic platforms to produce robotic systems destined for the vineyard.

START OF THE SEASON - PRUNING Winter pruning is generally the most expensive seasonal activity in the vineyard. It is also the most important operation because it directly affects yield, shoot density and canopy shape for the following season, which in turn can influence fruit quality. The reason for the high cost is the labour input. In Australia, labour costs are by far the greatest component of the annual vineyard budget. McClen (2013) shows that labour costs can represent 60% of the annual budget in cool climate vineyards compared to about 30% in warmer regions. This is due to the greater requirement for more hours of manual labour per hectare. September 2016 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Issue 632

For countries where labour costs are high, it makes economic sense for growers to focus on mechanisation and automation. Cane-stripper The aim of pruning in cool climate vineyards is to regulate yield (node number) in order to grow quality fruit for high end-use winemaking. Hand-pruning is required to achieve this objective and the grower has the option of spur and/or cane pruning. Cane pruning is generally twice the cost of spur pruning and requires a greater skill base. However, this pruning style normally delivers greater yields due to increased fruitfulness and larger, better-exposed bunches which are benefits with respect to meeting yield expectations and minimising the risk of spoilage through bunch rot. Cane pruning has become more affordable with the development of equipment such as the KLIMA cane-stripper. This is a New Zealand innovation and in a single pass, the machine lifts the fruiting wire clear of the canes and then cuts, strips and mulches the unwanted material.

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grapegrowing Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) scanners are used to characterise the canopy and the data is then used to determine the optimal volume rate for spraying. For a number of varieties and crop stages, a 40% reduction in spray volume has been achieved, which means savings in both chemical and time (Gil et al. 2011). Airflow adjustment is an important part of modern spray technologies. A louvre system that can adjust or redirect airflow according to canopy architecture and size has recently been developed at Cornell University (USA). Field trials have demonstrated an improvement in spray deposition of up to 82% and a reduction in spray drift of up to 71% when used in early season spray applications (Landers, pers. comm.). In other work at Cornell University, chemical usage has been reduced by up to 40% when infrared sensors are fitted to sprayers to control the opening and closure of nozzles in accordance with the presence or absence of canopy. Manufacturers of recycling spray machines have also been active in recent years and savings in chemicals of up to 70% have been reported in early season sprays.

DURING THE SEASON – SAMPLING AND DATA ACQUISITION

The University of Adelaide has developed the VitiCanopy app for monitoring changes in canopy architecture during the growing season.

The wire is then reattached by hand and the replacement canes are wrapped on to the fruiting wire in the usual way. In Australia and New Zealand, the KLIMA machine has reduced cane pruning costs by 30-40%, and while it is not as cheap as spur pruning, the yield and quality advantages generally outweigh the extra cost. However, there are some pre-requisites associated with vine height and positioning, trellis and cordon clips that need to be considered before adopting this technology.

DURING THE SEASON - APPLYING INPUTS Targeted management Through the development of spatially-enabled technologies, collectively known as Precision Viticulture, grape growers are able to map, at a high spatial resolution, variation in vine performance (canopy size and yield), soil characteristics and elevation across their vineyards. With this information, growers are able to understand the cause(s) of vine variation and apply seasonal inputs (e.g. irrigation water, fertilisers, soil amendments, sprays and labour) to distinct areas (zones) where they are required. While variable rate technology is still in its infancy in the Australian wine industry, in Europe, machinery is now available that can apply fertilizer at variable rates. Spraying Incorrect applications of chemical sprays can result in pest and disease resistance, poor control, high costs and environmental contamination. Researchers at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (Spain) have developed a spray unit that adapts the volume of water and chemical dose applied to suit variations in vine canopy.

24 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Zonal sampling Throughout the growing season a number of sampling activities are required in the vineyard (e.g. yield forecasts, fruit maturity analysis, and soil and tissue nutrient status). The ability to map the spatial variation in vine and soil characteristics allows grape growers to move from a ‘random sampling’ approach to a methodology based on ‘sampling zones of uniform vine characteristics’. Case studies have shown improvements in the accuracy of yield estimates (Proffitt et al. 2006) and berry maturity (Bramley 2001). Unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) Spatial data can be acquired using a range of platforms equipped with sensors. Proximal sensing uses ground-based platforms such as quad bikes, cars and tractors. Remote sensing from the air uses platforms such as satellites and light aircraft. In recent years, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones) have become an alternative and flexible platform for this activity. They can be fixed-winged or rotarywinged and can operate a few metres above the canopy and upwards to a certain regulation-imposed altitude. They offer the opportunity, when fitted with the appropriate camera systems, to acquire imagery at ultra-high resolutions (up to 1 cm/pixel) in near real-time. UAVs are therefore an attractive option where there is a need for tasks to be performed throughout the growing season (e.g. thermography) or when exploiting limited windows of opportunity (e.g. cloud cover). Tasks are not limited to the acquisition of imagery and high definition video. Some horticultural industries in Australia are using UAVs to disperse predatory insects to defined areas where pest problems have been identified and this concept could be applied in the vineyard. Another potential opportunity for UAVs is in bird control. Work continues in the development of automated data analysis techniques and the presentation of processed spatial data for smartphones and tablet PCs. Thermography Water use demands generally vary across vineyards because of spatial changes in soil and/or canopy characteristics. As vines become water stressed, leaf temperature increases which is measurable remotely using infrared thermal imagery

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September 2016 – Issue 632

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grapegrowing Table 1: A summary of where the potential benefit is likely to be gained (yield, quality and/or production efficiency) through the adoption of one or more technologies. Technology

Yield

Quality

Cane-stripper High resolution maps for targeted management

Production efficiency ü

Spraying

High resolution maps for zonal sampling

Unmanned aerial vehicles

Thermography

Apps

High resolution maps for selective harvesting

On-the-go fruit quality sensing

Destemming/sorting Soil sensing

ü ü

rot in vineyards and grape loads. The RotBot app has been developed by the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research in conjunction with HortPlus to improve the accuracy, repeatability and speed of bunch rot assessment for white grape varieties (Hill et al. 2014). • vitisFlower Flower number and fruit set are key determinants of grapevine yield. The University of Rioja (Spain) has developed the vitisFlower app to count the number of flowers per inflorescence in the vineyard at early stages of flowering. Current methods are destructive and time consuming which makes this non-destructive technique attractive (Diago et al. 2014). • MyPest Guide Grapes The MyPest Guide app has been developed by the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia and provides growers with a tool to quickly identify common pests. It also has the capability to record the date, time and geo-reference point and report any species considered exotic and therefore a potential biosecurity threat.

END OF THE SEASON - HARVESTING (thermography) (Stoll and Jones 2007, Bellvert et al. 2015). Trial work in an Australian vineyard during the 2015-16 growing season produced thermal maps which have been ground-truthed using traditional methodologies for determining vine water status such as the pressure chamber and porometer (Kidman, pers. comm.). Thermography has the potential to help grape growers determine where and when irrigation water is required which in turn should improve water use efficiency and fruit quality. Thermography also has the potential for detecting irrigation water leaks and disease (Stoll et al. 2008). Apps The widespread availability of smartphones and tablet PCs has transformed the way that growers can access information and use device-enabled tools in the vineyard. A number of applications (‘apps’) have recently been developed to provide easier ways to measure vine performance and to more accurately assess pest and disease problems. Five of these are briefly described. • VitiCanopy Achieving the correct vine balance is a critical factor in the production of high quality wine grapes and particularly in cooler climates where an error in achieving the correct vine balance is often less forgiving than in warmer climates because of the increased risk of delayed fruit ripening and/or disease. The University of Adelaide (Australia) has developed the VitiCanopy app which uses digital imaging and gap fraction analysis to estimate leaf area index (LAI) and canopy porosity. It provides a quick and inexpensive tool for monitoring changes in canopy architecture during the growing season (Fuentes et al. 2012, 2014). • PMapp Wine producers set tolerance levels for powdery mildewinfected grapes. The University of Adelaide has developed PMapp which allows the user to quickly assess the severity of powdery mildew on bunches and to calculate both the incidence and severity of the disease for a patch of vines. The app gives each assessed bunch a severity score and records the date, time and geo-reference position. Importantly, the diagrammatic key facilitates standardised assessment in the vineyard (Birchmore et al. 2015). • RotBot Wine producers also set tolerance levels for Botrytis bunch

26 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Selective harvesting The ability to map the spatial variation in vine performance allows grape growers and wine makers to harvest parcels of fruit ‘selectively’ according to different yield/quality criteria and product streams. In an impact analysis of selective harvesting for boutique and high value wines produced in the Australian wine industry, CSIRO used an income benefit of 6% for grape production and a 20% benefit for bottled wine production (Bramley and Monjardino, pers. comm.). These figures were based on the outcome of research carried out under commercial winemaking conditions. The benefits of selective harvesting have also been reported in New Zealand, Spain, Chile and the USA. On-the-go fruit quality assessment Until recently, there has been a lack of a sensor to measure attributes of fruit quality ‘on-the-go’ at a spatial resolution comparable with other sensors. The French company Force-A have developed the MULTIPLEX® non-contact optical sensor to provide real-time measures of a range of polyphenols, including anthocyanin. Grape anthocyanin is a recognised index of the quality of red wine grapes (Gishen et al. 2002). The technology is currently being used commercially in Europe (France and Italy) and trialled in Australia (Bramley et al. 2011). Destemming/sorting equipment Technology associated with mechanical harvesting has advanced significantly in the past decade. With the recent inclusion of destemming-sorting equipment on harvesters, machines now deliver unrivalled MOG-free (Matter Other Than Grapes) grape loads. However, the fruit quality impact resulting from sorting appears to be dependent on whether white or red wine is being made. For white wine production, residual vegetal matter (leaves and petioles) has a fairly short contact time with juice so the process of sorting may not improve wine quality. For red wine production, residual matter during the longer ferments can be a factor in determining wine quality. Anneraud et al. (2012) suggest that an improvement in wine quality is detectable when one per cent by weight of plant debris is removed from the grape load. In their trial work, it was observed that incoming material from a harvester without destemmingsorting equipment contained 0.4-1.7% vegetal matter compared to 0.1-0.4% in material from a harvester fitted with the equipment.

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September 2016 – Issue 632

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grapegrowing VINEYARD DEVELOPMENT AND RE-DEVELOPMENT Soil sensing and elevation mapping Variation in soil and topography is likely to have a large impact on vine performance within a vineyard. High resolution maps generated through the use of soil sensing technologies and real-time kinematic GPS provide insight into the spatial variation in soil properties and elevation at scales that are relevant when designing new vineyards and re-developing existing vineyards (Bramley et al. 2010). Accurate boundaries delineating changes in soil characteristics, coupled with topographical information, assist with matching grape varieties to desirable soil types, designing irrigation and drainage systems, and positioning infrastructure and instrumentation. The soil sensing tools generally used for vineyard applications include electromagnetic induction, gamma-ray spectrometry, and ground-penetrating radar (Proffitt et al. 2006). Robotics and technologies under development Many tasks in the vineyard are likely to be automated in the future through the use of specially-designed robotic devices equipped with vision systems and imaging technologies. For example, the development of intelligent, vision-based robots for winter pruning is a key area of research with significant funding in New Zealand, France and the USA. In the European Union, partners within the VineRobot project have developed a prototype unmanned robot equipped with a number of non-invasive sensing technologies to monitor grape yield, vegetative growth, water status and grape composition (Diago and Tardaguila 2015). Accurate yield forecasts are essential along all stages of the wine supply chain. Recent advances in image capture and analysis has resulted in the development of automated, nondestructive methods for determining grape yield. Using slightly different approaches, research in this area is being conducted in Australia (Dunn and Martin 2004, Liu et al. 2013), Spain (Tardaguila et al. 2013) and the USA (Nuske et al. 2014).

CONCLUSION In recent years there has been considerable development and testing of new techniques and technologies which have the potential to improve the way that grapes are grown, managed and harvested in order to produce quality wines in a manner that is both environmentally and financially sustainable. Table 1 summarises where the potential benefit gained through the adoption and implementation of one or more of these innovations is likely to be directed in the vineyard. Many of the technologies are likely to be beneficial with respect to production efficiency, several are likely to improve fruit quality and a few are likely to improve yield. A number have the potential to be beneficial in all three areas.

Acknowledgements I am grateful to colleagues who provided information for this article. I also wish to thank Dr. Patrick Iland (Patrick Iland Wine Promotions) and Dr Rob Bramley (CSIRO Agriculture) who provided comment on an early version of the article.

References

Anneraud, C., Vinsonneau, E., Vergnes, M., Priou, F. and Desenne, A. (2012). Tri de la vendange, de nouvelles technologies dans les chais. http://www.matevi-france. com/uploads/tx_matevibase/Tri_de_la_vendange_Nouvelles_technologies_dans_ les_chais.pdf. Bellvert, J., Zarco-Tejada, P., Marsal, J., Girona, J., González-Dugo, V. and Fereres, E. (2015). Vineyard irrigation scheduling based on airborne thermal imagery and water potential thresholds. Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research, 22: 307-315.

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Birchmore, W., Scott, E., Emmett, B., Zanker, T. and Perry, W. (2015). Smartphone app field assessment of powdery mildew. The Australian and New Zealand Grapegrower & Winemaker Journal. 622: 46-47. Bramley, R.G.V. (2001). Progress in the development of precision viticulture – variation in yield, quality and soil in contrasting Australian vineyards. In: Currie, L.D. and Loganathan, P. (Eds.). Precision tools for improving land management. Occasional report No. 14. Fertilizer and Lime Research Centre, Massey University, Palmerson North, New Zealand. Bramley, R.G.V., Hinze, C. and Gobbett, D. (2010). Spatial data for improved design of vineyard (re-)planting. The Australian and New Zealand Grapegrower & Winemaker Journal. 557: 44-53. Bramley, R.G.V., Le Moigne, M., Evain, S., Ouzman, J., Florin, L., Fadaili, E.M., Hinze, C.J. and Cerovic, Z.G. (2011). On-the-go sensing of grape berry anthocyanins during commercial harvest: development and prospects. Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research, 17(3): 316-326. Diago, M.P.,Sanz-Garcia, A., Millan, B., Blasco, J. and Tardaguila, J. (2014). Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 94(10): 1981-1987. Diago, M.P. and Tardaguila, J. (2015). A new robot for vineyard monitoring. Wine & Viticulture Journal. 30(3): 38-42. Dunn, G.M. and Martin, S.R. (2004). Yield prediction from digital image analysis: A technique with potential for vineyard assessments prior to harvest. Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research, 10: 196-198. Fuentes, S., De Bei, R., Pozo, C. and Tyerman, S. (2012). Development of a smartphone application to characterise temporal and spatial canopy architecture and leaf area index for grapevines. Wine & Viticulture Journal, 27(6): 56-60. Fuentes, S. Poblete-Echeverria, C., Ortega-Farias, S. Tyerman, S. and De Bei, R. (2014). Automated estimation of leaf area index from grapevine canopies using cover photography, video and computational analysis methods. Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research, 20: 465-473. Gil, E., Llorens, J., Landers, A., Llop, J. and Giralt, L. (2011). Field validation of DOSAVINA, a decision support system to determine the optimal volume rate for pesticide application in vineyards. European Journal of Agronomy, 35(1); 33-46. Gishen, M., Iland, P.G., Dambergs, R.G., Esler, M.B., Frances, I.L., Kambouris, A., Johnstone, R.S. and Hoj, P.B. (2002). Objective measures of grape and wine quality. In: Blair, R.J., Williams, P.J., and Hoj, P.B. (Eds). Proceedings, 11th Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference, Adelaide, Australia. Hill, G.N, Evans, K.J., Beresford, R.M. and Dambergs, R.G. (2014). Comparison of methods for the quantification of botrytis bunch rot in white wine grapes. Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research, 20: 432-441. Liu, S., Marden, S. and Whitty, M. (2013). Towards automated yield estimation in viticulture. Proceedings of the Australasian Conference on Robotics and Automation, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. McClen, B. (2013). Vineyard operations of the future – exciting developments on the horizon. In: Beams, K., Robinson, E., Godden, P. and Johnson, D. (Eds). Proceedings, 15th Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference, Sydney, Australia. Nuske, S., Wilshusen, K., Acher, S., Yoder, L., Narasimhan, S. and Singh, S. (2014). Automated visual yield estimation in vineyards. Journal of Field Robotics 31(5): 837-860. Proffitt, T., Bramley, R. Lamb, D. and Winter, E. (2006). Precision Viticulture. A new era in vineyard management and wine production. Winetitles, Adelaide, Australia. Stoll, M. and Jones, H.G. (2007). Thermal imaging as a viable tool for monitoring plant water stress. Journal International Des Sciences De La Vigne Et Du Vin 41(2): 77-84. Stoll, M., Schultz, H.R. and Berkelmann-Loehnertz, B. (2008). Thermal sensitivity of grapevine leaves affected by Plasmopara viticola and water stress. Vitis. 47(2): 133-134. Tardaguila, J., Diago, M.P., Millan, B., Blasco, J., Cubero, S. and Aleixos, N. (2013). Applications of computer vision techniques in viticulture to assess canopy features, cluster morphology and berry size. Acta Horticulturae, 978: 77-84.

Looking for more articles, visit the Grapegrower and Winemaker article archive at: www.winetitles.com.au/gwm

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September 2016 – Issue 632

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EPA report concludes glyphosate an unlikely carcinogen A REPORT ON GLYPHOSATE, commissioned by the New Zealand Environmental Protection Authority, said the broadspectrum herbicide is unlikely to be carcinogenic and should not be classified as a mutagen or carcinogen under the HSNO Act. Review of the Evidence Relating to Glyphosate and Carcinogenicity has been prepared by former National Poisons Centre Director and toxicologist Dr Wayne Temple, with input from Poisons Centre colleague Michael Beasley, and peer reviewed by toxicologists from the Ministry for Primary Industries. It takes into account studies reviewed by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as well as those assessed by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) and the FAO/WHO Joint Meeting on Pesticide Residues (JMPR). A summary of the report stated: “The majority of human studies did not show an association between exposure to glyphosate and cancer. Although a small number of studies with a limited number of participants found a weak association between glyphosate exposure and increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), others did not”. The studies that found no association between glyphosate exposure and NHL included the largest and most reliable, which included over 50,000 participants.

The summary added: “Based on the inconsistency in the results of the studies on glyphosate exposure and NHL, and the lack of any association in the largest, most robust study, it was concluded that there is no convincing evidence of an association between glyphosate exposure and the development of cancer in humans.” The EPA, which approves and regulates glyphosate for use in New Zealand, commissioned the report amid ongoing public unease about its impact on people and the environment. Ray McMillan, Acting General Manager of the EPA’s Hazardous Substances and New Organisms team said the review “confirms the EPA’s long-held findings, that at the present time glyphosate – with controls – is safe to use”. “As with any chemical, glyphosate remains subject to our approval process which considers any likely impacts on human health and the environment. We ensure risks are managed by setting controls which cover how, when and where it should be used, and by whom.” Mr McMillan added: “Glyphosate has been approved for use in New Zealand since 1976. It is one of around 30 chemicals currently listed on the Chief Executive-initiated Reassessment Programme. This means we continue to keep a watching brief on its status, and monitor international scientific findings or developments. If any new information comes to hand that makes us think further action is necessary, we can consider a formal review of its use”. Glyphosate is used in New Zealand in a wide variety of commercial and domestic settings including orchards, vineyards, pastures, vegetable patches, roadways, parks and sports fields and gardens. It is sold under a range of brand names.

ABOUT THE REPORT The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) commissioned Dr Wayne Temple, a toxicologist and former Director of the New Zealand National Poisons Centre, to undertake a review of the evidence relating to the possible carcinogenicity of glyphosate. The report also had input from Dr Michael Beasley, a toxicologist at the National Poisons Centre. Dr Temple’s report was peer reviewed by toxicologists from the EPA and the Ministry for Primary Industries. The review took into account studies reviewed in the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) report, as well as additional studies that were not reviewed by IARC but have been assessed by overseas regulators including the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) and the Joint FAO/WHO meeting on Pesticide Residues (JMPR)1. The review concluded that glyphosate is unlikely to be carcinogenic to humans or genotoxic (damaging to genetic material or DNA) and should not be classified as a mutagen or carcinogen under the HSNO Act. This conclusion was based largely on consideration of the results of studies on humans (epidemiology studies) and studies in laboratory animals, as well as genotoxicity studies conducted by a range of methods.

STUDIES ON HUMANS The majority of human studies did not show an association between exposure to glyphosate and cancer. Although a small

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September 2016 – Issue 632

number of studies with a limited number of participants found a weak association between glyphosate exposure and increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), other studies did not. The studies that found no association between glyphosate exposure and NHL included the largest and most reliable study, which included more than 50,000 participants. There were also a number of limitations to many of the studies. These included only a small number of people being assessed, people also being exposed to other pesticides, and methodological limitations with how the amount of glyphosate people were exposed to was measured. Based on the inconsistency in the results of the studies on glyphosate exposure and NHL, and the lack of any association in the largest, most robust study, it was concluded that there is no convincing evidence of an association between glyphosate exposure and the development of cancer in humans.

STUDIES IN LABORATORY ANIMALS A small number of studies in laboratory animals found an increased incidence of cancers in rats or mice exposed to glyphosate. However, these findings were not considered to be reliable evidence of a carcinogenic effect by overseas regulators for a number of reasons including: • There was a lack of dose response. Normally the incidence or severity of toxicological effects caused by chemicals increases as the amount of exposure to the chemical increases. This was not seen in the studies with glyphosate. • In most cases tumours occurred only at very high doses which were at or above recommended maximum doses for animal studies so are not considered relevant for humans. • The incidences of cancers in most studies were within the range of normal incidences of these cancers in the test animals. • The carcinogenic effects seen in a small number of studies were not seen in other studies conducted in the same species at the same dose levels. Therefore Dr Temple concluded that the overall weight of evidence indicates that glyphosate is not carcinogenic.

GENOTOXICITY STUDIES All studies done according to internationally agreed test guidelines did not find evidence of a genotoxic (damaging to DNA) effect of glyphosate. Some studies with pesticide formulations that contain glyphosate showed a genotoxic effect. However, in some cases these studies were conducted in test systems that have not been validated as relevant to assess genotoxicity. In addition, because genotoxic effects were not seen with glyphosate itself, it is possible that the effects were related to other components in the formulations that were tested. It was concluded that the weight of evidence indicates that glyphosate is not genotoxic. Based on the information currently available, the EPA considers that glyphosate products approved in New Zealand are safe to use when following the instructions on the label. Glyphosate is on the Chief Executive Initiated Reassessment (CEIR) programme list, which means that we are actively monitoring its status and international developments. If EPA staff consider a formal review is needed based on new information that becomes available, a reassessment may be initiated, but on the weight of evidence to date, glyphosate does not require classification under HSNO as a carcinogen or mutagen. For more information: www.epa.govt.nz/glyphosate E: hazardous.substances@epa.govt.nz September 2016 – Issue 632

What does Precision Viticulture offer? Precision Viticulture (PV) is progressing at an ever-increasing pace and, unless you have been keeping abreast of the advancements, it is easy to become overwhelmed with the emerging array of options. Most likely you’ve been bombarded with what may be unfamiliar, terminology like near infra-red imagery, yield mapping, GIS data software, plant cell density maps, NDVI, drones, just to name a few of the emerging technological advancements – does this sound about right? Basically, PV is about better understanding the variability of your vineyard by gathering facts and interpreting the information to make better management decisions. It is about using technology to help address agronomic challenges to take the right action, at the right place, and at the right time – every time. Implementing PV does not have to be daunting. Try starting with a simple plan and build from there. Rather than trying to convert the entire vineyard to a PV-type operation, try a section of the vineyard that is relatively straightforward and has a strong likelihood of success. Below is a short list of some PV technologies, which may help you decide where to start. • Soil analysis, including soil type and pH variability mapping Many growers start by having their blocks mapped with an EM38 machine. This machine measures soil electrical conductivity, then software interprets the values to produce a soil type map. The EM38 machine is best suited to duplex soils with a good range of electrical conductivity. It’s always good to understand the pH and nutrient status of the various soil types across your vineyard. You then have the necessary data to prepare a plan to correct any extreme readings over the course of a few years. • Infrastructure Having key infrastructure mapped out and visible for machinery operators can save time, money and prevent injuries and accidents. We all want to avoid those unfortunate, but realistic, occurrences such as hitting irrigation hydrants or power poles when operating machinery at dawn or dusk or wasting time trying to locate an underground main. Having your key farm infrastructure mapped on a geographic information system (GIS) is a very valuable starting point. A GIS is simply a computer system for capturing, storing, checking and displaying data related to positions on the earth’s surface. GIS can show many different kinds of data on one map. It enables you to more easily see, analyse, and understand patterns and relationships. • In-crop sensing, yield stacking and zoning Some vineyards are using plant cell density (PCD) imagery to make decisions about ‘split picks’ to increase the value of parts of their blocks, rather than having those sections diluted within the rest of the harvest. Some have in-crop sensors and others have on-harvester technology that can measure different quality parameters of the grape itself. Whilst interesting and potentially useful into the future, if you are yet to start exploring PV, I suggest this technology might be one to look into after you have dipped your toes in with other simpler options first. Walk before you run! • Remote monitoring/telemetry When it comes to remote monitoring and sensing, it usually comes down to how many crop sensors and/or soil moisture probes you can afford. It’s important to understand the variability across your block. If you’re not in a position to alter the variability, then you may question the value of this knowledge at this point in time. So start small, build from there, and reach out to an expert in the Precision Viticulture space to see how Precision Viticulture might help you get more from your crop.

Vine Talk is compiled by Dave Antrobus, Syngenta Solutions Development Lead dave.antrobus@syngenta.com 0429 133 436

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2016 Vintage Report: What lies behind the numbers? In summary, the 2016 vintage report from Wine Australia had some very clear and simple overall messages. Andrew Weeks, Wine Grape Growers Australia executive director, investigates. OVERALL, THE MESSAGE WAS ‘volume up, and overall price paid increased’. That seems all good. But is it? Given the tight time frames at the recent Outlook section of the wine industry conference in Adelaide there was not enough time to devote to the underlying drivers of much of the wine grape production, so I will attempt to cover some of that here. There are still some worrying signs about the overall trend, and more importantly, the drivers behind it. Firstly, the overall production trend has been fairly steady over the past 10 years (see below). If anything there is a slight upward trend in the total production figures. This seems to be counter intuitive; that production levels are high when prices are low. This simplistic approach ignores many of the underlying factors that are contributing to the cropping level at present. These drivers have been discussed in this article before, and I will not re-hash all of that here again, but in summary the understandable response to prolonged low grape prices from many growers, in particular in warm inland regions, has been to produce consistently high yields. This gives the greatest chance of covering business costs, avoiding loss and staying in business. As wine and the resulting fruit value remains relatively low, there is less ability for a grower to obtain a bonus payment for producing “better than average” quality fruit. The focus has been producing reliable yields that have the greatest probability of defraying production costs. There is little incentive to produce better wine. This situation has led to the continuation of a national crush of about 1.75 million tonnes. The national crush report also shows that the majority of this increased production from last year was from the cool and temperate regions. Some of these increases are quite large, with Langhorne Creek increasing by 57%, Barossa by 24%, McLaren Vale by 47%, and Mornington Peninsula by 53%. These are, however, increases over the last year only, and following low crops in 2015. In most cases this brings the 2016 crush in these regions closer to the long-

32 Grapegrower & Winemaker

From: Wine Australia, Vintage Report 2016

term average production level. So what have been the drivers of increased value in the 2016 vintage? There are economic and trade factors such as the improvement in the exchange rate, leading to more favourable sales prices for Australian wine in comparison with competitor countries in the major markets, and ongoing impact of FTAs has certainly led to an improvement in recent times. It has been heartening to hear Andreas Clark, CEO of Wine Australia, relay the positive experiences of promoting Australian wine in trade shows and other events in major offshore markets, and to hear him speak of the growing positivity around perceptions of Australian wine. But there is a question about how much of the improvement in fruit values for C and D value category fruit lifted due to the slight down turn in production in 2015; and what impact can we expect for vintage 2017 following the uplift in production in vintage 2016? These value categories are of significant size, and small changes in the supply and demand balance will impact on many businesses. The key concern is that underlying this positive outcome is the realisation that there is still no reliable method of feeding timely and accurate market signals to growers. In an industry that relies so heavily on high quality fruit, at desired tonnages, this is a serious omission. One gap in knowledge; the lack of sound data about the productive national vineyard area is thankfully being addressed through Wine Australia’s www.winetitles.com.au

‘Vinsites’ work. This appears to hold great promise, and the initial information suggests it will be very user-friendly and exploit technology to obtain an accurate picture of our production footprint. There is scope to link this with label integrity and biosecurity functions some time in the future, which will be a great bonus for traceability of our wine products without needing to duplicate databases and create additional work. There is still a gap in better linkage of the inherent characteristics of wine grapes with the resulting wine such that it provides a solid basis on which a grower can make sound business decisions. WGGA has long advocated for objective measurements to be used as a basis for assessing fruit in the vineyard, prior to intake into the winery. There are several research projects under way at present looking at various objective measurement of wine grapes, but many at WGGA are concerned that philosophical barriers rather than scientific barriers that may be more difficult to overcome. Objective measurement is only one part of addressing this problem. What is really missing is a genuine commitment between growers and winemakers to develop sound metrics that link inherent fruit and wine value that will provide the best result for both parties. Until there is a more proactive, rather than reactive approach to this issue there is little likelihood that there will be alignment between the desired and supplied amounts of fruit in different value categories. September 2016 – Issue 632

Agricultural robotics and drones: A complex $10bn market by as early as 2022 ROBOTS AND DRONES have already started to quietly transform many aspects of agriculture. Indeed, the IDTechEx research report on Agricultural Robots and Drones 2016-2026: Technologies, Markets, and Players finds that this is already a $3billion market in 2016, growing to $10billion by as early as 2022. The research report analysed how robotic market and technology developments will change the business of agriculture, enabling ultra-precision farming and helping address the key global challenges. It developed a detailed roadmap of how robotic technology will enter into different aspects of agriculture, how it will change the way farming is done and transform its value chain, how it becomes the future of agrochemicals business, and how it will modify the way we design agricultural machinery. The report provides segmented 10-year market forecasts for at least 14 categories of agricultural robots and drones. It includes detailed technology roadmaps showing how different robotic/ drone technologies in different agricultural sectors will evolve. It contains 20 interview-based company profiles together with 120 other company profiles or backgrounds.

AUTONOMOUS TRACTORS Tractor guidance and autosteer technologies are also going mainstream thanks to improvements and cost reductions in RTK GPS technology. Indeed, more than 300,000 tractors equipped with autosteer or tractor guidance will be sold in 2016, rising to more than 660,000 units per year by 2026. Unmanned autonomous tractors have also been technologically demonstrated with large-scale market introduction largely delayed not by technical issues but by regulation, high sensor costs and the lack of farmersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; trust. This will all change by 2022 and sales of unmanned or master-slave (e.g. follow me) tractors will reach $200m by 2026.

September 2016 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Issue 632

AGRICULTURAL DRONES Unmanned remote-controlled helicopters have been spraying rice fields in Japan since early 1990s. Autonomous drones have also been providing detailed aerial maps of farms, enabling farmers to take data-driven site-specific action. This development will soon enter its boom years as regulatory barriers lower and the precision farming ecosystems finally comes together.

ROBOTIC WEEDING IMPLEMENTS Vision-enabled robotic implements have been in commercial use for some years in organic farming. These implements follow the crop rows, identify the weeds, and aid with mechanical hoeing. The next generation of these advanced robotic implements is also in its early phase of commercial deployment. It will be using large troves of data to train its algorithms using deep learning techniques. A $380m market by 2026.

UNMANNED AUTONOMOUS ROBOTIC WEEDERS AND DATA SCOUTS Vision-enabled and intelligence robots are increasingly reaching navigational autonomy. These small, slow and light robots will be autonomously roaming the farms, analysing plants and taking specific actions such as eliminating a weed. Already, numerous companies and groups have developed and deployed a variety of weeding robots. Whilst most products are in prototype or semi-commercial trail phase, the first notable sales have also taken place aimed at small multi-crop vegetable farmers. This will become $300m market by 2026. The 10-year market forecasts were segmented by 14 separate market categories and robot types by the IDTechEx research report Agricultural Robots and Drones 2016-2026: Technologies, Markets, and Players. More information is available via www.IDTechEx.com/agri.

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Backpacker visa review underway THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT has begun a review into the visa arrangements for foreign backpackers. A broad range of issues that affect the supply and pay conditions of those on Working Holiday Maker visa holders will be examined. Barnaby Joyce, Agriculture and Water Resources Minister (and Deputy Prime Minister), said the review would be essential to ensuring the government’s policy settings continue to meet growing demand for flexible labour, particularly in the country. “Both farmers and tourism operators have expressed strong opinions about the supply and taxation of working holiday visa holders,” Joyce said. “The proper application of the longestablished tax rate of 32.5 per cent for non-residents has been raised as a potential disincentive for backpackers to take on roles that are not being met by Australian workers. “We have listened to those concerns. “The government recognises that the 200,000 plus working holiday makers who come here each year are a vital source of labour across the nation, which is why we have deferred for six months implementation of the so-called backpacker tax, pending the outcome of this review. “To help fully capture the views of both agriculture and tourism sectors, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu have been commissioned to lead the public engagement process.” Luke Hartsuyker, Assistant Agriculture

and Water Resources Minister, who has responsibility for agricultural workforce matters, will lead the review. The review will address the government’s terms of reference, which are focused around four key themes: 1. A u s t r a l i a’s i nter nat iona l competitiveness for backpackers; 2. Seasonal and temporary jobs and projected growth in agriculture and tourism; 3. Support for small businesses around engaging seasonal labour; and 4. Protections for vulnerable workers. Assistant Minister Hartsuyker said labour supply was a fundamental issue across many Australian industries, most particularly in the agricultural sector. “However, it is equally important that working holiday makers pay a fair level of tax while in Australia. This is a complex

issue that goes beyond the tax rate alone,” Hartsuyker said. “This review will be based on informed understanding not only of the seasonal and temporary labour challenges facing our industries, but also the challenges facing the Australian economy in a global labour market. “With jobs in our fruit and vegetable industries alone set to increase by 8.4 and 5.8 per cent respectively by 2020, we must ensure that Australia remains competitive in the international labour market where demand cannot be met domestically. “I encourage everyone with an interest in these important issues to get involved.” The review’s outcomes will take the form of a government announcement in advance of any changes coming into effect from 1 January 2017.

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September 2016 – Issue 632

Vineyard hi-tech health INNOVATIVE APPROACHES to vineyard management featured at a free National Wine and Grape Industry Centre (NWGIC) vine health workshop in Mudgee on Tuesday August 23. NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) viticultural development officer, Darren Fahey, said local vignerons gained insights into the latest technology available to keep their vineyards productive and business on track. “New app developments, disease modelling, drones, robotic yield assessment, lasers and synthetic yeast are some of the 21st century technologies we will explore at the workshop,” Mr Fahey said. “Keeping up with technology is a job in itself and we’ve focussed on the work of industry leaders and researchers across Australia, which is helping growers and winemakers drive innovation and save money and time in the vineyard. “We’re keen to get feedback on the use and benefits of new apps on offer, including University of Tasmania’s disease modelling app to alert growers prior to the occurrence of management issues - botrytis, downy and powdery mildews, frost and heat events. “It’s an opportunity for local vignerons to explore how technology can help the industry adopt new ways of thinking and doing things.” Updates on the latest developments to dramatically improve the ability to forecast wine grape yields, including image analysis and neural networks,

September 2016 – Issue 632

Dr Greg Dunn, NSW Department of Primary Industries viticultural leader, and Adrian Englefield, industry development officer, are keyed up over new technology which promises to deliver new ways of thinking and working in local vineyards.

were delivered by NSW DPI viticulture leader Dr Greg Dunn. The successful use of drones to spread predatory insects in targeted areas of vineyard blocks for integrated pest management and demonstrations of drones capturing live data to boost crop management and business decision making also featured on the program. A new global partnership to develop synthetic yeast and advances in the

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control of scale, based on recent trials conducted in South Australia was also delivered by scientists from NSW DPI, Macquarie University and industry specialists. Supported by Wine Australia and the NWGIC, an alliance between NSW Wine Industry Association, DPI and Charles Sturt University, the 2016 Spring Vine Health workshop was held at the Australian Rural Education Centre.

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Terroir and Other Myths of Winegrowing Mark Matthews generates some controversy Terroir was a key topic at the recent Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference and in the coming months the various presentations will inform articles in this publication. But first, we turn the attention to report based on a new publication which put a bit of heat into the discussion. Mark Greenspan reports. MARK MATTHEWS, PROFESSOR OF viticulture and plant physiologist at the University of California, Davis, recently published a book entitled Terroir and Other Myths of Winegrowing. You can be assured that when anyone writes a book on wine mythology and one especially critical of the sacred concept of terroir, it is sure to ruffle the feathers of many a wine professional, especially those geared towards the consumer side of the industry. In fact, notable wine columnist Matt Kramer (who was quoted in the terroir chapter) recently, as of the timing of writing this column, came out with a blog entry highly critical of Matthews’ book stating, in a nutshell, that science cannot be used to describe something that is holistic in nature (my words), and not simply described by correlations and reductionist experiments. I’m sure many wine aficionados would agree with Kramer. I do too in some ways. How do I review this book without sounding wishy-washy? I can’t. As a Ph.D. scientist and critical thinker, I strongly believe that much of Matthews’ mythbusting in his book is indeed correct. Winegrape growing, much like winemaking, is steeped in millennia of folklore and, thereby, mythology. I see it all the time and spend plenty of my own time trying to sift reality from myth, steering both growers and

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winemakers toward grounded, sciencebased viticulture. But, on the other hand, I am a practitioner of viticulture and wine growing and also realise that science has provided many satisfying answers to wine growing that sometimes run counter to the myths, yet I realise that wine growing is affected by nature and adjusted by human intervention in ways that are too complex to reduce to simple correlations.

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Some of these so-called myths are actually true but not necessarily borne out in ways that academics have tried to test them. The wine industry needs myths. Back label prose is full of nonsense about their vineyard soil’s richness and mineral content, how the fog gently kisses the leaves in the morning and gives way to warm sunshine in the afternoon and how their vines channel all their energy into a single cluster of grapes. Though this may be total BS, I have no clue how each wine producer could otherwise distinguish their wine from the hundreds, no thousands, of wines competing for shelf-space and the wallets of the consumer without conjuring up some image that makes the drinker want to put themselves in that place. So, I stand both in agreement with Matthews on his grand essay while disputing it at the same time. A wishy-washy stance, perhaps, but I am comfortable with it, as it is how I approach my profession: science-based but appreciative and even welcoming of the fact that we just don’t know it all nor will we ever. That said, this book is well-written from someone who possesses a sharp and thoughtful intellect. It may be easy to dismiss this book as complete BS and damaging to the world of wine, but 1) it is in non-scientific language and

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is enjoyable to read, 2) it is useful to consider all sides of any argument, and Matthews makes his case very well and 3) it is not like wine consumers are going to read this book and stop buying terroirexpressive wines if they are already. Matthews addresses four categories of winegrowing mythology: yield versus quality, vine balance, stressed vines and terroir. I could write a book addressing every point he brings up, but I only have this column and so little time available that I’ll do you a favour and just gloss over the topics. Read the book.

LOW YIELD AND SMALL BERRIES The idea that low-yielding vineyards make better wines than higher-yielding vineyards is almost universally accepted in the industry, especially among the narrowest practical row spacing. premium to luxury wine producers. On the other hand, in-row spacing has Matthews describes many ways in which a tremendous effect on both vine vigour that is not true. and amount of fruit supported by each From history (dating back to Roman vine. Some high-density vineyards have times) through vine physiology, he shown their inappropriateness for their presents ideas to dispel the myth of highsites, producing excessive vigour and yield-low-quality. poor fruit quality. He presents numerous studies where Matthews, a former believer of the yield did not correlate with wine scores. “small berries make better wine” theory, However, he also presented some that describes his journey of discovery did, in fact, correlate. out of that herd mentality and into an He brings up the good, but commonunderstanding that it is simply not the sense, argument that higher vine planting case, or at least that small berries are not densities have increased yields per acre the direct cause of higher wine quality, but have not led to losses in wine quality. even for red varieties. Narrower row spacing, to the point The idea is that berry flesh contains where vine canopies do not excessively more water, a solute, and the skin of shade one another, will certainly make red grapes contains anthocyanin, tannin more efficient use of an acre of land; and flavour compounds and that bigger and because land prices have escalated berries will dilute the flavours contained astronomically in high-quality regions, 4641Zampro88x185GGW 2016-08-18T10:05:44+10:00 in the skins. it only makes sense to plant at the

Matthews found that it was not the small berries themselves that led to higher wine quality but the physiological factors, mainly induced by water deficit stress, that led to the small berries that made the better wines. Indeed, I see fewer winemakers calling for small berries, though I don’t hear a clamouring for large berries either. I believe that there is indeed an inverse relationship between yield and quality, but it is not a simple cause and effect relationship between the two. Science experiments use a strict methodology to adjust crop, but that’s simply not what is done in practice. So, the scientists miss the idea completely. Those of us in the higher-end segment of the production market adjust crop by numerous viticultural practices (pruning, shoot-thinning, clusterthinning, wing and shoulder removal),

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but rarely do we systematically remove fruit just for the sake of reaching some yield target. Rather, we drop crop initially, while still green, to reduce cluster congestion, allowing light (direct and/or diffuse) to penetrate and air to circulate among each and every cluster. Clusters that are buried under other clusters will be of inferior quality. And waiting for veraison to do the thinning is too late... it will not have the same benefit. A thinning pass, when veraison is nearly complete, is intended to remove lagging, underdeveloped fruit. While Matthews refers to work that was done to dispel the “green drop” benefit, I disagree. While lagging berries tend to catch up with respect to sugar accumulation to berries that were further ahead, I do not believe that phenolic development does. Matthews correctly states that “It’s not the destination, but the journey that affects [wine quality]”. Agreed. It’s not simply correct to state that low yields and small berries improve wine quality, but it is the various practices, including the cluster-thinning I described, that lead to higher wine quality and that, by consequence, also reduce yield.

VINE BALANCE One of my pet peeves is hearing people talk about “vine balance.” It seems like a crutch to use such vague and undefined terminology as that. It appears that Matthews is in the

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same camp as I am. Matthews would not argue that some sort of balance is necessary in viticulture; it is just that it is futile to try and quantify it, as balance means something different for different scenarios. He refers to the “Ravaz Index,” which is the name ascribed to the fruit yield: pruning weight index many of us use to quantify “balance.” In his book, Matthews ascribes its origins to Louis Ravaz, who wrote a paper back in 1903 on a vine disease. In that paper, he did indeed measure fruit yield and pruning weight of vines and displayed those data. But, his idea was never to describe the balance of the grapevine. Yet, the Ravaz Index lives on as a vine balance indicator. As I said, vine balance means different things for different scenarios. The main function of the leaves is to produce carbohydrates (sugars) that are loaded into the berries during the ripening phase. Sugar, as we measure in soluble solids (Baume or Brix for most of us), is in limited supply in some of the more marginal climates, like the Midwest and northeastern United States. In those climates, leaf area to fruit ratio is important because a limitation of functional leaf surface area relative to fruit volume could result in retarded sugar accumulation. It could also retard other maturation processes. However, in many other regions (those in which the majority www.winetitles.com.au

of grapes are grown, like California), sunlight is in relative abundance and sugar accumulation is not really an issue. So, fruit weight to pruning weight is not that germane to those of us in sunnier climates. I have not taken any pruning weights myself since doing research. As I said in one of my previous articles, I know vine balance when I see it. Matthews sort of quoted me on this in his book, though it was relegated to an endnote. No matter. I largely agree with Matthews on this myth.

STRESSED VINES Matthews didn’t really call out any myth about vine stress. In fact, he’s dedicated much of his career on the optimal timing of vine water deficit stresses. He does cite the myth that irrigation is anathema to fine wine production. I don’t need to tell you that great wines can be produced from irrigated vineyards and that, while dry-farming is great when it can be done, irrigation is simply needed in many winegrowing regions. Yet, it is really the management of water that is important, and specifically the timing of stress. Matthews addresses this well in his book. He points to the fact that much of the fruit maturation process occurs prior to veraison or at least the preliminary processes that affect ripening occur prior to veraison. He points to the importance of allowing fruit to be in the correct microSeptember 2016 – Issue 632

environment, as well as stress level, prior to veraison. This is totally true, scientificallyproven and definitely non-mythical. If anything, it is one of the more important tenets of fine wine growing. While it’s a good discussion, I think Matthews should have titled this chapter differently because other than the irrigation/dry farming controversy, the concept of stress timing is not controversial. I just wish more growers would aim to hit that mark.

TERROIR? This is the pièce de résistance of the book: The topic that will receive both the most scorn and the most praise. And the one I’m going to say the least about, because when I’ve mentioned it before in an article I got a huge amount of feedback, mostly positive, but it was quite confusing because everyone came back with their own convoluted explanation about what it really means. Since I’ve written that article, largely describing the climatic aspect of terroir, I think I’ve softened just a bit and will readily admit that I still don’t fully understand it, but I’m fine with that. Matthews is sure to get flak about this chapter of his book because no one wants to hear that terroir is a myth. But, even though I do not agree that terroir is a myth, I’m glad he published it and stoked the fires of discussion, not because he will change anyone’s mind but because, well, it’s fun. Matthews states that terroir means “soil” or “land” in straightforward French. But he rightfully acknowledges that it is more complicated than that.

Terroir not only refers to soil but all of the aerial qualities of the site (temperature and humidity, sunlight quantity and quality, wind and rainfall), how they vary diurnally (throughout a day) and seasonally, and how they interact, the microclimate (or mesoclimate, depending on how you define it) of a vineyard depends on its geographic location, elevation, proximity to the coast, slope and aspect, neighbouring vegetation, etcetera, etcetera. If one takes all of these factors, including soil characteristics (also extremely complex) and then considers all of the potential interactions, it becomes daunting, nay impossible, to define how that site influences wine production. Don’t even mention vintage variation and climate change. Terroir is real. It is valid not only for wines but for other beverages, such as coffee, and food, such as chocolate. There is definitely a site effect, but it is not as simple as soil and most people who have not studied soils have very little idea about soil, anyway. And they have even less of an idea how environment affects the various physiological processes that influence flavour development of the developing grape berry. I’m fine with leaving terroir as a fuzzy concept and am, frankly, both bothered and intrigued by the various symposia on the topic. Does anyone really think that scientists will ever define terroir? Highly doubtful but it makes for some tempting travel to interesting wine regions. I’ve given Matthews’ book the quick once-over.

It’s not really a fair evaluation of the actual book’s content. There is a tonne of good stuff in it, and it is all intriguing. Even if you don’t agree with some of Matthews’ conclusions, you will learn something. The book seems to have an underlying motive as a jab at the “popular press,” primarily at the consumer-oriented wine press. That it may be, but I can fully appreciate that consumer-oriented publications are not going to be, nor should they be, scientific. The consumer wants to hear these myths, whether true or not. As wine professionals, however, we need to have a foundation in science from which to build upon. I was a student of Matthews’ in the late 1980s and early 1990s. I was already a decent writer prior to arriving in his lab, but under his tutelage, Matthews helped me refine my writing skills, not to mention my critical thinking ability. I continue to write my column in part because Matthews taught me how to express my ideas, including those that do march in lock-step with the current dogma. I recommend that you read Matthews’ book.

References:

Matthews, M. A. (2015) Terroir and Other Myths of Winegrowing. University of California Press. Oakland, California http://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/ id/53034 Greenspan, M. The Indescribable Concept of Vine Balance. Wine Business Monthly. September 2011. Greenspan, M. Finding Terroir in California. Wine Business Monthly. May 2008.

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Wines Pty Ltd, Krinklewood Biodynamic Vineyar Atelier by, Aramis Vineyards, Leeuwin Estate, Make WInes Australia, McWilliam’s Wines Group, Memsta ondo Consulting, Moppity VIneyards, Moxon Oak, Nadalie australia, Nexthire, Oenotec Pty Ltd, Optio ine Merchants, Orlando Wines, Ozpak Pty Ltd, Patrick of Coonawarra, Plantagenet Wines, Portavin Int ated Wine Services, R&D VITICULTURAL SERVICES PTY LTD, Robert Oatley Vineyards, Rymill Coon arra, Seville Estate, Stella Bella Wines, Streicker Wines, The Gilbert Family Wine Co, The Lane Vineyar he Scotchmans Hill Group Pty Ltd, The Yalumba Wine Company, Tintara Winery, Tower Estate Pty Lt easury Wine Estates, Turkey Flat Vineyards, Two Hands Wines, Tyrrell’s Wines, Vinpac Internation arburn Estate Pty Ltd, WebAware Pty Ltd, Wine and Vine Personnel International,Wines Overland, Wi ra WIne Group,Wirra Wirra Vineyards, Zilzie Wines, Accolade Wines Australia Limited, Aravina Estat ustralian Vintage Ltd, Barwick Wines, Beltunga, Bests Wines Great Western, Bremerton Wines, Brow rothers Milawa Vineyard Pty Ltd, Campbells Wines, Casama Group Pty Ltd, Cellarmaster Group, Charl elton Wines, Clover Hill Wines, CMV Farms, Coriole Vineyards, Delegats Wine Estate, Delegat’s Wine E te Limited, DogRidge, Edgemill Group, Fanselow Bell, Five Star Wines, Fowles Wine, Fuse Wine Servic y Ltd, Gemtree Vineyards, Glenlofty Wines, Harry Jones Wines, Henry’s Drive Vignerons Pty Ltd, Hentl arm, Hope Estate, Hospitality Recruitment Solutions, Howard Park Wines, Hungerford Hill Wines, Ing ood Wines Pty Ltd, Innocent Bystander, Jack Rabbit Vineyard, Jim Barry Wines, KarriBindi, Kauri, Kin on Estate Wines Pty Ltd, Kirrihill Wines Pty Ltd, Krinklewood Biodynamic Vineyard, L’Atelier by, Aram & managed by neyards, Leeuwin created Estate, Make WInes Australia, McWilliam’s Wines Group, Memstar, Mondo Consultin oppity VIneyards, Moxon Oak, Nadalie australia, Nexthire, Oenotec Pty Ltd, Options Wine Merchan lando Wines, Ozpak Pty Ltd, Patrick of Coonawarra, Plantagenet Wines, Portavin Integrated Wine Serv , R&D VITICULTURAL SERVICES PTY LTD, Robert Oatley Vineyards, Rymill Coonawarra, Seville Estat ella Bella Wines, Streicker Wines, The Gilbert Family Wine Co, The Lane Vineyard, The Scotchmans H roup Pty Ltd, The Yalumba Wine Company, Tintara Winery, Tower Estate Pty Ltd, Treasury Wine Estate urkey Flat Vineyards, Two Hands Wines, Tyrrell’s Wines, Vinpac International, Warburn Estate Pty Lt

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Chris Molineaux Growin’ vines, drinkin’ wines Early on in his career Chris Molineaux was taught the only way to get through vintage was to work hard all day and party hard all night. The Grapegrower and Winemaker recently caught up with the young viticulturist to chat about how he managed to impress one of Australia’s most esteemed winemaking families and make a home for himself growing their grapes for the past 10 years. Emilie Reynolds reports.

THIRTY-YEAR-OLD viticulturist Chris Molineaux began his career in Griffith where his first experience in the wine industry was under the guide of industry legend Elio Alban. “I had been put in contact with the Alban Family of which Elio Alban was the patriarch,” Molineaux said. “Elio grew all his fruit organically and his old vines were hand-picked and delivered to Casella’s in the back of an old Bedford truck. “In amongst the machine harvested parcels and road trains you could find him in the line-up for the crusher. Elio was the salt of the earth. He supplied accommodation for backpackers looking for work in the Riverina and in return they would help him harvest his grapes.” A rare introduction into an adrenalin-pumped vintage season paved the way for Molineaux to find his home with Casella. He said nearly every night during vintage there would be a party hosted by Elio. “He lived by a great mantra that there was plenty of time to sleep when he was older and now was the time to party hard and work hard,” Molineaux said. “He introduced me to the 4660FluteGGW88x185 2016-08-18T10:02:27+10:00 Casella’s during the summer of 2006, following that meeting

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September 2016 – Issue 632

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

grapegrowing

Casella viticulturist Chris Molineaux aims to grow the best quality fruit with the smallest footprint.

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Seeing what you produced be the centrepiece of a dinner table and the subject of an in depth discussion always drove me to pursue winegrowing I made the move to Griffith and I have been involved with the Casella Family in different roles ever since.” Molineaux, who shared his time growing up between Gundagai in the South West Slopes of NSW and Sydney, said he was motivated to pursue a career in the wine industry after studying a Bachelor of Agricultural Science at Sydney University. “I had developed a huge interest in the end product of wine industry and decided I wanted to further pursue the science of winegrowing,” he said. “I then completed my Bachelor of Viticultural Science at CSU in Wagga Wagga.” Molineaux said hospitality and agriculture were always his passions, but what really inspired him was seeing his craftsmanship featured as the centrepiece of a dinner table and the subject of an in depth discussion. “That’s what drove me to pursue winegrowing,” he said. “The science and agricultural practices that go into producing the perfect bunch of grapes has always drawn me in.” The flexibility to travel and work around the world also appealed to Molineaux, who said he was constantly searching for his next big adventure.

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September 2016 – Issue 632

“There is nothing better than travelling and exploring the world we live in,” he said. “Discovering something new whether it be in Australia or overseas is my vice.” As well as knocking out nine vintages in Australia, all with Casella, Molineaux spent a year managing a vineyard in Cotes du Marmandais, SW France. He said the biggest challenge he’s been faced with so far “would have to be running a vineyard and winery in Marmande, France”. “I spoke minimal French and the owner spent most of his time travelling Europe showing his wines. “We survived.” On his return to Australia, Molineaux was welcomed back by his winegrowing family, Casella. He currently works as vineyard manager for multiple Barossa Valley sites and a single site in Clare Valley. “Being given the opportunity to take the Casella viticultural team to the Barossa Valley and work alongside the Peter Lehmann winery, to nurture the old vineyards and develop a piece of our own history has been a huge moment in my career,” he said. Molineaux said throughout the past decade spent growing grapes for Casella, he has been fortunate enough to work on some pretty inspiring vineyards. “Back in the Riverina our Casella Family Brands Apostles Yard vineyard with some elevation over the Mirrool Creek floodplain was pretty spectacular,” he said. “The history of our Barossa Valley Stonewell vineyard is also something to marvel at with the contoured rows and gnarly vines.” Molineaux described his job as unpredictable and said he

September 2016 – Issue 632

One thing I’ve learnt it’s always a race with Mother Nature, but you can’t fight her, you just need to be quicker than her couldn’t remember the last time he had an ‘average’ day at work. “My job involves dealing with the unknown issues that arise each day while trying to keep on schedule with the vineyard operations,” he said. “One thing I learnt it’s always a race with Mother Nature, but you can’t fight her, you just need to be quicker than her.” Molineaux said he aspired to grow the best quality fruit with the smallest footprint, and encouraged other young grapegrowers to always stand up for what they believed in. “Don’t be afraid to ask a lot of questions,” he said. “You’ll learn quicker from your mistakes than just drifting along.” Molineaux said he owed a lot of his success to the Casella family, who he has watched evolve over his 10 years in the industry. “I’m very proud of the family I work for,” he said. “They have always respected and remained true to the history of the industry and those that have come before them but they have also not been afraid to challenge the future of the industry and seek new horizons. Something that I feel privileged to be a part of.”

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grapegrowing

Figure 1: Grape leaf showing the small circular lesions which appear on young leaves early in spring.

Pest & Disease

Black spot management in Western Australia

BLACK SPOT, or anthracnose disease of grapevines, is caused by the fungus Elsinoe ampelina. It is present in WA vineyards but has been successfully managed through the correct application of fungicides at the right time. The disease occurs after rainfall in spring and infects young leaves and stems. If uncontrolled it can cause significant yield and quality loss. Damage to canes can also create issues when pruning vines in subsequent seasons. Table grape varieties such as Sultana and Red Globe are more susceptible to infection than wine grape varieties.

BACKGROUND Black spot or anthracnose of grapevines is caused by the fungus Elsinoe ampelina. The disease is found worldwide where grapes are grown, including Western Australia. It can be particularly damaging in regions that

44 Grapegrower & Winemaker

experience cool, wet springs and is often more of a problem for table grape varieties such as Sultana and Red Globe. It can reduce fruit yield and quality. The introduction of fungicides to prevent the disease has reduced its impact. In Western Australia, the disease can appear when spring rainfall occurs and control measures have not been used or have been used incorrectly.

SYMPTOMS The disease produces characteristic symptoms on leaves and shoots, particularly in the early stages of the growing season. On leaves, small dark brown to black circular lesions appear after rain in the spring (Figure 1). Several leaves or shoots can be infected in a localised area, with the more severely infected leaves showing the greater number of leaf spots. Small www.winetitles.com.au

lesions expand with the leaf and eventually the centre of the lesion falls out, leaving the leaf with a ‘shot hole’ appearance (Figure 2). Grape leaf showing the ‘shot hole’ appearance of leaf lesions when the centre of the lesion falls out Infected leaves often have a distorted appearance. On the shoots, infection is seen as small circular lesions with white to grey centres and a defined dark brown to black margin (Figure 3). The centres of the lesions can appear flaky as the lesion ages (Figure 4). Older lesions develop callused edges and the centre is sunken. This can occasionally be as deep as the middle of the shoot. Lesions may merge, creating several larger lesions on the stem. Severely infected shoots can have lesions that girdle the shoot which is likely to either break off during the September 2016 – Issue 632

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grapegrowing

Figure 2: ‘Shot hole’ appearance of leaf lesions when the centre of the lesion falls out.

Figure 3: Small circular lesions on a stem with grey white centres and distinct black margin of the lesion.

Figure 4: Older lesions develop a flaky appearance. The centre of the lesion may fall out leaving callused edges and a sunken appearance.

Figure 5: Blackspot survives in cankers from the previous season’s infection.

season or produce no bunches at all. Loss of shoots reduces the number of viable canes or spurs in subsequent seasons. Small brown spots appear on berries that enlarge to be purple black in colour and occasionally have grey to white centres.

LIFE CYCLE Black spot survives in the vineyard as sclerotia inside cane cankers caused by the previous season’s infection (Figure 5). These survival structures can remain in the soil for three to five years. Spores are produced by the sclerotia after rainfall events in spring and are splashed onto the young, growing leaves where infection occurs. Foliage needs to be wet for some time (more than two hours) for infection to be successful. Once infection occurs on the leaves, new

46 Grapegrower & Winemaker

spores are produced within four-to-13 days, depending on the air temperature. If warm and dry conditions occur in early spring after infection growth of the disease is slowed due to its dependence on water for infection and spread. Black spot is more localised than other grapevine diseases. It often has central infection foci, with the severity of infection reduced the further the leaves and stems are away from these points.

MANAGEMENT Vines that have had the disease in the past should be tagged and monitored early in the season as this is where infection could occur. Because rainfall and water are so crucial for the lifecycle of black spot, by the time bud burst has occurred spores will have been released into www.winetitles.com.au

the environment. As young shoots and leaves are most susceptible to infection, early season application of fungicides is critical. Apply preventative fungicides at budburst and 10-14 days after. During rapid shoot growth, or if rainfall has occurred, this timeframe might need to be reduced. Numerous fungicides of different activity groups are registered to prevent black spot in WA vineyards. A list of these can be found in the Viticulture Spray Guide (which can be accessed from the WA Department of Agriculture and Food website, www.agric.wa.gov.au). No chemical products are available for post-infection control. Despite products containing the active component metalaxyl being registered for black spot control, these should only be used as part of a preventative regime. September 2016 – Issue 632

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grapegrowing

Can vibrational noise be used to control grapevine leafhoppers? Jernej Polajnar, a biologist from Slovenia, specialises in reproductive behaviour and vibrational communication of insects. Earlier this year he reported, for Entomology Today, on a project in Italy focussed on mating disruption of grapevine leafhoppers. THE AMERICAN GRAPEVINE LEAFHOPPER (Scaphoideus titanus) is hardly known in the US, even though it lives inconspicuously in a large part of North America, particularly in open woodlands of the eastern US and Canada. It feeds on wild grapevines (genus Vitis) from which it occasionally moves to cultivated vineyards, but is too rare to be noticed. In Europe, it’s a different story. The leafhoppers arrived there about 150 years ago, probably hitching a ride with American rootstock material that was exported to France to combat the Great French Wine Blight of the 1850s. Since then they have spread throughout many wine-growing regions of Europe, from the Atlantic to the Black Sea. The root of the problem is actually another blind passenger, a phytoplasma bacterium that is spread by the leafhopper and causes the debilitating grapevine disease Flavescence dorée. The epidemic scale of problems caused by Flavescence dorée mandates multiple pesticide treatments per year against it the leafhoppers in affected areas, which goes against the long-term goal of the European Union to reduce pesticide use in order to protect the environment and human health.

Preliminary laboratory trials showed promise, completely preventing pairs from mating on a small grapevine cutting. But transferring an idea to the field is a more complicated issue. No efficient alternative treatment against the newcomer is yet available. One of the reasons is the vector’s biology — leafhoppers do not use pheromones to find mates, so pheromone traps that proved extremely effective against many moth pests are utterly useless. But an international team of researchers from Italy and Slovenia, led by Dr. Valerio Mazzoni, have offered an odd source of inspiration, focusing on the little-known topic of vibrational communication in insects. Leafhoppers are unfazed by the bodily odours of prospective mates, and instead use a complex repertoire of vibrational signals that propagate through the plants on which they perch and are detected by other animals that happen to be nearby. Previously, the same team researched in detail the courtship sequence of the American grapevine leafhopper and the various signals used in different steps of this sequence, up until mating occurred. They found that males induce slight trembles in the plant surface to advertise their presence to nearby females, and they locate the females by their responses. A particularly interesting finding was that rival males produce a sort of vibrational noise to interfere with the communication of a couple in order to gain the opportunity to mate with the female themselves.

48 Grapegrower & Winemaker

This finding led to a key question: Can we record and replay this noise to prevent all of the hoppers in a vineyard from finding mates? Unlike those found in North America, the American grapevine leafhopper is monophagous in Europe. It feeds exclusively on cultivated grapevines, so it cannot spread to other hosts for mating if it is disrupted in vineyards. And if individuals cannot mate, the population should disappear after a few seasons. Preliminary laboratory trials showed promise, completely preventing pairs from mating on a small grapevine cutting. But transferring an idea to the field is a more complicated issue. In a paper published in the Journal of Pest Science, the researchers report the outcome of a small-scale field study conducted in northern Italy that was designed as a second step in developing a practical solution. Luckily, distributing vibrations to all of the plants that need protection is not a big problem. Wine growers usually plant grapevines in rows that are trained by metal wires that can serve as convenient conduits for vibrational energy. So a wire in each row was equipped with a specialised ‘shaker’ that played pre-recorded rival noise. Pairs of leafhoppers were released in cages wrapped around grapevine shoots and left for 24 hours, then recaptured and checked whether they had mated. Noise playback prevented mating in these conditions too, leaving as many as 90 percent of the females virgin, while only 20 per cent remained virgin when the noise was not played. Noise of course gets fainter the further one is from its source, so it ceases to bother the insects at some point. This cut-off value – the threshold – was determined by playback experiments in the laboratory where intensity could be more precisely controlled. Then the transmission along the wire and down the shoots was measured and, as expected, couples in cages far enough from the source – in this case, 10 meters from the shaker or more – were able to mate as if there was no disruption. The second significant result of the study was that disruption can be switched off between 10am and 6pm without losing efficiency because American grapevine leafhoppers are not active during this part of the day. Together, these findings mean that the shakers would need to be installed every 20 meters along vineyard rows, but it would be possible to conserve energy by switching them off for a few hours around midday without losing efficiency. Of course, transmission can be optimised to increase each shaker’s range, but this is only one of the technical issues that need to be resolved before the method can compete with pesticide treatments in cost, convenience, and efficiency. For now, the new study shows that this approach is promising enough to be tested on a large scale and developed further. But more broadly, it shows that even research on basic topics of insect biology, however obscure they might seem, may be found to be useful.

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September 2016 – Issue 632

Realise every precious drop. Producing the perfect Grape takes time, effort and energy. So when yours are attacked by chewing pests you need to strike back. DuPont™ Avatar® insecticide works with your integrated pest management strategy to control Light brown apple moth and Grapevine moth caterpillars, Garden weevils, European earwigs and Wingless grasshoppers. And it’s friendly to some key beneficial bugs. Visit www.cropprotection.dupont.com.au for more information

ALWAYS REFER TO THE LABEL BEFORE USE. Copyright © 2014 DuPont. The DuPont Oval Logo, DuPont™ and Avatar ® are registered trademarks or trademarks of DuPont or its affiliates. Du Pont (Australia) Pty Ltd. 7 Eden Park Drive, Macquarie Park NSW 2113. ACN 000 716 469. All rights reserved. DUPONT0036/GW/FP.

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Hitch-hiking stink bug a major concern for Marlborough A STINK BUG that has decimated crops in the United States and Italy could be catastrophic for the Marlborough wine industry if it breaches border control, according to The Marlborough Express. New Zealand Winegrowers biosecurity manager Edwin Massey said the bug, called the brown marmorated stink bug, was ‘public enemy number one’ when it came to biosecurity risks. The stink bug had reached plague proportions in parts of the US, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damages to different crops, spreading from the East Coast across the continent since it was introduced in the 1990s, Massey said. Between September 2014 and January 2016, Ministry for Primary Industries staff intercepted the stink bug 55 times at the borders, averting an intrusion that could devastate the multi-billion dollar wine and horticultural industries in New Zealand. Massey said the pest had been detected hitch-hiking on goods as diverse as mortuary equipment and barbie dolls, but the most likely threat to Marlborough was from viticulture machinery imported from Italy. “We import quite a lot of winery machinery from Italy, so it has the potential to hitch-hike straight here, which is why we’ve sent messages to our members to look out for it,” Massey told Oliver Lewis.

50 Grapegrower & Winemaker

As well as the damage it did to fruit and crops by feeding on them, the stink bug could also taint produce by releasing a foul-smelling odour. “When it’s disturbed or feels threatened it will emit a smelly chemical, which can taint the wine,” Massey said. “The characteristics of Marlborough sauvignon blanc could potentially be flavoured by stink-bug chemicals if it arrived here.” Because of the isolated nature of New Zealand, the wine industry had developed relatively unmolested from pests and diseases, however the rise of online shopping, more imports and international travel meant the risk was increasing, Massey said. This year, the Government invested $233 million to prevent biosecurity threats entering the country, but because of the increased risk, “they’re spending more to effectively stand still,” he said. “We have relative freedom from pests and diseases in New Zealand, and we want to keep it that way.” Massey said there were two main threats that could impact the wine industry in New Zealand, diseases specific to grape vines, or more general pests and diseases, such as the stink bug. Grape vine specific diseases were less likely to cause problems for the industry, because of strict quarantine regulations. New grape vine varieties were quarantined when they arrived in the www.winetitles.com.au

country and grown in laboratories for up to three years to make sure they were safe, Massey said. Precautions were also taken through New Zealand Winegrowers’ Grafted Grapevine Standard, to make sure the pest phylloxera was kept at bay, by grafting immune American rootstock onto European grape varieties that were susceptible to the pest. It had been present in New Zealand since the end of the 20th century, however it did not reach Marlborough until the 1990s, forcing a number of vineyards to be ripped out and replanted with grafted, resistant vines. Massey said New Zealand Winegrowers was taking steps so they would have more of a say of how to respond to biosecurity breaches, as well as how to prepare for them. The industry body was holding a vote for its members, which closed in August, about whether they wanted to establish a Government Industry Association. The association would see the wine industry work in partnership with the ministry in responding to biosecurity risks, as well as how to prepare for them. “I think there’s a huge benefit for the wine industry, it will give us a voice at the table,” Massey said. “Rather than being consulted as a stakeholder, the industry will be responsible for making decisions about biosecurity responses.” September 2016 – Issue 632

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wine law

Australian wine export spray risk the 2005 vintage, and wine made from those grapes, pose absolutely no threat to human health. “Maximum allowable levels for 2,4-D have been established in Australia for a range of widely consumed food products including milk and water. “Furthermore, no maximum allowable levels for 2,4-D in grapes have been established in most of our major wine export markets.”

Wine Lawyer Mark Hamilton

Grope Hamilton Lawyers

A NOTICE TO WINE EXPORTERS from the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation (AWBC) entitled ‘Wine Grapes and the Herbicide 2,4-D’, issued in April 2005 to wine exporters, was a reminder from the peak winemaking body that incidences of damage to vineyards from herbicide spraying carried out on nearby farms had increased alarmingly in Australia’s expanded winegrowing regions, with estimated crop losses in some instances reaching hundreds of thousands of dollars. This notice was issued at the height of vineyard expansion. Apart from the direct financial loss which individual grape growers face, this topic remains of considerable importance to the industry as a whole as it potentially puts all Australia’s wine exports at risk. With the dramatic increase in vineyard plantings in Australia since 1995, there have been increased problems caused by farmers using highly volatile chemical sprays to eliminate weed growth in paddocks adjacent to or in the vicinity of vineyards. This has, in particular, been caused by farmers using Ester 2,4 D to suppress weed growth in paddocks prior to cropping activities. Anecdotal evidence suggests that many farmers have continued with spraying practices which do not reflect the changed circumstances in which they operate. This appears to be based, at least in part, upon a view that they are entitled to continue spraying practices which predate the establishment of vineyards in their area. Apart from the economic impact of grape crop loss, it is vital that there be no suggestion, justified or otherwise, that there could be chemical residue present in Australian wines. To avoid chemical contamination, the

52 Grapegrower & Winemaker

grape growing industry is already subject to chemical withholding protocols in the period leading up to harvest with respect to spray applied to vineyards by grapegrowers themselves. It would be most unfortunate if anything happened to adversely affect the “green” image which the Australian wine industry enjoys and upon which in part the unprecedented growth of Australian wine exports is based. In the 2005 notice, AWBC said that it had become aware of incidents involving herbicide drift onto vineyards in northwestern Victoria, Clare and Langhorne Creek. AWBC pointed out that the body Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) determines the maximum levels of various substances that can be present in food, including wine, in the Food Standards Code. Importantly, AWBC noted that no maximum residue level has been determined for the presence of 2,4-D in grapes or wine and that, accordingly, wine containing detectable residues of 2,4-D cannot be sold on domestic or export markets. This remains the position in 2016. The AWBC Notice continued: “2,4-D is the most widely used herbicide in the world and is commonly used for the control of broad leaf weeds in pasture and crops. “Some formulations of the product, particularly the ester forms, can drift at least 35 km from the source of application and affect crops other than the intended target. “Any area in which viticulture is in reasonable proximity to broadacre farming could potentially be affected by 2,4-D vapour drift. “The extremely low levels of residual 2,4-D detected in affected grapes from www.winetitles.com.au

In the past decade, an increasing number of incidents have been reported. Because of two spray drift issues at around bud burst, I obtained injunctions from the Supreme Court of South Australia for a group of 21 Lower Murray grape growers, and also for vine nursery operator in the Penola area in southeast of South Australia, restraining local farmers from breaching governmental spraying guidelines in their future spraying activities. Any breach of the injunctive orders would have been punishable as contempt of court. Of crucial importance to vineyard operators is the need to carry out immediate, exhaustive, documented enquiries to reliably identify the source of spray drift, immediately spray drift is suspected, rather than waiting for damage to become apparent. Apart from potentially recovering damages for any loss caused by spray damage, a major advantage to local grape growers in taking immediate action to obtain injunctive relief to restrain repetitive conduct is the message which this sends to farmers in the local community who have not yet adapted to their changed circumstances. Prevention is obviously better than cure. I have previously prepared a ‘circular’ letter for a grape grower in the Wrattonbully interim area outlining the general obligations which farmers owe to grape growers when carrying out their spraying programmed. The client had smelt chemical drift in his vineyard and wanted to visit farmers in the locality to alert them to the problem and to their obligations. Mark Hamilton of Grope Hamilton Lawyers provides specialist national legal services to the Australian wine industry. He has a lifetime of wine sector experience through his involvement with Hamilton’s Ewell Vineyards. He can be contacted on (08) 8231 00898 or 0412 842 359 or by email at mhamilton@ gropehamiltonlawyers.com.au. September 2016 – Issue 632

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Region in focus: Riverland Wine Australia RD&E News IN RECENT YEARS, research and extension work in the Riverland has primarily been about adaptation – taking existing technologies and testing them under local conditions. Now the focus is shifting slightly, to put more emphasis on tackling some of the major challenges facing the sector in the region. “After quite some discussion by various committees within Riverland Wine, it was agreed that we needed to take a collaborative approach to addressing the big challenges,” said CEO Chris Byrne. “The first step will be to run a series of interactive workshops, open to all sector members, to identify and agree on possible solutions. Working groups will then be put in place to pursue these identified solutions.” Three projects have been selected for progression this financial year: • Ensuring Maintenance of Yield and Quality: Making Informed Water Use

Decisions in a difficult water market; • Technology to Improve Grape Quality & Vineyard Performance & Sustainability – precision viticulture; and • New Ma rket Opportunities: Alternative Varieties & Organic Production Techniques. However, adaptation work will not be forgotten, with a number of major projects ongoing. Work is continuing on an extensive trial of new grapevine clones being carried out by Riverland Wine, the Riverland Wine Improvement Committee and Yalumba. In all, 57 clones of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Merlot have been selected. “The idea of trialling the clones is to identify either better performers, in terms of yields or quality, or clones which have specific marketing advantages,” Byrne said. “So far, some very interesting

characteristics have been found, which makes us pretty confident that we will be successful. This will be very important information to consider when growers are looking to replant in the future.” A similar project involving the same partners is comparing 11 different rootstocks on Shiraz and Chardonnay. Another recent innovation is three computer-based tools dealing with grapevine nutrition planning, fungicide programming and herbicide planning. Designed by Andrew Weeks and now being tested and refined by Tony Meissner, they will be available from the Riverland Wine website over the next few months. Also appearing online are fact sheets outlining the findings of recent projects. Currently being written up are research on Gazania control, the use of ‘sunscreens’ on vines and organic grape production.

Irrigation water allocation and availability HOW DOES THE ALLOCATION WORK? The NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) Water makes available water determinations (AWDs) or allocation announcements from the commencement of the water season on 1 July. General Security allocations are calculated by determining the total resources available – storage plus tributary plus minimum storage inflows – and subtracting the total supply requirements such as river operations, town, stock and domestic and high security. Allocation announcements are generally made on the first and 15th of the month (or next business day) until general security allocations reach 100 percent or mid-April, after which time it is assumed further inflows will contribute to higher opening allocations in the next year. To assist with forward planning, DPI Water prepares an indicative water availability outlook usually in March and May preceding the commencement of the water season and potentially again in August if needed.

54 Grapegrower & Winemaker

CURRENT SEASONAL OUTLOOK (RELEASED 15 AUGUST 2016) Forecast NSW Murray General Security allocation Inflow conditions

1 October 2016

1 December 2016

Drought (99%)

Very dry (90%)

Dry (75%)

Average (50%)

Wet (25%)*

WATER AVAILABILITY IN MURRAY IRRIGATION Murray Irrigation customers are issued allocations against their contractual water rights (water entitlements held within Murray Irrigation) in line with those announced by DPI Water. Murray Irrigation customers may also purchase allocation on the temporary water market for use within Murray Irrigation, or they may sell allocation within or outside Murray Irrigation (see water market information below). Improvements in Murray Irrigation efficiency reduce operational losses resulting in additional company water,

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which can in turn be issued to customers as efficiency allocations. Efficiency allocations are a Board decision and, if made, are allocated to customers against permanent delivery entitlements. A fact sheet outlining efficiency allocations is available here. Water holders in the NSW Murray have access to both permanent and temporary water markets. Murray Irrigation shares, water entitlements and delivery entitlements can be transferred between landholdings, and water entitlements can be transferred to and from any person including non-Murray Irrigation WAL licenses as long as NSW Office of Water (NOW) approves the trade. These may be sold with or without associated allocation. Murray Irrigation’s fact sheet on permanent trade is available here. Licence holders may access allocation on the temporary market. The NSW Murray can access allocation from within the valley (intra-valley), or from connected valleys in NSW (inter-valley), or from connected valleys in other states (inter-state).

September 2016 – Issue 632

Optimising grape harvest for wine style A SMARTPHONE APP to help wine grape-growers and winemakers decide when to irrigate and harvest is being developed by Charles Sturt University (CSU) researchers. It’s part of research funded by Wine Australia at the National Wine and Grape Industry Centre (NWGIC) to make it easier for growers and winemakers to find the ideal window to pick fruit to make a particular wine style, and to manage irrigation and so limit berry water loss and potentially shrivelling. NWGIC Director, Professor Alain Deloire said it’s based on a relatively new technique that’s been used in Europe, South America and Africa. “This approach uses sequential harvesting in association with fruit physiological indicators, such as berry volume and sugar accumulation along with the evolving skin colour of white cultivars, to determine the optimum harvest times to make the desired wine styles,” said Professor Deloire. “We carried out detailed analysis of different grape varieties in different climatic conditions and at varying

altitudes in vineyards in four wine regions in NSW and SA to determine the main abiotic drivers of fruit and wine composition and to assess fruit or wine and sensory potential nexus. “The key finding of the research is that this technique can be applied to Australia and that using this technique is it possible to create quite distinct wines from the same grapes grown in the same vineyard.” The next step is making the information user-friendly for wine-grape growers. “We are working with Charles Sturt University’s School of Computing and Mathematics, through the research unit CM3, to develop a smartphone imaging tool that growers can use in the vineyard,” said Professor Deloire. “After taking a photograph of the grape bunch on the vine, the app analyses the image and automatically detects the number of berries, their size and colour distribution. “This information will allow real-time assessment of the tempo of berry growth and volume, and yield loss including shrivelling, bunch and vineyard

homogeneity, to decide on appropriate cultural practices such as irrigation, the optimal harvest window and fruit sorting in the winery. “We expect to have a working Android app prototype for testing by the wine sector during the next 2017 harvesting season. We want to show it to the industry and ask whether they will use it or whether it needs to be adapted in some way,” he said. “There are a lot of apps out there that seem like a good idea but are never used.” Wine Australia General Manager, RD&E Dr Liz Waters said simple researchbased tools help to take project outcomes into the vineyard. “This app will quickly and easily provide in-field information that will help facilitate decision-making about appropriate vineyard practices and harvest date,” she said. CM3 researcher Dr Kenneth Li-minn Ang, from the CSU School of Computing and Mathematics in Wagga Wagga, said, “This smartphone tool uses novel image processing and machine learning techniques developed by CM3.”

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Irrigation

Using capacitance probes for irrigation scheduling

SOIL MOISTURE MEASUREMENT indicates the water stress that a crop may be undergoing to irrigation managers. Volumetric measurements using capacitance probes have become popular as they tell managers the volume of water required to refill the soil profile (deficit) in an irrigation event. They are also able to provide information on rooting depth, saturation, full point, drainage and onset of stress. This Primefact article addresses the in-field and agronomic issues related to capacitance probes.

CONTINUOUSLY LOGGED CAPACITANCE PROBE (For example Sentek range of EnviroSCAN® products, EnviroPro, AquaCheck®, AquaSpy®, Buddy) These systems use capacitance sensors located within access tubes (generally PVC or ABS) installed at representative sites and depths for the duration of the irrigation season. Sensors use electrical capacitance to measure soil moisture, with a high frequency electrical field around each sensor passing through the access tube into the soil. Sensors are commonly spaced at depth intervals of 100 mm within the access tube, and are generally adjusted to suit the rooting depth of the crop. The sensors are traditionally connected to a central data logger by cabling or telemetry to record sensor readings at pre-determined time intervals. Modems connected to probes to send data direct to the internet are becoming more popular, avoiding the need for cabling and allowing multiple users to access data from multiple locations. Probes (examples listed above) are generally marketed as a package, incorporating various software, data logging and delivery methods. Numerous options and combinations are available.

BENEFITS • Very sensitive to moisture change; • Soil moisture content throughout the profile is estimated; • Near-continuous measurement is a key feature, often at intervals down to one minute; • Soil moisture measurements from individual sensors within a probe (typically those within the rootzone)

56 Grapegrower & Winemaker

can be summed to provide a single total soil moisture line, which is easily interpreted by managers; • Soil moisture is recorded automatically, reducing labour time required to manage irrigation; • Soil moisture estimates are often provided in millimetres. If this is the case, and the probe is calibrated, readings can be used to accurately calculate crop water use, crop water productivity and drainage losses. Site calibrated probes installed using undisturbed methods provide scientifically credible volumetric moisture contents; • Generally probes are not calibrated, so soil moisture trends over time are produced, (soil water dynamics) rather than absolute values. This is often considered to be the most valuable feature of data from capacitance probes, as soil water dynamics are used by irrigators for deciding both when and how much to apply; • Infiltration rate, drainage, root activity, plant drought and waterlogging stress and crop water use are relatively easily interpreted from continuous data; • Probes with additional nutrient, salinity and temperature options are becoming available; and • Various models are available for particular purposes, including submerged (turf), smaller, readily removable probes (annual crops), as well as sealed, non-serviceable probes with fixed sensor depths.

LIMITATIONS • Capital costs can be significant depending on the system chosen and the number of probes required; • Initial training and support is often required and recommended. Some time is needed (usually one season is sufficient) to fully understand and use the continuous soil water data to make informed irrigation management decisions; • Ongoing maintenance is necessary; • Precise installation is necessary with good contact between soil and access tube to ensure readings are representative, and to prevent the preferential pathflow of water along the length of the probe. The soil surrounding probes should be disturbed as little as possible. www.winetitles.com.au

Slurry installations should be avoided wherever possible; • Computer software is required for some probes to display data. New advancements in ‘cloud’ technology may avoid the need to install desktop computer hardware; • Cables may be required throughout the property to connect probes to an automatic data logger, although new software and hardware options are overcoming this; • The setting of full and refill lines are required at initial installation, and then adjusted from season to season, and often within seasons, depending on crop physiological changes such as canopy and rootzone development. It can take time in the first season to confidently determine these lines, which are unique for every site; • Calibration requires considerable skill and may be a service provided from certain suppliers. Established calibration equations based on scientific studies, are available for particular products; • If individual components fail within a sealed probe, they cannot be individually repaired and the whole probe must be replaced. Fully serviceable probes allow access into probes, and individual components can be repaired or replaced; and • Short term crops such as annual vegetables and ornamentals are generally less suited to these probes as paddocks are regularly rotated within crop cycles of less than six months.

MANUALLY LOGGED CAPACITANCE PROBE (For example, Diviner 2000®, PR2 Profile Probe, Green Light Red Light, and Gopher) These systems also use capacitance to determine the moisture content of the soil. Access tubes are installed for the duration of the irrigation season, with single or multiple sensors on a rod manually passed down the access tubes. Manual readings are taken at representative depths, which are recorded in a data logger and available on a field display unit or downloaded to a computer. At a minimum, readings should be taken before and after irrigation or rainfall events to determine water use trends. September 2016 – Issue 632

BENEFITS • Lower capital costs; • Soil moisture profile data is available; • Numerous sampling sites are possible for little extra cost; • All depths can be measured at each reading; • If soil moisture estimates are provided in millimetres, and if the probe is calibrated, readings can be used for deciding both when, and how much to apply; • Easy to operate; and • Manual reading requirements encourage irrigators to regularly visit the crop, enabling further agronomic observations to occur.

LIMITATIONS • Manual reading can be expensive with regard to labour inputs, timeconsuming and inconvenient; • Results are only available when readings are taken, which becomes less likely during busy production periods, unless a continuous logging option is available and utilised; • Readings may not be taken frequently enough to establish water use trends, which are necessary in predicting future irrigation timing. This is particularly true in frequently irrigated situations such as drip irrigation or shallow rooted crops; • Drainage volumes cannot be easily estimated, unless continuous logging option is used; and • Equipment tends to be fragile and therefore more likely to fail with continuous use.

More information Primefact 1364 Irrigation scheduling principles for horticultural crops Phil Charlesworth, 2005, Irrigation Insights Number 1 – Soil Water Monitoring, an information package, 2nd edition. NSW Agriculture, 2002, Irrigation for Horticulture in the Mallee. PROwater® Irrigation Training Series Module 9 ‘Scheduling irrigation’

Acknowledgments Jeremy Giddings Irrigation Industry Development Officer (Horticulture) Trevor Sluggett, Irrigation & Agronomy Manager, Costa Group, Renmark, SA Peter Buss, Manager, R & D, Sentek Pty Ltd. Based on WaterWise on the Farm, Series 3: Irrigation Management 2004

© State of New South Wales through the Department of Trade and Investment, Regional Infrastructure and Services 2014. You may copy, distribute and otherwise freely deal with this publication for any purpose, provided that you attribute the NSW Department of Primary Industries as the owner. Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication is based on knowledge and understanding at the time of writing (August 2015). However, because of advances in knowledge, users are reminded of the need to ensure that information upon which they rely is up to date and to check currency of the information with the appropriate officer of the Department of Primary Industries or the user’s independent adviser.

1 Marlow Road, Keswick, SA 5035 P: (08) 8351 8611 F: (08) 7225 1993 E: info@eclipseenterprises.com.au - www.eclipseenterprises.com.au

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Cellulose gum, an effective solution for tartrate instability in wine Christophe Morge, the R&D manager at France’s Martin Vialatte, reports on the use of cellulose gum for tartrate stability and reports on the effectiveness of a new product. ALTHOUGH TARTRATE PRECIPITATION in wines is natural, it is totally rejected by consumers. Consequently, it is essential for winemakers to stabilise their wines in order to avoid tartrate deposits at the bottom of the bottle. There are two strategies for stabilising wines with regard to tartrate precipitation: the addition of stabilisers that prevent tartrate precipitation, such as metatartaric acid; and stabilisation using physical methods (treatment by cooling or electrodialysis). Although the first method is economical, it is also unreliable over long time periods and is only suitable for wines with a rapid turnover. The second method on the other hand provides wines that are stable in the long term. However, this effectiveness comes at a price, since it requires high energy or water consumption (refrigeration for stabilisation by cooling, water consumption for electrodialysis). An alternative has been available since August 2009, when the European Union authorised the use of carboxymethylcellulose

(CMC), also known as cellulose gums, for the stabilisation of wines with regard to the risk of tartrate precipitation. Cellulose gums provide excellent stabilisation of wines over time, while limiting water and energy consumption, all for a reasonable cost.

CHARACTERISATION OF CELLULOSE GUMS Chemical properties Cellulose gums are polysaccharides, linear glucose polymers that are partially esterified by carboxymethyl groups (Figure 1). Cellulose gums are characterised by two parameters, the degree of polymerisation (DP) and the degree of substitution (DS). The degree of polymerisation of cellulose gums can vary from 80 to 1500, while the degree of substitution can range from 0.60 to 0.95. This clearly shows the wide diversity among cellulose gums. Until now, they were mainly used in the agrifood industry under the code E 466, as thickeners, gelling agents and stabilisers. They are found in varying amounts in many

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Fig. 2: Alteration of the crystal structure of tartrate crystals following the addition of CMC (Sources CIVC)

Figure 1: Structure of cellulose gum

commonly consumed foods (cream puddings, ice cream, readymade foods, etc.). In this case, the industry prefers to use CMCs with high degrees of polymerisation, since the higher the degree of polymerisation, the greater is the viscosity of the CMC. In oenology, cellulose gums with high degrees of polymerisation are of little interest for wine stabilisation, and in fact it was those with the lowest were selected and validated by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) for wine stabilisation. Moreover, the higher the degree of substitution, the more a CMC exhibits a significant protective colloidal effect (Lubbers et al., 1993). Consequently, those with higher degrees of substitution are of the most interest in oenology. The use of cellulose gums for tartrate stabilisation of wines is not recent. Many earlier studies (Crachereau et al., 2001,

case studied by the OIV from 1985 to 1989) demonstrated the effectiveness of cellulose gums in inhibiting the formation and growth of potassium tartrate crystals (Figure 2). However, it should be pointed out that CMCs have no effect on calcium tartrate. For wines rich in calcium, the only methods that can provide a solution are electrodialysis or the use of a racemate of tartaric acid. Just like metatartaric acid, cellulose gum binds to the edges of potassium tartrate crystals, inhibiting both their formation and growth. The additional effectiveness of cellulose gum compared to metatartaric acid is provided by its greater affinity with potassium tartrate and above all by its heat resistance. By looking at the structure of CMC (Figure 1) it can be easily seen that the more carboxymethyl radicals there are (i.e. a high degree of substitution), the more carboxylate functional groups (COO-) are available to bind K+ ions onto the potassium tartrate crystals, which is the reason why CMCs have a greater affinity.

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winemaking Because of this, it is necessary to be sure of the total protein stability of the wine before adding CMC, which should be done at the end of the process just before filtration for bottling. Moreover, we have confirmed that the addition of CMC before final filtration at the maximum dose of 10g/hl does not alter the filterability of wines on 0.45µm membranes.

The first series of trials concerns the addition of cellulose gum with the trade name Cristab GC (Martin Vialatte) to white and rosé wines ready for bottling, just before final filtration as recommended.

RESULTS OF TRIALS CARRIED OUT ON VARIOUS WINES Material and method In the rest of this article, we set out two series of results concerning white and rosé wines. The first series of trials concerns the addition of cellulose gum with the trade name Cristab GC (Martin Vialatte) to white and rosé wines ready for bottling, just before final filtration as recommended. The dose of Cristab GC used was 10g/hl for all the wines. A prior Tsat (saturation temperature) test confirmed the tartrate instability of the wines. Following the addition of CMC, the effectiveness of the CMC was checked using a minicontact test. The test consists in measuring the fall in conductivity following the addition of a defined quantity of cream of tartar (KHT). At the same time, we carried out colour stability tests on rosé wines stabilised with Cristab GC. To do this, we compared the turbidity of wines treated after 15 days of storage at two different temperatures, 4°C and room temperature. The second series of trials concerned white wines. In this series of trials, we used a simple method, which has the advantage that it can be used in small wineries, to determine the effectiveness of Cristab GC. The method is based on a visual examination of tartrate crystal deposits in the bottle after storage in a freezer at -4°C for 10 days. In each trial, we included a control without CMC and a wine treated with 10 g/hl of Cristab GC.

In addition, cellulose gums are not heat sensitive, unlike metatartaric acid, which can hydrolyse (Peynaud and Guimberteau, 1961; Ribereau-Gayon et al., 1977). Extended heat treatment trials (55-60°C for five to 30 days) on wines stabilised with CMC show that they remain totally protected from precipitation of potassium tartrate (Traité d’Oenologie, 2004, Vol. 2, L’utilisation de la carboxyméthylcellulose). Appearance and use of cellulose gums Oenological cellulose gums come either as an odourless white powder or as an odourless, slightly-yellowish solution. In whatever form it comes, the maximum legal dose for cellulose gums is set at 10g/hl. The viscosity of the product needs to be emphasised. Even if the Oenological Codex only permits CMCs with the lowest degree of polymerisation, or the lowest viscosity, it remains true that CMCs exhibit greater viscosity than other products generally used in oenology. This characteristic therefore requires special care to be taken when rehydrating CMCs in powder form, or when they are added to wine in liquid form. It is strongly recommended to previously dilute them by half in the wine to be stabilised and to use a Venturi-type connector so as to obtain thorough mixing of the cellulose gum in the wine and guarantee optimum effectiveness. Possible interactions Although the stabilising properties of CMCs with regard to tartrate precipitation have been studied for many years, this has mainly been true for white wines. Contrary to expectations, the European Union went beyond the recommendations of the OIV and authorised their use not only on white wines but also on red and rosé wines. Although the effectiveness of CMCs on unstable white wines is well established, their use on red and rosé wines requires special care, not because CMCs are ineffective with regard to tartrate stabilisation but rather due to possible interactions of CMCs with the colouring matter in the wine, which can subsequently lead to precipitation. Before using CMC on red and rosé wines it is therefore advisable to carry out prior tests. During numerous trials carried out in our laboratories, we have also observed possible interaction between CMC with unstable proteins in white wines as well as with lysozyme.

Results Several examples from among the most unstable white and rosé wines are shown in Table 1. It can be seen that stabilisation with Cristab GC is effective. During the minicontact test, the threshold of variation in conductivity beyond which a wine is considered unstable is 40µS.cm-1 for white wines and 60µS.cm-1 for rosé wines. Table 1 shows that, for wines to which Cristab GC is added, the fall in conductivity during the minicontact test remains below the instability threshold, showing that the wines are therefore stable. Similarly, for all the wines tested, we observed no interaction between Cristab GC and colouring matter in rosé wines (Graph 1). The variation in turbidity measured in wines treated with CMC and kept at 4°C or at room temperature for 15 days remained below 1 NTU.

Table 1: Trials on rosé and white wines with determination of minicontact test.

Control

Control + 10 g/hl of Cristab GC

Limit of variation in conductivity (in µS cm-1) beyond which wine is unstable

Variation in conductivity in µS cm-1 Wine

Tsat in °C

Blanc du Roussillon

> 150

Muscat sec frontignan

100

Sauvignon de Pinet

> 150

Rosé Languedoc

Rosé primeur Languedoc

> 150

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September 2016 – Issue 632

Table 2: Observation of tartrate precipitation in the bottle after 10 days at -4 °C Observation of crystals

Vin liquoreux du Gers Bourgogne Aligoté

CONCLUSION

+++

Bourgogne blanc

+++

Bordeaux Sauvignon 2

Other trials carried out on white wines confirm the effectiveness of Cristab GC. The results below (Table 2) were obtained using a simple method based on the observation of crystal formation in wines after spending 10 days in a freezer at a temperature of -4°C. For each mode, the stability of the control wine was compared with that of the same wine to which 10 g/hl of Cristab GC was added. As Table 2 shows, all the wines were stabilised by the addition of Cristab GC.

Control + 10 g/hl of Cristab GC

Bordeaux Sauvignon 1

Alsace Riesling

Graph 1: Measurement of turbidity in several rosé wines treated with Cristab GC after 15 days of storage at two different temperatures.

Control

(-) absence of crystals. (+) slight deposit (++) average deposit. (+++) significant deposit

Contrary to expectations, the European Union has authorised its use not only on white wines but also on red and rosé wines. Although there is no doubt as to its effectiveness on white wines, it should not be systematically used on red and rosé wines without prior trials, in order to prevent the risk of a possible reaction with colouring matter. Grapeworks is the Australian distributor for Cristab GC. For more information contact: P: (03) 9555 5500 E: info@grapeworks.com.au

The various results obtained in these trials confirm the effectiveness of Cristab GC in preventing the risk of potassium tartrate precipitation in the bottle.

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winemaking

European trends in the use of mannoproteins In this article Greg Howell, from Vintessential Laboratories, explores the latest from Europe when it comes to advantages of co-inoculation for alcoholic and malolactic fermentation.

possible product formulations is possible. to this practice, including lower energy Ma nnoproteins a re derived costs, less waste of wine and in some commercially from specific strains cases, reduced need How for investment in to make your sparkling wines perfect of Saccharomyces cerev isiae capital equipment. This application of ® pop uniqueand mannoproteinso when used in wine no mannoproteins is nowFinal well touch accepted andis a yeast based solution, specially formulated to improve extraneous synthetic material is added. widely used. In this context a recent the quality of sparkling wines. Final touch pop Mannoproteins are of course found review article explained in great detail noticeably enhances the organoleptic qualities naturallyfreshness in wine as an in situ by-product how the inhibition of tartrate crystal and preserves the elegance, and of storage on yeast lees. Therefore, this growth was achieved by materials balance of the wine over time. has enabled the commercial extracts to such as mannoproteins, and gave some The immediate and lasting effects found on be widely accepted and legislated as interesting insights into the mechanisms sparkling wines are: a suitable additive for wine, and one involved. n Softness with very good colloidal properties. This Mannoproteins noccur naturally Best expression and aromatic persistence regulatory acceptance of these during fermentation and aging on lees. n greater freshness, elegance and organoleptic Forproducts Making Perfec is a fairly recent and welcome change The structure of mannoproteins balance includes and gives a relatively new set of additives a peptide backbone and branched chains n Better effervescence. that can be used by winemakers in their of mannose that are linked to the peptide RECAP ON PROPERTIES OF Moreover, the use of Final touch pop can extend never-ending quest to produce even by glycosidic bonds. the Mannose itself is MANNOPROTEINS potential commercial shelf life. The positive better a sugar and is in fact anofepimer (a pop As I discussed in an article here in effects Final touch are wines. visible at a dose stereo isomer) of glucose the Grapegrower & Winemaker a few rate –ofmeaning between it 10is to 40 ml/hl, with its addition only very slightly different in structure years ago, the first main commercial EXPERIENCE IN EUROPE after the second fermentation: immediately ® Final touch pop is a unique mannoproteinbottling method), or to European the to glucose. There is before a wide range (Charmat of use of mannoprotein products was in During a recent Conference, I based solution, specially formulated to improve dosage of liqueur disgorging possible configurations of these very added the application of potassium hydrogen visitedafter the site of a major yeast production the quality of sparkling wines. Final touch pop (Traditional method). large molecules and so a wide variety of tartrate stability. There are many benefits facility in Denmark to observe the THERE HAS BEEN a lot of research done recently on the use of mannoproteins in winemaking which has led to the release of several new products into the marketplace. These new products are making quite an impact on the sensory 3:41 27/08/2015 pm 3:41 pm properties of sparkling, white and rosé wines. Mannoprotein products are being used in large quantities in some overseas countries, particularly Italy and France, as I discovered on a recent trip to Europe. This article looks at how these products are produced, the use of the mannoproteins and finally, the impact they can have on wine quality.

How to make your sparkling wines perfect

noticeably enhances the organoleptic qualities and preserves the elegance, freshness and balance of the wine over time.

The immediate and lasting effects found on sparkling wines are: n Softness n Best expression and aromatic persistence n greater freshness, elegance and organoleptic balance n Better effervescence.

For Making Perfect Sparkling Wines

Moreover, the use of Final touch pop can extend the potential commercial shelf life. The positive effects of Final touch pop are visible at a dose rate of between 10 to 40 ml/hl, with its addition after the second fermentation: immediately before bottling (Charmat method), or to the dosage of liqueur added after disgorging (Traditional method).

make to make the perfect the perfect sparkling sparkling wine. wine. How to make the perfect sparkling wine.

Figure 1. Quantitative sensory profiles of Müller-thurgau sparkling wines (6 bars pressure - 12 g/l residual sugars) after 6 months respectively without and with Final touch pop at 30 ml/hl.

Final touch POP is a unique solution based on naturally

olution a unique based solution on naturally based onoccurring naturally mannoproteins occurring mannoproteins that can improve that can theimprove quality of your quality sparkling of your occurring mannoproteins that can improve thethe quality of sparkling nblyit noticeably enhance the enhance mouthfeel the and mouthfeel tartaricand stability, tartaricbutstability, it also preserves but it alsotheir preserves elegance, their freshness elegance,and freshness and OENOBRANDS_oenobook_2016_EN_G_09_full.indd your your wines. Ask us forby atheorfree trial packyou now! egardless nvenient: regardless of whether ofsparkling whether sparkling yourwine sparkling is made wine byisthe made Charmat Charmat traditional or method, traditional method, simplyyou simply tely P immediately before bottling. before bottling.

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vintessential.com.au Email: info@vintessential.com.au vintessential.com.au Email: info@vintessential.com.au T E S S E Phone: 1300 30 2242 or +61 3 5987 2242. Phone: 1300(Australia-wide) 30 2242 (Australia-wide) or +61 3 5987 2242.

Quantitative sensory profiles of Moscato sparkling wines (2,5 bars pressure - 150 g/l residual sugars) after 9 months respectively without and with Final touch POP at 20 ml/hl.

IN G T I M ES

Figure 2. Quantitative sensory wines (2,5 bars pressure - 150 months respectively without a Figure 20 2. ml/hl.

UTE O L R S OF L

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Figure 1. Quantitative sensory profiles of Müller-thurgau sparkling wines (6 bars pressure - 12 g/l residual sugars) after 6 months respectively without and with Final touch POP at 30 ml/hl.

Figure 1. Quantitative sensory profiles of Müller-thurgau Figure 2. Quantitative sensory profiles of Moscato sparkling (6 bars pressure - 12 g/l residual sugars) wines (2,5 bars pressure - 150 g/l residual sugars) after 9 www.winetitles.com.au September 2016 – Issue 632 after 6 months respectively without and with Final touch months respectively without and with Final touch pop at pop at 30 ml/hl. 20 ml/hl.

sparkling wines 62 Grapegrower & Winemaker

production of these new mannoprotein products. From discussion with delegates from many wine producing countries around the world, it was obvious that these mannoprotein products are now widely used as additives for enhancing the mouthfeel and freshness of wines. Tastings of some of these wines at the conference showed marked improvements in the wines that had used mannoprotein products when compared to the control wine.

SPARKLING WINES Recent work on specific fractions of mannoproteins has shown that when the correct fraction is extracted and used in sparkling wines, the freshness, effervescence and mouthfeel can be greatly improved. At the European conference, the differences were quite remarkable between the same wine dosed with the correct level of mannoprotein compared to that without. It is no great surprise that these properties would be affected - methode champagnoise sparkling wines are kept on yeast lees for varying times - the longer the time, the greater the impact of lees, and therefore the effect of the mannoproteins. When using mannoproteins with sparkling wines, the product is added with the dosage liqueur after disgorging, with the traditional (Champagne) method. If the wine is being produced by the Charmat method, the product is added after the secondary fermentation and just before bottling. The impact is apparent in the resulting wines whichever of the two methods are used. I recently attended a tasting of mannoprotein trials with a major Charmat wine producer in Australia, a sparkling wine was tasted that had been in bottle for over 6 months. The wine from the control bottle had no bubbling after approximately an hour of sitting in a glass on the tasting bench; the glass with the same wine treated with the mannoprotein was still bubbling after this time. Although this is only one observation, it is an indication of how impressive the change in properties can be, with the use of these products.

One point that was of great interest was the apparent long lasting freshness exhibited by some white and rosé wines that had been in bottle for over a year. This could be a great advantage for some varietals and wine styles, by providing an extension to the shelf-life of the wine. This property is certainly being taken advantage of by many French rosé producers.

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APPLICATION The mannoprotein products I observed are in a stable, liquid and soluble form and are added to the wine after all other finings and stabilisations are completed, just prior to bottling. There is no colour change in the wine and no particulate matter is formed. A final filtration at bottling is all that is needed to finish the wine. Upon addition, the mannoprotein acts immediately and has long-lasting effects. The typical addition rates are from 10 to 50 millilitres per 100 litres of wine. The dosage required is decided by bench trials and tasting. The impacts to be observed from the treatment of wine with mannoprotein include enhanced freshness, improved mouthfeel and in the case of sparkling wines, increased effervescence.

CONCLUSION Mannoprotein products are now used in winemaking to not only provide potassium hydrogen tartrate stability but also to enhance certain properties such as freshness and mouthfeel in white, rosé and sparkling wines. Sparkling wines also experience an increased effervescence. These products are now widely used in Europe, particularly in Italy and France. The dosage rate is determined by doing bench trials and tastings. Winemakers now have another set of tools to use in their never-ending quest to produce perfect wines.

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References

“Mannoproteins – how are they used in winemaking?”, Howell G; Australian and New Zealand Grapegrower and Winemaker, Issue 587, 2012, 74

red wine, sparkling wine, rice wine and fermenting musts.

“Potassium bitartrate crystallisation in wine and its inhibition”, A.D. Coulter et al; Australian J. Grape and Wine Research, Issue 21s1, 2015, 627

WHITE AND ROSÉ WINES Other specific mannoprotein fractions have been extracted for use in white and rosé wines. The use of these fractions has been shown to increase the freshness of wines and also to improve the organoleptic qualities. At the tastings I attended in Europe, this difference was quite noticeable. September 2016 – Issue 632

Greg Howell is the founder and Managing Director of Vintessential Laboratories. For more articles on related topics, visit the Vintessential website: www. vintessential.com.au/resources/articles/ Or, for more information contact Greg via email: greg@vintessential.com.au www.winetitles.com.au

MEP Instruments Pty Ltd Australia Tel 1300 720 485 New Zealand Tel 09 477 0620 www.mep.net.au/winelab/

Grapegrower & Winemaker

winemaking

Shiraz, the King In his latest market report, Peter McAtamney, from Wine Business Solutions, tackles the big one... Shiraz.

IT’S HARD TO IMAGINE now, but the great success of Australian wine as an exported product was not founded upon Shiraz. It started with Brian Croser and others convincing Australian wine producers that, as an industry, we needed ‘vanilla’ and ‘chocolate’ meaning Chardonnay and Cabernet. By then selling everyone the same yeast and having ‘flying winemakers’ sanitise cellars, Australia thereby standardised, sterilised and commoditised wine. A grocery category was created that Europe, with all of its variability (in quality as well as vintages), had no answer for. Absolute genius. This led to the greatest disruption the wine trade has ever seen – the ‘New World wine boom’. It was arguably the biggest agribusiness success story globally of the late 20th century. No, Shiraz came later. Originally, both producers and consumers struggled with it. Grown and made in the same way as Cabernet was at the time with 13.5% alcohol or so, you could end up with wines that were even harder and needing of more time. By letting Australia’s hottest climates do their worst, allowing the alcohol to creep up to 15% or more, working the wine for ever more extraction, adding both acid and tannin and by using American Oak injudiciously, something totally different was created. Something monstrous. Something Robert Parker inexplicably liked. A lot. When you look at Australia’s position in the US today, it’s still Shiraz or at least the idea of those wines that is dragging the whole category down. In fact, Shiraz as a category is now so small in the US, it is not even in the top dozen that Nielsen measure but amongst the 3% deemed ‘other’. So a massive reset still required there… What about the domestic market then? There has been a huge push to favour cool climate Shiraz within the Eastern States’ show judging system. You can see that with wines like Philip Shaw’s ‘The Idiot’ and Lobethal Shiraz (Adelaide Hills) winning trophies. I sometimes think that if South Australians paid proper attention

64 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Region

2016

2015

Change

Barossa Valley

26.0%

25.0%

McLaren Vale

15.0%

13.7%

Heathcote

7.7%

5.5%

41%

Clare Valley

3.8%

3.9%

-1%

Hunter Valley

3.7%

5.7%

-35%

Margaret River

3.6%

5.9%

-39%

Eden Valley

2.9%

0.5%

453%

Coonawarra

2.8%

1.9%

51% 135%

Yarra Valley

2.8%

1.2%

Adelaide Hills

2.3%

1.9%

24%

Mornington Peninsula

1.9%

0.7%

188%

Great Southern

1.7%

0.8%

108%

Pyrenees

1.3%

0.1%

862%

Canberra Region

1.2%

0.8%

44%

Hawkes Bay

1.0%

0.7%

54%

to the extent to which they are being discriminated against they would fly to the Eastern States, axes and lynching rope in hand. Too busy selling wine to the Chinese, no doubt. How then is Shiraz performing in the Australian on-premise, the real litmus of where the wine style is at today? According to our Wine On-Premise Australia 2016 research, listings of Shiraz are down slightly (-6%) to 18.6% of red wine listings but still ahead of the second-placed Pinot Noir (16.7%) by a good margin. When we dig into regions, three things clearly stand out. Firstly - Australians and Australian restaurants love warm climate Shiraz. The Barossa, McLaren Vale, Clare and Heathcote, being the more fashionable ‘new kid on the block’, are rock solid at the top of the table. These wines have changed massively across the past 10-15 years. They form the bedrock on any Australian red wine list today and rightly so. Secondly - With the huge increase in listings of imported wine and of ‘alternative’ varietals (both imported and local produced) that occurred between 2014 and 2015, Australia’s curiosity was piqued and Shiraz from every location in Australia, outside of the traditional ones, enjoyed the biggest surge in listings ever seen. Finally, you could sell Margaret River Shiraz. During the past year, restaurants have recoiled from that somewhat. As is happening with every category we monitor and in every market, an ever clearer understanding of what grows best where is emerging both at the trade and www.winetitles.com.au

consumer level. This is why it is absolutely critical to know what this is for your region and put yourself at the vanguard of quality where those styles are concerned. Finally, and again we are seeing this across all categories, cool climate is just getting ‘cooler’. As great food becomes more elegant and finessed, so too must wine in order not to overshadow and to complement the chefs craft. It’s not coincidental that the Pyrenees is the fastest growing region and that James Halliday’s ‘wine of the year’ came from the Grampians. If you ask those who are wine mad ‘where will the end point of all wine evolution be?’, you will probably be pointed to somewhere in the Northern Rhone. If you look at those wines and compare them with the best of Central Victoria, you can see the same qualities but with an unmatchable backbone of perfectlyripe fruit. That’s why, in Australia, Shiraz is King. That is a wine style to wow the world with. Indeed, if you look across the wine world, perhaps the biggest single gap in understanding is between what American’s believe about Shiraz and what these wines truly are. That is Australia’s biggest single opportunity going forward. Time for the next disruption. McAtamney is principal of Wine Business Solutions (WBS), an Australian & New Zealand consultant with a focus on providing strategic, advisory, research outcomes and management consultant services to wine business owners. September 2016 – Issue 632

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winemaking

Did the #16AWITC just kill Twitter? Ten years ago the first ever Tweet was sent from @jack, “just setting up my twttr”, and three years later Paul Smart joined with “working twitter out”, and from there began a wonderful love affair with Twitter and social media. But Smart asks whether that's about to come to an end? MY FAVOURITE USE of Twitter is to follow events and news pieces, such as wine show results or #CensusFail comedy. During conferences, it is possible to follow a #hashtag to share and communicate ideas with other colleagues that just would not happen pre-Web2.0. This came to the fore during the 15th AWITC in Sydney. It seemed everyone was on Twitter, everyone using and engaging. And it was fun. I thought the same would happen with the 16th AWITC in Adelaide. Tweet, rinse, repeat. How wrong I was. It just felt flat. So flat that on one particular day I consciously decided not to Tweet, much. I was pretty disappointed, such a medium I love, and the rumours may be true, Twitter may be dead. I decided to take an analytical approach to it, to determine whether Twitter really was dead, and looked up the stats for the two official conference hashtags #15AWITC and #16AWITC and did a little bit of analysing. Data was analysed from only during the conference, and for the day either side of the conference.

Who are you looking for?

As I suspected the numbers of tweets dropped by 12% and numbers of users dropped by 37% . What I found interesting was that there was more tweeting on average from users, but most of that growth was from above average users. These are users who tweeted more than the average, the “power user”s. There was a fall in the number of users above the average as the data skewed towards these power users. The power users made a significant contribution to the numbers of tweets in the second conference, the red bars. What I also find fascinating is the long tail of one-time users of the #15AWITC hashtag. I was curious to see whether these one-time users returned for the second conference or they lost interest. Of the 100 users of the #16AWITC hashtag, 27 of them had used the #15AWITC. This also meant that there were still new users during the second conference. To reverse that, it also means that 83% of users in 2013 did not use the next conference hashtag. Also, of the users who used both hashtags, 44% were power users and tweeting more than the average. So is Twitter dead, are the stories true? Yes and No. This study is based on one conference hashtag and couldn’t be called conclusive, but it does show that winemakers are using it less, or perhaps in different ways. One thing I did note was the amount of screen use. In the second conference, I thought there was a lot less screen use. A lot fewer laptops, a few more mobile phones but they have been put away most of the time. Has there been a shift away from taking live, digital notes as we know we get a copy of everything later? And as such, less use of live social media? What does this all mean for your business? Well, Twitter has changed in the last few years. It is noisier than ever, there is a fire hose of content that you can never keep up with. You may have a couple more followers than three years ago, but those followers are also following more people and there is now a greater chance your published content will never be seen. This does not make Twitter any less of a communication channel, you can still use it to chat with your fans and potential customers, but you are going to have to work smarter.

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66 Grapegrower & Winemaker

• Turn Twitter into a public facing help desk. Best Buy in the US did this very well (@bestbuysupport), answering customer questions in a public forum where everyone can see how you handle responses. Remember to be responsive (instantly), social (never a slanging match) and positive (thankful that a complaint has been shared with you); • Twitter Search is massively under used and you can use it to search for people who are using your keywords (such as wine, Pinot Noir, Coonawarra, etc). If they are talking about wine, they probably drink it. Using the advanced search feature you can limit your search to

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September 2016 – Issue 632

annoyed, but most people will see it once as Twitter is a fire hose of content. Remember, the ultimate aim is to get people off Social Media and onto your website.

location and target potential fans (or travellers!) who can drive to the cellar door. Engage those Tweeps (Twitter People) in conversation, but don’t sell in the first conversation; and • I still believe that sharing content on Twitter works (still one of the biggest source of traffic for my blog), just less effectively. If you have a blog post and are using a content marketing strategy (and you should be) then share your blog post the day it is posted, and then the next day, a week, a fortnight and a month later (pre-schedule using Buffer or Hootsuite). Yes, some of your fans may see it five times and be a little

After having an analytical look at my own social media strategy and saw less value coming from Twitter I have adjusted to invest more into Snapchat (yes, it is a thing now) and Instagram (beauty still reigns). I have not given up on Twitter completely, I still think it is a valid medium, and it will be better when they introduce an algorithm. My Twitter strategy from here on is to watch it less, but still deliver valuable content. Twitter is dead, long live Twitter… Paul Smart is a consultant viticulturist and social media advisor based in a little place in Tasmania few people have heard of. He’s available for advice on all viticulture and social media topics. Just don’t ask him whether it’s okay to pick his brain over a cup of coffee. Social media: @VineyardPaul Email: vp@vineyardpaul.com.au

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September 2016 – Issue 632

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

ask the Calcium and its unpredictable presence Earlier in the year this column featured KHT deposits and cold stability. This month the focus is shifting to calcium instabilities, another type of deposit seen quite commonly by the AWRI helpdesk. CALCIUM-INDUCED INSTABILITIES continue to be a problem for winemakers. While there are many types of calcium deposits that can arise in wines such as calcium DL-tartrate, calcium oxalate, calcium sulfate and calcium mucate, it is calcium tartrate, or more importantly crystals of calcium L-tartrate, which the AWRI helpdesk sees most often.

Q. HOW CAN I TELL IF MY WINE IS AT RISK OF THROWING A CALCIUM TARTRATE DEPOSIT? Knowing the concentration of calcium in wine will give an understanding of the risk of calcium instability. Calcium deposits are often seen in wines where calcium concentrations exceed 60 mg/L for red wines and 80 mg/L for white wines. If a wine has calcium levels close to or above those levels, then other factors that may increase pH, such as malolactic fermentation and blending, can also increase the likelihood of calcium L-tartrate precipitation.

Q. WHY IS MY WINE HIGH IN CALCIUM? The calcium content in grapes will vary from year to year and from vineyard to vineyard. Soil composition including limestone content, structure and hydraulic properties plays a large part in how much calcium is present, and how this calcium is transported through the vine and into the fruit. Typically, in wetter years there will be more ion movement through the vine, which will see higher levels accumulate in the fruit. Other potential sources of calcium can include use of fertilisers (e.g. calcium nitrate) during the growing season and use of calcium-based sunscreens; however calcium can also be picked up at varying levels during the winemaking process. Winemaking sources of excess calcium include the use of calcium carbonate rather than potassium bicarbonate in deacidification, the use of casein or other milk products for fining (avoid using calcium-enriched products) and the use of some calcium-based bentonites. Fermentation and wine storage in unlined or inadequately coated concrete tanks has also been a cause of calcium instability in the past; however, this is now uncommon because of the decreasing use of concrete vessels in contemporary winemaking and better concrete lining. It is generally the AWRIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s experience that few winemakers analyse for calcium content in juice and wine.

Calcium L-tartrate deposits can be a frustrating problem for winemakers because the crystals are slow to form and usually do not come out of solution for some time, often months, after bottling. Q. WHAT HAPPENS TO CALCIUM TARTRATE DURING COLD STABILISATION? Unlike for potassium bitartrate, temperature has little effect on the rate of calcium L-tartrate precipitation and therefore there is no predictive test for calcium L tartrate instability. This fact means that simple cold tests are ineffective indicators of calcium L-tartrate instability and cold stabilisation cannot be employed as a reliable method of precipitation to remove the threat of instability. Wines that are potentially subject to calcium L-tartrate precipitation may prove to be impossible to stabilise even if kept at low temperature for long periods.

Q. DOES CMC PREVENT CALCIUM TARTRATE PRECIPITATION? Trials to date suggest that CMC does not inhibit calcium tartrate formation.

Q. HOW CAN I LOWER THE CALCIUM LEVEL IN WINE? There are essentially three ways to remove calcium from wine. The first and most effective way is to remove the calcium ions, which can be done via ion exchange; however this requires access to ion exchange equipment, and may have a sensory impact. The second is to blend the concentration down using a wine containing lower levels of calcium. The third and least predictable way is to chill the wine and seed it with pure calcium L-tartrate crystals. Seeding relies on the availability

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September 2016 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Issue 632

Tanks & Wine Storage

Calcium tartrate crystals isolated from a white wine.

of calcium L-tartrate crystals of high quality and in a finely ground state. This technique is somewhat unpredictable in terms of how much calcium will drop out. L-tartaric acid, D-tartaric acid and DL-tartaric acid are all permitted winemaking additives in Australia. Using D- or DL-tartaric acid will see calcium DL-tartrate precipitate out, which in turn could be another way of reducing the level of calcium. This technique for calcium reduction is considered high risk and not recommended, as precipitation could continue to occur post-bottling. The AWRI advises winemakers to continue to use L tartaric acid for acid adjustments in winemaking in order to avoid the formation of the unpredictable calcium DL-tartrate deposits.

for calcium (maximum permitted concentration of calcium expressed as calcium oxide is 0.25 g/L).

Q. IS THERE A REGULATORY LIMIT FOR CALCIUM IN WINE?

For more information on calcium instabilities, contact the AWRI helpdesk: E: helpdesk@awri.com.au P: (08) 8313 6600

There is no Australian MRL for calcium in wine and Argentina is the only current export destination with an MRL

FINAL COMMENTS Calcium L-tartrate deposits can be a frustrating problem for winemakers because the crystals are slow to form and usually do not come out of solution for some time, often months, after bottling. Measuring the level of calcium in juices or wines and adjusting winemaking procedures when required appears to be the most practical method of avoiding calcium instability problems.

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winemaking Product Update

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THE KEY FEATURES The intensive colour and polyphenol extraction potential of this new enzyme is due to its high overall action on pectin and secondarily on hemicellulose and cellulose. The unique formulation of Rapidase® Fast Colour ensures complete maceration in just a few days, enabling wines to advance more effortlessly through the subsequent stages of drawing off the free-run juice, pressing and clarification. Rapidase® Fast Colour is a liquid enzyme produced by the leading enzyme manufacturer DSM Food Specialties in its Seclin facility in France.

It was meticulously tested during preliminary tests conducted by research institutes and later validated through intensive winery trials on significant volumes of crushed grapes. In all trials, compared to a control batch that was not treated with Rapidase® Fast Colour, the time to first racking was decreased by 1–3 days, depending on the grape variety and the type of maceration. On average, maceration time was reduced from 8 to 6 days, while retaining the same levels of anthocyanins and polyphenols that contribute to wine quality. By the second day of maceration, colour extraction was double that of the control batch.

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Anthocyanin pigment values after the first day of maceration of Barbera grapes, northern Italy. Dose of Rapidase Fast Color 2 g/hl.

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September 2016 – Issue 632

Product Update

Rapid, on-site detection of wine spoilage INVISIBLE SENTINEL Inc. has announced the introduction of vinoPAL – a new product for preserving wine quality. Built on the company’s signature Verif low® platfor m, vinoPAL rapidly identifies the presence of spoilage organisms Pediococcus and Lactobacillus. The arrival of vinoPAL is a response to winemakers’ request for a rapid, on-site detection tool for these spoilage organisms that can contribute to sluggish fermentations. Utilising the same equipment and workflow as the flagship vinoBRETT test for Brettanomyces, this new assay expands winemakers’ ability to respond to issues and manage quality proactively at the winery. “This year has been about expanding our product portfolio to directly meet the needs of our established client partners,” said Nicholas A Siciliano, Invisible

Sentinel CEO. “We’re hearing their concerns and addressing them head-on, with the entire industry in mind.” As harvest season approaches, winemakers have a heightened awareness of the potential for undesirable bacteria to enter the winery undetected. vinoPAL is a proactive measure for anticipating the financial impact of Pediococcus and Lactobacillus, and is sensitive even at low thresholds in juice and young wines. Proactive management of spoilage organisms saves time and money, and most importantly - preserves the value of wine. “Identifying the presence of Lactobacillus as soon as possible is a critical concern for me,” said Eric Baugher, vice president of winemaking at Ridge Vineyards in Cupertino, CA. “This organism can multiply rapidly, and before you know it the fermentation can become sluggish, with possibility of

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This organism can multiply rapidly, and before you know it the fermentation can become sluggish, with possibility of high volatile acidity being formed high volatile acidity being formed. Early detection with vinoPAL will allow us to intervene quickly and prevent the loss of wine quality.” vinoPAL is available in Australia from AMSL Scientific, for more information visit www.amsl.com.au

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September 2016 – Issue 632

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winemaking

Crushing & Pressing

Derwent Estate impresses with Bucher Vaslin TASMANIAN WINERY Derwent Estate has had an extremely successful start to 2016. The family owned and operated wine business located on the historic Mt Nassau property was one of the stars of the Tasmanian Wine Show. In what renowned wine writer Huon Hooke described as a “David and Goliath story”, Derwent Estate tied with Brown Brothers to win the most successful exhibitor award. The winery also took out the best white wine and best Chardonnay awards. Although Derwent Estate has been making wine since 1993, the decision to build an on-site winery in 2013 saw winemaker John Schuts join the team full-time. Together with Schuts’ vision, Derwent Estate designed a 150-tonne capacity straw bale winery just in time for the 2014 vintage. Since constructing the new winery, Derwent Estate have been using a Bucher Vaslin Xplus40 Inertys press for the past two vintages for both red and white varieties. The Bucher Vaslin process of pressing under controlled atmosphere guarantees 100 per cent of the pressed juices are extracted without oxidation. This is due to a permanent operation in closed loop. The gas used is recycled by means of a

72 Grapegrower & Winemaker

flexible reserve, and can therefore serve several times. Schuts said the Inertys press appealed to him because it lowered the use of sulphur and controlled the uptake of oxygen in the winemaking process. “In the pressing of white juices in an inert environment there is a definite relationship between phenolic extraction and the presence of reduced sulphur and oxygen levels. Not only in the structure of the phenolics extracted but also in how they integrate in the finished wines.” “When pressing fermented reds, I use the inert gas environment to minimise oxygen uptake during pressing and then implement Micro-oxygenation once in tank, allowing a very controlled oxygen addition to each individual batch.” Schuts said the Inertys gas press gave him maximum control over oxygen uptake. While most pressing phases generate a massive supply of oxygen which concentrates in the last pressed juices, the Inertys gas press was found to substantially reduce the oxygen dissolved in the wines and modified their organoleptic character, according to a recent survey with the ISVV of Bordeaux. Philippe Darriet, Manager of the Oenology Research Unity at the ISVV www.winetitles.com.au

After I press reds through the gas press, I can then add oxygen at a controlled and metred rate. With a traditional press you’ve got no control over oxygen uptake. It creates a completely sealed environment, increases my control and opens up different options for oxygen contact.

September 2016 – Issue 632

winemaking

Bucher Vaslin Xplus40 Inertys press has been proven to save aromatics from being lost through oxidisation.

Bordeaux, said red press juices made in 2014 and 2013 by pressing under neutral gas express finer aromas, slightly marked by pomace vegetal aromatic nuances usually associated with press juices. “Tannins present in the last pressed juices also seem less rustic,” Darriet said. “Concerning their chemical composition, the juices contain lower MND contents: 3-methyl-2,4-nonadione, very odorous compound associated with oxidative evolution of the wines.” Schuts said controlling oxygen was key for his winemaking. “I can reduce everything down and then control oxygen uptake using micro oxidisation,” he said. “After I press reds through the gas press, I can then add oxygen at a controlled and metred rate. With a traditional press you’ve got no control over oxygen uptake. It creates a completely sealed environment, increases my control and opens up different options for oxygen contact.” Schuts said he also had a couple of Chardonnay’s going to barrel for the year. “They were pressed within the gas press getting pristine juice, then I slowly allowed oxygen to happen in a controlled environment.” Samuel Plumejeau, Bucher Vaslin

74 Grapegrower & Winemaker

regional manager, said the ‘inert’ process saves the aromatics from being lost through oxidisation. “Instead of sucking air in from outside the press tank, as the membrane retracts, the oxidisation is prevented by drawing in nitrogen or carbon dioxide,” Plumejeau said. The greater the wine’s aromatic intensity, the greater the consumer’s appreciation. For white and rosé wines, quality depends on the winemaking process during which the pressing operation is determined. This critical phase corresponds to the extraction of grape juices when oxidation processes are most likely to occur. In order to produce qualitative wines with better aroma stability and meet the consumers’ tasting expectations, Plumejeau said it was essential to control the pressing, one key phase in winemaking. While this press is a new option for the Australian and New Zealand market, it is already available in sizes to suit most wineries – ranging from two-tonne to 45-tonne models. “In Australia there would already be seven Inertys presses and Spy Valley in New Zealand are just converting to this press as well.”

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Plumejeau said this style of press has already been widely accepted in Europe. “In Italy and Southern France, these presses represent a third of all our sales,” he said. “They are very easy to use and as this is the third version to utilise this technology, everything is very well integrated. Plumejeau said the entirely automated process ensured ongoing costs remained low. “In most smaller wineries they are using plastic bins to collect the marc and they order legs to raise the press to the right height through us, we custom make these to suit each individual winery.” In Australia, the wineries that have adopted the Inertys press are mostly choosing to use nitrogen gas because it is safer and easier to work with and there are options for the winery to generate its own supply. “The press has been designed to ensure the gas is recycled and maintain a full reserve,” Plumejeau said. “As a result, with one full balloon of nitrogen you can do 10 press cycles. And this means a small winery using one of the smaller press sizes can get through an entire vintage on just two or three bottles of nitrogen.”

September 2016 – Issue 632

Spotlight on

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Destemmers/Crushers There are six models in our MC Series: · MC100 10–15 tonne/hr · MC250 25–30 tonne/hr · MC400 40–50 tonne/hr · MC600 50–60 tonne/hr · MC800 60–80 tonne/hr · MC1000 80–100 tonne/hr Incline Drainers Four models -300, 500, 800, 1000mm

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winemaking

Innovation Challenge winners TWO DIEMME ENOLOGICA PRODUCTS received a special mention when the SIMEI Innovation Challenge results were announced late in 2015. Established by Unione Italiana Vini to offer an official recognition to the innovations presented at SIMEI 2015, the contest announcement was open to all registered exhibitors with a system, machine or product considered to be ‘state-of-the-art’ in its sector. There were two award categories. The ‘technological innovation award’ is for projects based on extensive scientific expertise together with field experience, those with the potential to break old patterns and creating new synergies. The Diemme Enologia SpA – Spin Filters were one of four award-winning projects in this category. The second category, ‘new technology’ recognises projects that find process and product innovation and deliver significant improvements to the winemaking process. In this category, the Diemme Enologia SpA – QC 620 Crushing Line was among 17 award-winning projects.

The Innovation Challenge was established to recognise and reward those companies that support the winemakers and grapegrowers. This innovations were assessed by a committee of 27 authoritative exponents from across the winemaking and grapegrowing world.

TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION Diemme Enologia SpA Spin Filter, dynamic filtration system The filtration of lees sediment of must and wines has always been a difficult testing field for wineries. Rotary vacuum filtration is currently the most common solution. The new Spin Filter technology uses disc-shaped polymeric membranes in PVDF, mounted on stainless supports.

NEW TECHNOLOGY Diemme Enologia SpA Pressing line QC 620 An automatic system for continuous pressing of fermented pomace and similar products. The product reaches a vibrating drainer where the liquids are separated from solids, then fed by a highpressure peristaltic pump inside the cage of the press. In Australia, the Wine Industry Services team is available to assist you with your queries or requests for information about the Diemme Enologia products. Ph: (08) 8251 5055 E: sales@wineindustryservices.com.au

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WINE INDUSTRY SERVICES PTY LTD Sole Authorised Australian Agents for Diemme Enologia Phone 08 8251 5055 sales@wineindustryservices.com.au 5 Edison Drive, Golden Grove SA 5125 www.wineindustryservices.com.au 76 Grapegrower & Winemaker

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September 2016 – Issue 632

Supplier Update

The press – the heart of grape processing THE ACQUISITION OF A WINE PRESS is one of the most important decisions you will make for your business – after all, you will be working with this machine for decades. The press lies at the very heart of grape processing. Which is why, when choosing your press, you should settle for nothing but the best. Willmes produces two model ranges: the MERLIN and the SIGMA

THE MERLIN A robust, reliable universal press for the ambitious wine estate. It is built with its key components open and uncovered and has a capacity ranging from 1200 to more than 5000 litres, depending on the respective model. Its upright juice channels are made of sturdy stainless steel – indeed, the entire press is made of stainless steel. These upright juice channels make it superior to comparable presses in its capabilities. The large aperture at the top is closed using removable covers. WILLMES has been producing this machine for almost 20 years, constantly refining and enhancing it all the while in consultation with experienced winegrowers.

sophisticated fabric, give it pressing capabilities no other grape press can match. Our FLEXIDRAIN® technology has tremendous advantages over rigid juice channels at the base of the press. With the SIGMA by WILLMES, you are investing in outstanding juice quality. In developing this pressing system, WILLMES have drawn on a full 60 years’ worth of experience in the production and development of grape presses. Thanks to the latest oenological discoveries, it is now possible to produce superb wines in a consistently high quality.

THE SIGMA

For more information about Willmes presses, including technical support and spare parts, contact Matthew Ross at tekmate: Ph: 0439 810 644 E: matthew@tekmate.com.au

The pneumatic SIGMA press is the flagship model of the WILLMES brand – and quite possibly the finest press in the world. Its patented flexible juice channels, made of a highly

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CONTACT › September 2016 – Issue 632

MATTHEW ROSS

DALE SINGER

matthew@tekmate.com.au

dale@tekmate.com.au

0439 810 644

0448 805 495

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

More than journals As publisher of Australia’s leading industry journals, it would be easy to think we are only ink on paper. But these are more than journals. They are brands. Wine industry brands that readers and suppliers trust, quote and repond to. Brands that are growing across all platforms. It’s become a two way relationship online industry offerings, including search, news, blogs, weather, published articles and Directory Buyers’ Guide. And we are adding so much more in Wine Shows, Events, Classifieds, including Jobs, Real Estate, Sales of Grapes and Wine, Used Barrels and Equipment, Services and Suppliers.

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Take a new look at Winetitles Media’s services today and ask about our FREE Classifieds offer. For business solutions across all platforms, call + 61 8 8369 9500 or visit www.winetitles.com.au

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Supplier Update

Don’t risk your vintage: Only a Bartlett wine press membrane will do BA RTL ETT WINE PR ESS MEMBRANES are acknowledged as the best by customers across Australia. The membranes are standard equipment for many Australian made presses and replacement equipment for European presses where they meet, and in most cases exceed, the original manufacturer specifications. Established in 1956, C.E. Bartlett is a family owned and operated Industrial Textile Fabricator specialising in the custom manufacture of a vast range of products. Located in Ballarat Victoria, Bartlett’s team of approximately 100 employees utilise the latest in manufacturing technology and equipment to ensure all products are designed and fabricated to exact specifications in an efficient and quality assured manner. Bartlett membranes are manufactured

September 2016 – Issue 632

using world class fabric capable of tolerating massive amounts of flex, combined with the strongest abrasion properties possible. This is the reason most Australian wineries and an increasing number of US wineries rely on a Bartlett membrane for their presses. Backed by a threeyear warranty, you won’t find a better membrane than a Bartlett membrane. The service commitment to customers is a high priority at Bartlett and the production capacity ensures quick and reliable turnaround. Each quality Bartlett Wine Press Membrane is manufactured using the latest computer cutting and precision welding methods. In most cases Bartlett already has the pattern required for each customer’s membrane – but if they don’t, no worries, they will accurately re-create the pattern

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from the old membrane. Membranes are manufactured to suit the following makes of membrane wine presses: Bucher; DeFranchesci; Della Toffola; Diemme; Enoveneta; Euro; Miller; Pera; Siprem; Sutter; Velo; Vintek; and Willmes. Bartlett has more than 50 years’ experience in fabric conversion by using only the most technically correct manufacturing methods, ensuring that attention to known stress and wear areas is addressed without compromise to the all-important flexibility of the membrane. For more information, C.E.Bartlett Pty Ltd Ph: +61 3 5339 3103 E: wine@bartlett.net.au

contact

Grapegrower & Winemaker

winemaking

Supplier Update

Alcohol reduction using Spinning Cone Column Technology Tim Birks, from Flavourtech Pty Ltd, reports on a process to reduce alcohol in wine that is considered ‘best in class’.

LOWER ALCOHOL WINES and non alcoholic wine products have become increasingly popular in recent times and it appears that they are here to stay. Demand for these products seems mainly driven by consumer’s search for a healthier lifestyle. However, in recent years, governments have made use of incentives (most commonly tax related) and deterrents (such as tougher drink driving laws) in an effort to reduce alcohol consumption. As higher quality non-alcohol wine products become more readily available, new markets for these products are emerging. Religious groups and pregnant women are now able to enjoy a wine derived beverage in the form of a nonalcoholic wine product that can either be less than 0.1%v/v or less than 0.5%v/v alcohol. In Asia, this market is also steadily growing with demand from China accelerating over the last two years. Low and zero alcohol products are being requested from many wine producers due to the intolerance of Chinese for alcohol from a health or allergy perspective.

ALCOHOL REDUCTION IN THE WINE MAKING PROCESS To satisfy these market trends, alcohol reduction is fast becoming an essential part of the wine making process.

80 Grapegrower & Winemaker

It is being used in two main areas: • As a winemaking tool, whereby a wine’s alcohol level is reduced by a small increment to achieve an optimal balance in the final product. This allows the production of wines with alcohol levels in the range of 9-13%v/v alcohol, instead of the sometimes over powering 14-16%v/v range; and • For the production of low alcohol ‘wine products’ where the final alcohol levels are less than the minimum level required for wine. This includes products in the <0.1%v/v, <0.5%v/v and <5.5%v/v alcohol range. There are a number of techniques available for removing alcohol in wine. These techniques include membrane techniques, partial vacuum evaporation, and (vacuum steam) distillation with the latter being widely considered the gentler and more efficient process, especially when the production of lower alcohol ‘wine products’ is the objective. The Flavourtech Spinning Cone Column (SCC), discussed herein, uses vacuum steam distillation at low temperatures and short residence times thus avoiding thermal degradation of the wine’s flavour and colour. www.winetitles.com.au

LEGISLATION Current regulations in Europe allow the SCC to be used as part of the ‘distillation’ technology category and follow regulations set by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV). For the final product to be marketed as a wine the OIV stipulates that: • Alcohol in a wine may be reduced by up to 20% of the total alcohol content, without reducing the final alcohol concentration below the minimum required for the product to qualify as a wine. For Example: • A 15%abv wine can be reduced by a maximum of 3%abv to 12%abv; • A 10%abv wine can be reduced by a maximum of 2%abv to 8%abv*; and • A 9% wine can be reduced by a maximum of 1%abv to 8%abv1*. * Assuming that the legal minimum alcohol concentration for the product to be considered a ‘Wine’ is 8%abv. Where the final product will have an alcohol level below the minimum alcohol concentration for the product to be considered a wine, there are currently two categories: • “Beverage obtained by partial dealcoholisation of wine” for products September 2016 – Issue 632

bulk of the alcohol. Alcohol levels in the wine exiting the SCC will typically be between 0.05 and 2% v/v and can be adjusted depending on requirements. Additionally, the alcohol removed is in the form of a high quality, high strength spirit that can be sold or used in other applications. Step 4: The stripped wine and the aroma are combined and blended back with the remainder of the bulk wine to achieve a wine of the required alcohol content. If the requirement is for a low alcohol ‘wine product’ in the range of 0.05-0.5%v/ v then the entire volume of wine will need to be processed through the SCC.

with an ABV content comprised between the required minimum for wines and 0.5%; and • “Beverage obtained by dealcoholisation of wine” for products with an ABV content below 0.5%.

THE SPINNING CONE COLUMN The SCC was developed and commercialised in the 1980’s by the Australian company Flavourtech. With its unique ability to gently and efficiently recover volatile components from all kinds of slurries, purees, and clear liquids, it was soon identified as an ideal method for reducing alcohol in wine. The key attribute of the SCC is its ability to maintain the wine’s quality, and with operating temperatures of between 25-40oC, residence times of less than 30seconds, and the ability to preserve a wine’s delicate aromas, the SCC is considered the best in class. Alcohol reduction with SCC is typically broken down into the following steps: Step 1: Based on the target alcohol level required in the finished product, the winemaker determines the volume of full strength wine to be processed. Step 2: The wine aroma (approximately 1% of the initial wine volume) is stripped from the wine at around 25-30oC (in only 30seconds), condensed as a clear liquid, and stored for re-addition at a later stage. Step 3: The aroma-stripped wine is then re-processed at around 35-40C (again in less than 30 seconds) to remove the

Maschinenbau

Many products in this category are now manufactured using the SCC and are experiencing critic’s acclaim and increased market share. One example is Miguel Torres ‘Natureo’ at 0.5%v/v alcohol. Natureo is available in a white muscat, rose, and red. Other producers of note include Gruppo Matarromera in Spain and Vinselekt Michlovsky who is paving the way for high quality low alcohol wine products in Eastern Europe. Toll Processors in Australia and the US have also established successful businesses through the implementation of the SCC for the dealcoholisation of wine for smaller growers and wineries. For more information on the SCC and other wine applications, such as grape juice desulphiting, aroma management and grape juice concentration, please visit www.flavourtech.com.

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Scharfenberger

References

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Grapegrower & Winemaker

winemaking

Oak

Supplier Update

Tailored winemaking solutions How many decisions does a winemaker make during the production of a single wine? Graeme Little from Seguin Moreau Australasia reports. THERE ARE A MULTITUDE of decisions that need to be made before, during and post vintage in the production of a wine. The decision that needs to be made are typically governed by the wine sales market, based on quality, quantity and price levels that are required to meet the market where the wine is intended to be sold. In the production of these wines, approximately 50% will require some form of oak treatment to help: • Stabilise colour; • Enhance aromas; • Build structure and enrich flavours; • Mature the wine through the microoxygenation qualities from the oak used; and • Lift the sensorial qualities of the regional and varietal characters of the wine. The decision on which oak type to use then opens a Pandora’s box of options. At Seguin Moreau we have thousands of options in oak barrels, oak vats and oak alternatives. As a winemaker in a previous role before joining Seguin Moreau, nine years ago, I had very little knowledge on which oak to use, how to get the best results out of the oak I was purchasing and what options where available in the market place. I was totally reliant on which cooperage visited my work place, and trusting the sales person. I still believe this is the case at most wineries.

82 Grapegrower & Winemaker

I now understand that oak is not just oak, and that a particular oak barrel or stave may work well with Shiraz in the Barossa Valley, but the same oak option will not produce the same result in McLaren Vale or the Hunter Valley. There are just too many variations within even a wine region that require a different oak option to be used. The variations within regions include soil, aspect, viticultural practices and climate variations where the fruit is grown, and these all result in a need for a different oak regime. The variation is even greater when we look between regions and again this shows a requirement for a different oak regime. When we offer advice to winemakers, we need to know more about the wine to enable us to offer the best options. Some factors that need to be answered, include: • Ripeness levels – baume/alcohol and fruit intensity; • Acidity levels – ph and TA levels; • Natural tannin structure; • Maturation requirements; • Budget requirements; and • End winemaking objectives. Our sales team can then help winemakers with their choices, ensuring that the barrels and oak options chosen, are a perfect match for the specified enological objective. The objective is to tailor an oak solution that meets the winemaking requirements in both quality and price. As with barrels, the use of staves in www.winetitles.com.au

tanks needs to be tailored to suit the end objective. We now a have a base range of recipes to suit each winemaking region in Australia and New Zealand, using oak staves of various thicknesses, origins, and toast levels, with altered dose rates to match the winemaking styles and regional nuances. We then work with the winemakers to tweak each recipe to individualise the oak regime specific to the winemaker’s requirements. The answer relies on having the ability to offer a large range of oak origins and toast levels across both barrels and oak alternatives and to match these to the winemaking goals. At our new warehouse, based in Adelaide, we can pack individual fan pack recipes specific to each winemaker to suit their individual winemaking requirements. This enables ‘The Oak Cru®’ (the sales team at Seguin Moreau), the capacity to deliver the winemaking outcomes that are required by each winemaker throughout each region in Australia and New Zealand. For more information about a tailored winemaking solution specific to your winemaking objectives, please contact ‘The Oak Cru®’ at Seguin Moreau. Graeme Little General Manager – Sales and Marketing Seguin Moreau Australasia E: glittle@sguinmoreau.com.au P: 0437 060 943 September 2016 – Issue 632

winemaking

The state of the barrel market Summary from the Wines & Vines Oak Conference 2016 Eric Stern reports on the second annual Wines & Vines Oak Conference, held in April 27 in St Helena. Stern was a winemaker at Landmark Vineyards (Kenwood, California) for 22 vintages prior to his retirement in 2010. This article was first published in the US by Wine Business Monthly and is used here with permission. WHEN IT COMES TO barrels, there is a great deal a winemaker has to think about before making a purchase. He or she has to think about prices, exchange rates, the latest innovations in coopering, toast levels and more, and each has his or her own widely varied opinions. At the second annual Wines & Vines Oak Conference, held April 27 at the Culinary Institute of America-Greystone facility in St Helena, barrels were the focus of the day. The one-day conference offered attendees a mix of presentations, along with tastings and exhibitors’ displays of barrels, racks, barrel cleaning equipment and oak alternatives. A panel of coopers, moderated by winemaker Jeff Cohn of Jeff Cohn Cellars, however, was the focus of my day. The panel included Vincent Bouchard of Bouchard Cooperages, Phil Burton of Barrel Builders and Guillaume Maugeais of Radoux USA. Cohn asked a series of thoughtful questions, which brought out the vast knowledge of the panellists.

BARRELS: SUPPLY AND DEMAND Since the cost of barrels is, after grapes, the single most expensive line item for many wineries, the question of barrel prices and foreign exchange rates started the conversation. All agreed that barrel prices are rising. There is a growing demand for mature trees suitable for coopering and a limited supply of these trees in the world. France boasts the second largest reserves of oak forests in the world after North America. The forests of France are being managed by the government, which owns and controls about 30% of these forests; the other 70% is in private hands. Due to the increasing demand for good wood, as well as tax incentives for these private owners, who have recently formed commercial groups to better manage this valuable resource, additional sources of mature trees are becoming available. Bouchard characterized these owners as having been ‘asleep’ before but now awake to the ‘gold’ they possess in these forest parcels that contain mature oak trees suitable for coopering. However, despite this hopeful sign, it remains

84 Grapegrower & Winemaker

to be seen how these private owners will manage their resources. The French government has been managing its stateowned 30 per cent since 1795. These newer commercial groups have a lot to learn, according to Bouchard. One thing a buyer of French or Eastern European oak barrels might do to mitigate against this inevitable increase in price is to stay abreast of the foreign exchange market through XE.com. According to Burton, staying current with these fluctuations can help one understand the market and better time the payment to the cooper, who is (hopefully) willing to take payment at whatever date you decide to transact. Taking advantage of events that impact on exchange rates (such as the Brexit) can be advantageous to the astute follower of this market. Of course, the reverse can also occur, paying a higher amount come the date of settlement.

INNOVATIONS The question of computer technology in the traditional craft of coopering produced divergent opinions. Bouchard felt that it was not that relevant. You cannot substitute technology for the expertise of a master cooper, he said. It is “very interesting,” he said, to employ such technology, but it is, in the final analysis, “the experience of the cooper and the nose and palate of the winemaker” that judge what is good and what is not. Maugeais handled the question of computer technology a bit differently, saying that while useful, the goal of consistency is what drives coopers to rely on their experience, along with wood selection from specific forests and equally, the classification of stave wood based on grain size. But even with geographical selection from delimited forests, the variation within a given forest parcel makes the precise tannin content of a given tree hard to assess. The morning side of a tree can be different than the shaded or afternoon side. Technology can assist the cooper in predicting the amount of tannin in stave wood, averred Maugeais. Radoux utilises www.winetitles.com.au

a high-tech scanning process to quantify oak tannins, but this needs to be aligned with the experience of the cooper. The tannins of a barrel are also the product of the wood’s aging and toasting regimes. For instance, when the barrels are being toasted over the fire, the experienced cooper knows more time and heat are needed to achieve a proper level of toasting on a cool, foggy day than the same barrel might require on a warm and sunny day. So experience should ultimately guide all operations in the cooperage, he said. Burton acknowledged that the coopers used thermometers or pyrometers in the toasting process only when observed by management. When the managers left, “they went right back to doing what they were doing before; they’ve been doing it for years and know just what they’re doing,” he said.

AIR-DRYING & GLOBAL WARMING Cohn asked about stave wood stacking procedures and whether the methodology and region where the wood is being airdried affect the overall quality of the barrels. Burton offered that it was a significant factor, citing a study made on American oak staves aged in the American mid-west and Australia. The two lots, when coopered into barrels, showed dramatically different flavours when evaluated. Another example he cited was of Eastern European oak aged in a facility downwind of Budapest where coal was being burned extensively for heating purposes in the winter months. Did it make a difference in the wood? “Well, probably,” he suggested. Subsequently, the aging facility was relocated outside the city where airborne coal particles were not a factor. Global warming was another question that the coopers addressed. It is a significant factor in all regions of the world but particularly where drought conditions have affected the growth of oak trees. Bouchard mentioned that a growing oak tree requires about 230 litres of water per day to produce one kilogram of wood, which is 90 percent September 2016 – Issue 632

HE’S A RE AL WINE M AK E R S O WE C AN’ T SHOW YOU HI S FAC E … B U T W E C A N S H O W YO U H I S S E C R E T. A P J O H N F E R M E N TAT I O N OA K A N D F I N I S H I N G C H I P S .

STANDING THE TE ST OF TIME F OR MORE TH AN 125 YE AR S . C ALL 08 8563 2178 OR VI SIT APJOHN.COM.AU

winemaking water and only 10 percent plant material. Oaks that inhabit droughty regions will undoubtedly show decreased production due to this factor. Regions where rainfall is still plentiful will not be adversely affected. Maugeais mentioned a French Department of Forestry study where selective harvesting of trees stressed by drought was being carried out. The study looked at leaf canopy. Trees in this maritime region that showed the most stress were harvested. This practice allowed those trees to better adapt to the drought to continue to grow with less competition. Of the two species of oak trees harvested for barrels, the Quercus petraea, or sessile oak, is less susceptible to drought and is generally considered of higher value for tight-grained barrels than Quercus robar or pedunculate oak. However, Maugeais also pointed out that the majority of oak trees are located in the north-central regions of France which are not experiencing drought conditions.

SHIPMENT, PREP AND STORAGE Cohn asked his panellists about control of the barrels once they left the cooperage, and bound for overseas shipment. What can be done to mitigate the risks of temperature and humidity changes and delays due to labour unrest in the ports? No one can predict with certainty the delays due to strikes or other political and societal conditions. The coopers all carry shipping insurance. So, even if their barrels suffer damage or fail to reach the client, the cooperage doesn’t suffer financial loss, and insurance costs are built into the pricing. However, if a winery has storage space and sufficient cashflow, early delivery and early payment can work to mitigate delays and offer a slight hedge against foreign exchange rate fluctuations. Many coopers offer significant discounts for early delivery as well. Some wineries, an enviable few, may even

purchase lots of wood two or three years in advance and thereby guarantee the price of the raw material that constitutes the majority of the cost of new barrels. The preparation of new barrels varies, but most coopers recommend a light rinsing and testing for leaks before filling. This entails spraying a small volume (about four litres) of hot water into the barrel and tightly bunging it with a silicon bung. Allow this water to sit for five to 10 minutes. The barrel, if it is airtight, will have developed a strong vacuum accompanied by a sucking sound as cooler air enters the barrel with the quick removal of the bung. This can be done with the barrels on their cradles. Cohn also asked about his growing preference for larger format barrels – 300 to 600 litre sizes. Not only does he find that they work better with his Rhône varietals, but they seem to last longer – an economic bonus. Are coopers putting aside supplies of larger stave wood to make these sized barrels? Burton responded that of course they are and hoped that the barrel rack suppliers and others in the industry are also making adjustments for this trend. From his perspective at Barrel Builders, which handles a large number of used barrels each year, he hoped that the trend continued. He commented that it was far easier to handle these large format barrels by forklift than to ‘wrestle’ the 228-litre barrels by hand into and out of containers and trucks. A bit of controversy arose over the question of how best to maintain your winery’s barrel inventory when the barrels were empty of wine, both prior to first fill and after seeing wine. The most traditional approach was that of Bouchard who made an analogy between a barrel and a teabag. He felt that you pay so much money for the extractive quality of the barrel that it is money down the drain to use steam and excessive amounts of hot water in rinsing and cleaning your barrels. Use of cold water

and SO2 should suffice he felt. He cited research conducted with professor Vernon Singleton (UC Davis) that showed an hour of steam killed all bacteria. As a cooper, he said that such extreme heat only opens the pores of the wood for such organisms to migrate deeper into the barrel. Burton liked ozone and steam, as did Maugeais. In the end, they said, winemakers need to figure out what works best for their winemaking style and facility capabilities. One large winery, to my knowledge, doesn’t even rinse its barrels of lees each season and stores them in a cool cellar with lots of SO2. The success of this methodology is dependent on keeping the cellar cool and humidity even.

AT THE END OF THE DAY So what are the most important advances that have been made in coopering? All the coopers agreed that quality has risen over the past few decades due to the competition amongst the coopers and the demand from their clients for consistent barrels. “Nobody is making bad barrels today,” Maugeais said. The competition has led to better technical production methods, but he stressed that wood selection is still the key to quality. Burton noted that 30 years ago, a shipping container often had ‘leakers’ or barrels that were just not properly coopered. Today this almost never happens. He also said that shipping containers and the placement of these containers aboard the ships themselves have improved so that seawater infiltration of barrels is no longer a problem. He also observed that toasting levels are more consistent today. In conclusion, Cohn urged the audience to ask questions of their coopers, be open to experiment with their winemaking but, more importantly, continue to learn from the coopers, who are all masters of their craft.

...when ...wh w en tradition wh tra r dition meets ra tts the t highest standard of quality... Family owned and enriched by the history and experience of three generations of coopers Saint Martin is used by the highest quality references overseas and the ﬁnest wines in Australasia.

Jason King Territory Manager E jking@saintmartin.com.au M +61 (0)400 255 788

Garry King Director - Export E gking@saintmartin.com.au M +61 (0)439 766 777 T +61 (0)8 8358 5657 F +61 (0)8 8358 5658

www.tonnelleriesaintmartin.com 86 Grapegrower & Winemaker

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September 2016 – Issue 632

Staves

7 12 18 Staves

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STAVES

Product Update

The pinnacle of oak innovation

STAVES

NEW

- XBASE

WITH THE EVER-CHANGING landscape of the global wine industry, LAFFORT has highlighted a prominent trend towards oak alternatives in modern day wine making markets.

Naturally seasoned for a minimum of 24 months, and toasted using our new soft oak process®, the new 18mm range is available in three different toasting options.

7mm NEW

- XTREME

NEW

- DIVINE

Staves

7 12 18 Staves

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Nobile® by LAFFORT is at the pinnacle of oak innovation and is recognised throughout the world for its wood quality and performance in winemaking. Nobile’s® state of the art facilities can be found in the heart of the prestigious Bordeaux winemaking region, where the raw materials are seasoned, toasted and manufactured into a range of oak alternatives. The finished products are rigorously analysed in LAFFORT’s accredited SARCO laboratory, guaranteeing the highest quality oak products. Nobile’s® world class research facilities has given LAFFORT the ability to create and trial many innovative oak range’s, pioneering new and diverse oak solutions for the global winemaking market.

StaveS 7 12 18

The Nobile® range includes: • High quality chips and granulas which combine tradition, expertise, innovation and research; • A range of staves that bring character and complexity to wines while respecting the fruit (excellent wood - wine integration); and • Specially designed blocks and ‘barrel refresh’ products to extend the life of oak barrels.

StaveS 7 12 18

STAVES

Staves

7mm

7 12 18 Staves

Staves

STAVES

In 2016 Nobile® has released the new 18mm oak alternative range, which will be an exciting addition to the popular 7mm and 12mm product ranges. Naturally seasoned for a minimum of 24 months, and toasted using our new soft oak process®, the new 18mm range is available in three different toasting options. This product range will be available in either staves, barrel refreshers or blocks and is designed to enhance volume and complexity in your wine, while retaining subtle and elegant oak characters. LAFFORT are also delighted to announce Gary Lively as the new Market Manager for the Nobile® oak brand. Gary has joined LAFFORT with over a decade in experience in the Australian wine industry, specialising predominantly in oak. We wish him all the best going forward and look forward to drawing on his wealth of experience in the field. For more information about the Nobile® by LAFFORT range, contact Tertius van der Westhuizen: P: +61 8 8360 2200 E: tertius.vdw@laffort.com.au September 2016 – Issue 632

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L’œnologie du bois

Grapegrower & Winemaker

winemaking Supplier Update

Only the best in the west: Oak selection at Burch Family Wines

BURCH FAMILY WINES sources high quality French Oak barrels from a number of cooperages located in France. The family knows the best wine barrels are made with the best oak, which allows the winery to bring out the very best in its wines.

One of the barrel suppliers chosen by Burch Family Wines is Tonnellerie Cavin et Fils, a cooperage located in Burgundy – between Côte de Nuits and Chablis, a high-quality French oak barrel producer. “They’re a little bit special, these barrels. Super high-quality oak from a terrific barrel producer,” said Jeff Burch, CEO of Burch Family Wines. “What’s really good is when they fire these barrels, instead of using a hot fire over a short time these guys use a low-fire heat over a long time. “They call it ‘deep expression’ and you get the toasting right into the oak and it’s a much more subtle way to have your barrels toasted.” At Tonnellerie Cavin, the coopers integrate artisanal traditions and techniques with cutting-edge science. The sources for the staves come from outstanding sites in the French national

forests as well as exceptional private domains. Tonnellerie Cavin oak comes from central forests of France, including Alliers, Bourgogne, Chantilly, Compiègne, Fontainebleau, Jupilles (brings more roundness, shorter time in barrel), Tronçais (brings more structure, longer time in barrel), and Vosges. Drying of the staves occurs in open air for a minimum of 24 months. Strict hygienic controls are in place at the stavewood suppliers and cooperage: the water is de-chlorinated, and Tonnellerie Cavin perform laboratory analyses for TCA, TeCa, PCA and microbial contaminants. Tonnellerie Cavin also works with Burgundy-based Laboratoire Vect’Oeur, industry experts focused on the prevention and elimination of contaminants that can afflict wineries, cooperages and shipping containers.

Long associated with some of the world’s best producers. France: Jayer Gilles, Jean Grivot, Meo Camuzet, Ramonet, Ann Gros, Denis Mortet, Emmanuel Rouget, Francois Carillon, George Noellat, Hudelot Noellat, Robert Groffier, Jean Fournier, Pascal Marchand, Phillip Leclerc, Talbot, Lagrange, Caillou, Alain Graillot, Chapoutier

•

• USA: Spottswoode, Dunn, Hess, Beaux Freres, Hobbs, Calera, Ramey

• Australia: Howard Park, Savaterre, Castagna and many others Cavin Difference: Access to the highest quality oak and forests available in France thanks to family who are among the largest oak buyers in France .

•

• If you believe in terroir you will want to buy oak by forest not just grain. A choice of toast.

• Aged a minimum of 24 months outside in the snow, heat and rain.

• Provenance is guaranteed and traceable.

Cavin Family Tonnellerie

One of the highest quality artisan barrels in France. Orders taken now for January 2017 delivery

For more information: Keppell Smith, Savaterre Vineyard keppell@savaterre.com | 03 5727 0551 | 0418 451 499

88 Grapegrower & Winemaker

Traditional or the House Style (EP): The house style is a long slow toasting on a small oak fire that deeply penetrates the wood but produces only a light char compared to the traditional toast. This is recommended for wines that require extended barrel maturation. Traditional is also available and uses a slightly stronger flame for a shorter time for earlier drinking styles.

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www.tonnellerie-cavin.com September 2016 – Issue 632

The �rench oaks. Naturally diverse. Origins, species, climate, soils, silviculture. The notion of terroir. At Dargaud & Jaeglé we understand and respect this diversity. We offer our �rench oak barrels by reqion and sub-region of origin, to further personalise your wine.

In Australia contact Geoff Henriks 0412 947 090 | geoff@djbarrels.com.au www.dargaud-jaegle.com/en

Creating barrels for winemakers since 1921

winemaking

Tonneliers de France: Business improved in 2015 AFTER TWO YEARS where performance remained unchanged, business improved for French cooperages in 2015. Fédération des Tonneliers de France member companies manufactured 592,300 barrels, accounting for sales of 390.9 million euros, an increase of 8.3% in volume and 10% in value. Exports continued to be strong for the profession, with 381,000 barrels (64%), accounting for sales of 264.4 million euros (68%). Barrel-making has become both very international and highly focused in five countries that represent 80% of the world market. The top 5 listed last year held their position and demonstrated the Old World’s excellent resilience. France continued to be market leader in volume, ahead of the United States. Spain was in third place, ahead of Australia and Italy. The sluggish markets seen for several years in the Southern hemisphere persisted, mainly due to the economy. The Asian market was still unstable. Performance in Europe was naturally the result of higher quality and increased volumes for vintage wines. In the US market, rising wine sales combined with a favourable exchange rate for the US dollar encouraged winemakers to put in more orders. As a result of the upswing, businesses in the industry have been recruiting. Hiring rose five per cent in 2015. Tonneliers de France is pleased to see recovery in the world market for wine barrels but recognizes that the cost of the raw material has never been as high or weighed so heavily on member companies’ margins.

90 Grapegrower & Winemaker

To try to understand the various dimensions of the supply problem (political, economic, trade, etc.) and to be suitably represented, some members of the Fédération des Tonneliers de France started the Syndicat des Mérandiers de France, a merrain artisans’ federation. About half of merrain produced in France in 2015 was by cooperages that

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have a stave mill. It is therefore legitimate for them to want a say in negotiations. Fédération des Tonneliers de France’s 50 member companies recently convened in a General Assembly in Cognac re-elected as president, Jean-Luc Sylvain, of the family cooperage Tonnellerie Sylvain.

September 2016 – Issue 632

‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ award finalist PORTAVIN FOUNDER and chairman Mike Davies has been named a regional finalist in the 2016 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year awards. Bottling & Davies joins other outstanding entrepreneurs Packaging from across Australia who will compete for the ultimate prize of being named 2016 Australian EY Entrepreneur of the Year. While at agricultural college studying wine making, Davies wrote a thesis on mobile wine bottling. This was the inspiration for Portavin, which he founded in 1989. Portavin now operates one mobile line and five static bottling sites close to transport hubs across Australia, and is Australasia’s largest independent wine services provider. Portavin provides a complete tank-to-shelf solution including wine bottling and packaging; dry goods supply; technical and oenological laboratory services; wine warehousing and logistics; airline wine services and wine export services. Portavin today bottles 10% of wine packaged in Australia, equating to more than 80 million bottles per year for more than 800 wineries. Davies said the nomination came out-of-the-blue and is a fantastic yet unexpected honour. “To be nominated for such a prestigious award has been a wonderful experience for me personally but Portavin would not be where it is today without the contribution from an outstanding team of people that have supported my vision and worked tirelessly to achieve our goals,” Davies said. “It is also a great stamp of recognition for the wine industry, an industry that has being doing it very hard for a long time.” Mike will join his fellow finalists representing Western Australia at the regional awards ceremony this Thursday 25 August in Perth where the regional winners will be announced. The EY ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ was launched in Australia in 2001 and is one of the country’s leading business awards programs. It has so far recognised more than 1400 leading Australians for their entrepreneurial business success and each year, through its global program, acknowledges thousands of entrepreneurs worldwide. Founded and produced by EY, the

Mike Davies, the Portavin founder and chairman.

program in Australia is sponsored by Commonwealth Bank (principal sponsor), Qantas and Austrade. More information about the EY ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ program can be found at ey.com/au/eoy