Vintage 2019 Harvest brings excellent quality wines in smaller volumes SOPHIE PREECE
Constellation harvest. Photo Jim Tannock
VINTAGE 2019’s lower-than-expected grape harvest will see a shortage of supply for the third year running, putting pressure on wine producers to meet market demand. This year’s national grape harvest of 413,000 tonnes was down 1% on 2018 and a good chunk lower than the 450,000-plus tonnes predicted in New Zealand Winegrowers’ (NZW) pre-vintage survey. “Smaller vintages in 2017 and 2018 meant wineries had to work to manage product shortages, and many of our members hoped for a larger harvest this year,” NZW chief executive Philip Gregan told the Grape Days Marlborough audience last month. “Another smaller-thanexpected vintage will mean more supply and demand tension overall.” The high quality of the harvest is good news for the industry as export growth continues, with an increase of 4% to $1.8 billion over the past year, he said. “We have an international reputation for premium quality and innovation. Every vintage is different, but winemakers are excited about the
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calibre of wine that will be delivered to the bottle and we are confident 2019 vintage wines will be enjoyed by consumers around the world.” However, it did little to address cellar stocks depleted over the past two years, he said. Wine companies’ ability to draw down on stocks are diminishing, “but sales from the next 12 months are definitely going to be higher than what has been produced in this vintage”.
“Winemakers are excited about the calibre of wine that will be delivered to the bottle.” Philip Gregan
According to the NZW Vintage Survey 2019, the national Sauvignon Blanc crop was 5,583 tonnes higher than vintage 2018, but Pinot Noir dropped by 8,151 tonnes (23%) and Pinot Gris was 1,871 tonnes (8%) lower than 2018. Marlborough made up 76.6% of the national harvest, with 305,467 tonnes of grapes harvested. The region’s Sauvignon Blanc harvest lifted by 1%, from 269,411 tonnes in 2018 to 272,334 tonnes in 2019. But the Chardonnay harvest dropped from 9,565 to 7,687, a decline of 1,878 tonnes or 20%, and Pinot Gris dropped 22% to 8,684 tonnes. Pinot Noir was hardest hit, with a 34% decline in crop to 12,338 tonnes. Nautilus winemaker and NZW board member Clive Jones (see sidebox) says the constricted harvest will likely result in “a little bit less bulk wine traded” and companies looking more to the management of their stocks. “People will probably focus on their most supported and profitable markets… you might see less of the
