With all the wines packed up and “put to bed (barrel)” for a rest, it is time to reflect on the 2019 Barossa Vintage.

Overall it was quite warm and the crop levels were the lowest for some time. There was less than average rainfall in winter and spring, irrigation was very important to ensure that the vines stayed healthy and the fruit in good condition.

In addition, nature has its own defence mechanism against drought. The soil moisture content was low all through winter and the vines knew it was going to be a tough year so they “self-regulated” and produced low crop levels with small berries. The upside of the low crop levels and dry conditions has meant exceptional quality fruit and wines that are very rich, dense and concentrated. It is a vintage for lovers of big voluptuous Barossa reds.

From a Paisley perspective we are more than happy with the quality of the Shiraz, Grenache and Mataro we took in. With our own vineyard to look after this year I was kept very busy with tending the vines. Even though we took a small amount of fruit from our vineyard last year, I took more from both blocks this year. We are ecstatic with the grapes and final wine quality. It is exactly the style of wine we are trying to make, good rich fruit but with elegance and finesse. As we expected since we are at an elevation of 380m above sea level and 150m above the Barossa floor, we are getting bright vibrant fruit that has great aromatics, touches of spice and fine tannins. I think a 2019 single vineyard Shiraz from our own blocks is in order. 

Due to our careful vineyard management and attention to detail there will be some cracking wines from Paisley in 2019. We picked the amount we needed so there should be plenty for all to enjoy.