v a riet a l report
A permanent sward of clover and ryegrass is cultivated in the mid-rows to provide a self-regenerating cover crop for nitrogen fixing and deep placement of organic carbon via the rye grass roots. The cover crop is mown and placed undervine for a natural compost and weed control. Pruning level is carried out according to vine capacity. The Sauvignon Blanc has double canes, with 16 buds or shoots per linear metre of cordon. The Semillon is spur pruned at around 8 x 2 buds per linear metre of cordon, resulting in 14-16 shoots per metre. The maritime climate, sunny conditions and generally rain-free growing season, combined with open canopies, means disease pressure is minimal. We continue to refine the basics of soil husbandry and apply holistic and sustainable farming practices to our entire vineyard. Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc has a very precise harvest window of only a few days, hence we must taste vines on a daily basis around harvest. We look for retention of fruit freshness and balanced natural acidity to determine harvest. Our philosophy is to farm the fruit and pick it so that its natural composition can carry it through to the glass without fiddling in the winery. A typical analysis of the fruit at harvest would be 11.8-12Be, 7.5g/L TA and pH3.3. Average yields are 8t/ha for the Sauvignon Blanc and 7t/ha for the Semillon.
The Umamu Estate vineyard, located 10km east of Margaret River, Western Australia.
WINEMAKING All the fruit from our vineyard is custom crushed at Naturaliste Vintners and machine harvested at the coldest point in the night, around 5.00am, and processed directly. Varieties are harvested and processed separately as they rarely ripen at the same time. All juices are separated into several press fractions and treated individually. Cool ferments with sympathetic yeast are carried out with barrel fermentation occurring in Allier and Vosges 225L French oak barrels. Maturation sur lie takes place for around eight weeks for 20% of the cuvee. The blends are finalised and bottled mid winter to preserve freshness.
Our winemaking philosophies remain constant, while our approaches are fine-tuned each season according to the season. This is a constant evolution of learning and self-improvement. It is mainly how our farming practices of solarisation of the fruit and harvest decisions change. The minute that we have perfected the system is when we have lost touch with reality! MARKETING Stylistically, we release this wine after it has had time to develop in the bottle - a French approach for releasing wines
when they are ‘ready’. As such, when we bring the wines to the domestic market, it can be a challenge as releasing an older vintaged white, such as this one, is not the norm in Australia. With continued effort in submitting this wine for awards and tastings, the wine is starting to be well recognised in the domestic market. The wine is sold internationally and we are looking to build on our exclusive distribution channels in the domestic market. We also have direct ordering and are working on an online shopping cart system. The wine sits within our small, exclusive range and fulfils our values of balance and contentment.
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W i n e & V i t i c ult ur e Jo ur na l SEPTEMBER/O C TO BER 2013
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