Vintage kicked off here at Shadowfax on February 11 with some Geelong Chardonnay from my family vineyard on the Bellarine. This was the earliest ever harvest date at Shadowfax in our 25 years.

We have been busy the last week also picking our Shadowfax Estate vineyard with the first of our new Grenache plantings coming online. Stay tuned for a new and exciting Minnow Grenache in 2025. Think blue fruits, florals and finesse.

The K Road Shiraz is in the building with the fruit being the most concentrated and flavoursome that I have ever seen from this vineyard. 

The season has been early, with warm, dry days, leading to grapes with pure flavour, lots of tannin and no disease. A winemaker’s dream.

Meanwhile the end of summer means our Macedon Ranges vineyards are starting to ripen and reveal themselves. The ideal conditions are looking at a late March pick for Midhill, and early April for Little Hampton. 

In the meantime, ferments are bubbling away whilst our hands are showing telltale signs of vintage's purple hue.