Harvesting Whalebone Vineyard

Hand harvesting in the whalebone Vineyard is a meticulous process and all inferior or damaged fruit is left in the vineyard. The fruit balance at harvest is typically:

• Sugar at 24 Brix;
• Acid of 7gpl as tartaric; and
• pH of 3.55.

The Merlot is the earliest variety and is harvested separately at the end of March. The Shiraz is next, usually in the first week of April and the Cabernet Sauvignon comes a week later. Finally the tiny quantity of Cabernet Franc is harvested a few days after the Cabernet Sauvignon.

This fruit requires no amelioration and achieves the winemaking objective of "naturalness" so important to the optimal expression of the terroir. The hand-harvested grapes of the Whalebone Vineyard are carried in 0.5 tonne bins to the Petaluma Winery in the Piccadilly Valley. The Petaluma Winery is in the middle of the Tiers Vineyard and next to my house so the arriving fruit receives close and constant attention from me as it progresses through the winemaking process.