2005 Vintage Report

The 2005 vintage will be remembered as one of the earliest vintages in the region.  The dry Winter and Spring conditions gave way to a mild and warm Summer.  This resulted in advanced flowering and fruit set on the vineyards and early, full ripening of flavours.
The drier than usual conditions and the relative isolation of the vineyards meant that disease pressures during the growing season were minimal.  
Unusually strong Spring winds affected the flowering of the Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon vines in particular and had an impact on expect yields.
The slightly reduced yield had a two fold benefit for Palandri.  The season broke on 1 April, with nearly 200ml of rain recorded in a 72 hour period!  At that point, over 70% of the vineyards had been harvested.  This was fortunate as usually at this time of year more than half the fruit would still be on the vine.  This would have had a considerable impact on the thinner skinned white varieties.  As it happened, these highly valued whites were all fermenting back at the Winery, with ripe clean flavours.
The lower yielding Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon varieties are usually picked late in April, but these too were halfway through harvest during this period and have provided some of the best flavours seen off the vineyards.
Whilst the rain was unexpected in relation to this vintage, it does hold the vineyard in good stead for the 2006 and 2007 season.  By mid June, the Palandri dams were overflowing and soil moisture was at saturation point for the first time in three years.
These conditions gave the vines the opportunity to store essential nutrients before dormancy.  It also allows Palandri’s vineyard management team to manipulate irrigation to its full benefit when the growing season begins after harvest.