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Floods, droughts, plagues and pandemics. It’s hard to imagine much surprises the country’s grape growers any more. With COVID-19 creating a scarcity of backpackers to take on the farm work and with more wineries readying to pick the first grapes of the 2021 vintage, the problem could be about to become more pronounced. Released earlier the month, a government agriculture forecast predicted the industry would be unlikely to feel the skills shortage as profoundly as northern state farmers who have watched fruit rot on trees. However, coming off a 2020 season like no other, grape growers were cautious. Stephanie Helm makes wine from the vines her husband Benjamin Osborne manages at their Vintner’s Daughter property at Murrumbateman. One of the first in the region to start the 2021 harvest, the pair picked their Gewurztraminer at the beginning of February. After several troubled seasons, she said Canberra growers were now anxiously watching the rain forecast and trying to juggle the weather, the skill shortage and rapidly ripening fruit. “At the moment our biggest threat is rain. We actually prefer a hot, dry season in autumn when we’re picking grapes because otherwise the berries swell up and split and we get disease problems,” she said. “The local crew has had a lot more demands on their time, so it has been quite tricky. We’re having to plan our harvest a little further in advance than I as a winemaker might like.” She said her husband was feeling the pressure from her to wait for the perfect picking day and when he knew help was available. “There’s a little bit of to-and-fro going between us at the moment but it’s a bit easier when it’s husband and wife compared to winemaker and grape grower,” Ms Helm said. The pair picked their chardonnay grapes for sparkling wine this week, their riesling will start coming off the vines on Monday. “It’s been a little bit slower to ripen than I expected, which I’m thinking could just be a result of the vines being a little bit stressed last year,” she said. “Even though we lost the crops the vines were already impacted by the drought as well, so they’re sort of taking a bit of time to recover.” Ms Helm said high rainfall over winter had resulted in high-quality grapes but the yield was a little lower than she would have liked. “The grapes are looking great, though!” she said. Sapling Yard owner and winemaker Carla Rodeghiero sources grapes from several small vineyards in the region who were experiencing the stress of the skill shortage. READ ALSO: “Small vineyards need hand-picked fruit. In an area like Canberra where we’ve got a lot of small vineyards, it’s a real problem,” Ms Rodeghiero said. She said an ad she’d placed on Gumtree looking for workers had received no response and as a result the winemakers were out picking the grapes themselves. “We’re picking out at Lake George at the moment and it’s now stretching into three days to get it done instead of one,” she said. Record cellar door visits were expected to continue, government forecasts showed, as domestic tourists discovered their own backyard attractions. Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
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Floods, droughts, plagues and pandemics. It’s hard to imagine much surprises the country’s grape growers any more.
With COVID-19 creating a scarcity of backpackers to take on the farm work and with more wineries readying to pick the first grapes of the 2021 vintage, the problem could be about to become more pronounced.
Released earlier the month, a government agriculture forecast predicted the industry would be unlikely to feel the skills shortage as profoundly as northern state farmers who have watched fruit rot on trees. However, coming off a 2020 season like no other, grape growers were cautious.
Stephanie Helm makes wine from the vines her husband Benjamin Osborne manages at their Vintner’s Daughter property at Murrumbateman.
One of the first in the region to start the 2021 harvest, the pair picked their Gewurztraminer at the beginning of February.
After several troubled seasons, she said Canberra growers were now anxiously watching the rain forecast and trying to juggle the weather, the skill shortage and rapidly ripening fruit.
“At the moment our biggest threat is rain. We actually prefer a hot, dry season in autumn when we’re picking grapes because otherwise the berries swell up and split and we get disease problems,” she said.
“The local crew has had a lot more demands on their time, so it has been quite tricky. We’re having to plan our harvest a little further in advance than I as a winemaker might like.”
She said her husband was feeling the pressure from her to wait for the perfect picking day and when he knew help was available.
“There’s a little bit of to-and-fro going between us at the moment but it’s a bit easier when it’s husband and wife compared to winemaker and grape grower,” Ms Helm said.
The pair picked their chardonnay grapes for sparkling wine this week, their riesling will start coming off the vines on Monday.
“It’s been a little bit slower to ripen than I expected, which I’m thinking could just be a result of the vines being a little bit stressed last year,” she said.
“Even though we lost the crops the vines were already impacted by the drought as well, so they’re sort of taking a bit of time to recover.”
Ms Helm said high rainfall over winter had resulted in high-quality grapes but the yield was a little lower than she would have liked.
“The grapes are looking great, though!” she said.
Sapling Yard owner and winemaker Carla Rodeghiero sources grapes from several small vineyards in the region who were experiencing the stress of the skill shortage.
“Small vineyards need hand-picked fruit. In an area like Canberra where we’ve got a lot of small vineyards, it’s a real problem,” Ms Rodeghiero said.
She said an ad she’d placed on Gumtree looking for workers had received no response and as a result the winemakers were out picking the grapes themselves.
“We’re picking out at Lake George at the moment and it’s now stretching into three days to get it done instead of one,” she said.
Record cellar door visits were expected to continue, government forecasts showed, as domestic tourists discovered their own backyard attractions.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
