Grape season 2007 in Australia

"The 2007 harvest stands out as one in which seasonal conditions are conspiring to reduce yields (tonnes per hectare) to levels to a 30-year low. The national vineyard this season was subjected to frost, drought, early-harvest rain episodes and every prospect of a hot/dry finish," Mr Stanford said. "As a result, yields in 2007 are expected to be around 35% down on the average of the last three years. This reduction will be only marginally offset by an expected 2% increase in hectares of bearing vines after at least five years of subdued planting." Mr Stanford said several factors point to good but not exceptional prospects for quality: most importantly, it has been a relatively disease free season. In addition, smaller berry sizes and lower bunch weights this season are expected to increase colour and flavour intensity. He said the 2004, 2005 and 2006 harvests were all above average at around 1.8 to 1.9 million tonnes and the smaller 2007 harvest is a "compensator" for the supply load from these seasons. He emphasised that a firm harvest forecast is still some time away with more than half the red winegrape crop to be picked and about a third of the whites. The 2007 harvest commenced two to six weeks early, with many regions indicating that was the earliest in living memory. "The 2007 crush has proved difficult for the industry to accurately predict with the extraordinary conditions providing previously unexperienced conditions for many," Mr Stanford said. "In these circumstances, vineyard owners are finding that, on harvesting, there are fewer tonnages to be cropped than was previously estimated during the ripening period."