Wine News – Vintage 2005

Vintage has entered a new phase at wineries across the Great Southern, with winemakers “moving onto the next stage of the process,” according to Moss Brothers chief winemaker David Moss.

With the frenetic process of sampling behind them and the whites safely in the winery, vintners such as Mr Moss are beginning to think about fermentation, blending and bottling.

 “At this stage, it’s like having two jobs at once,” he says. “We are going through the whites, looking at them tank by tank, rigorously checking their process. But we have to keep an eye on the reds at the same time”.

The Moss Brothers team picked their whites at 13.5 baumé just as the early April rain fell across Margaret River. Moss Brothers recorded 42mm of rain last week but that was nothing compared with producers further south.

 “But overall the weather has been stunning again this year,” Mr Moss says. “We are definitely very blessed in this part of the world. We gain from a completely different weather system than places further down south where they get weather more dictated from the bight”.

Of the 120 tonnes of whites and the 180t of reds Mr Moss will be picking, he is most excited about the chardonnay and shiraz.

The 2005 chardonnay looks to be one to wait for from Moss Brothers. The fruit was all hand picked and whole bunch pressed, a process by which whole grape clusters are loaded directly into the winepress.

The result is juice of a higher quality, lower in solids, and producing more delicate flavours.

 “This year the chardonnay presented us with an opportunity to make the best wine we could,” Mr Moss says.

“We didn’t concentrate on it too much in the past because the vines were quite young. Now the chardonnay vines are nine years old and you can really see the quality coming through.”

Joining the chardonnay will be a shiraz, cabernet, and a varietal merlot. In a sign of the times, and in an effort to capitalise on the recent success of sweeter styled wines, a rose will make an appearance as well.

“We saw that it [rose] is what people want to drink in the warmer months. It has been our biggest seller through cellar doors,” Mr Moss says.

As well as concentrating on wines for this vintage, Moss Brothers has entered into a partnership with the Australian Red Cross.

The winery is offering three cases – the Solferino whites, the Red ‘blood’ and the Humanitarian mixed dozen – all at reduced prices. Part of the proceeds go directly to fund Australian Red Cross Community Service initiatives in WA.