The prospect of a good harvest was enough to entice Bill Crowe out the door and into the gale blowing through the Four Winds Vineyard yesterday.
The 20ha vineyard at Murrumbateman took a battering last year when wet weather destroyed 30 per cent of the vintage for the region's wine growers.
The poor weather and subsequent late harvest were a rough introduction for the resident winemaker, who had just arrived in the country after a decade working in California's Napa Valley.
''It was my very first year making wine in Australia and it was the worst in 20 years,'' he said. ''There were problems with mildew, mould and everything under the sun.''
Despite recent conditions, ranging from 35-degree heat to a mid-summer frost, Mr Crowe said his second year on the job was shaping up to be a success.
The grapes along the rows of hand-pruned vines are starting to turn from green to purple, marking healthy progress after months of careful maintenance. But with weeks to go till the March harvest, Mr Crowe said there was still potential for a disastrous vintage.
''Things are looking good, but from here on you're always very nervous,'' he said. ''You're always worried about 100mm of rain.''
Mr Crowe said another significant concern was frost, which saw the vineyard lose about 90 per cent of its crop five years ago.
''What we're hoping for now is moderately warm days,'' Mr Crowe said.
With harvest still weeks away, local wineries are turning their attention to last year's vintage.
Mount Majura Vineyard will start bottling its 2011 chardonnay and 2011 tempranillo today, while Helm Wines will begin its operations next week.
Given the poor conditions leading up to the 2011 harvest, Mr Crowe said the vintage would be a hit-and-miss year for the region's wineries.
''I think it will make for an interesting year,'' he said.
''There will be some really bad wines and there's going to be some really good wines as well.''
This reporter is on Twitter: @stephanieando
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