Three Sides of the Coin: Vintage 2017

Despite some unpredictable weather, the wine regions of Western Australia, Victoria and South Australia have once again produced a stellar crop of rich reds and bright whites, particularly among the aromatics. We sat down with Larry Cherubino, winemaker and owner of his eponymous wine company in WA; Steve Webber, Chief Winemaker and Manager of De Bortoli’s Yarra Valley Estate; and Ian Hongell, Senior Winemaker at Torbreck Vintners in the Barossa Valley to chat about their 2017 harvest and what we can expect from the wines.

drinks bulletin: How were the 2017 vintage conditions in your region? Were they similar to other years?

Larry Cherubino: I haven’t seen a vintage like this, probably for about 12 or 13 years. We had really good spring weather, a very mild summer and a very strong finish to autumn, so it’s probably similar to some of the vintages of the mid-80s, early 90s/mid-90s. In saying that, it was tricky, but the irony in all of that is that we’ve ended up with some pretty good stuff.

Steve Webber: It was a cool start to the growing season followed by a normal summer of reasonably mixed weather. Vintage followed the late Easter and most producers finished by mid-April. 2005 for us was a similar season with a long, mild autumn and the wines look similar at this stage.

Ian Hongell: The winter and spring of 2016 received above average rainfall, which set up the growing season of 2017 with great soil moisture levels. The budburst was relatively late and this, combined with the mild summer temperatures, resulted in a late start and late finish to the harvest.

DB: How are the 2017 whites looking?

LC: They’re super bright. Margaret River was a little tricky. You had to work around the rain and really hold your nerve, but as a consequence, there are some very good, powerful whites that came out of that season. Despite the late harvest, there are really good acidities and the wines are very fine and delicately structured.

SW: Most white crops were down from the previous two years. However, chardonnay was a real highlight with lots of detail and charm. They’re perhaps the best chardonnays we’ve seen since 2011 and 2012. Pinot gris, sauvignon and pinot blanc all had lovely aromatics.

IH: The whites are in tank and barrel at present. They certainly show great promise from the gentle ripening conditions of the 2017 season.

DB: How are the 2017 reds looking and when do you expect them to be out from barrel?

LC: The reds I was a little concerned about because due to the mild summer, we had very late ripening. But after veraison, they were showing incredible colour and a lot of ripe flavours early on. In the Great Southern, it was again a couple of weeks late but they had incredible colour and spice. In the cabernets we’ve got really, really fine tannins and great intensity. They’re just immaculately structured and flavoured this year, which is really pleasing. Very, very strong for the southern areas of WA. We’ll probably bottle some pinots and some of the lighter styles in November and release them in February/March of 2018. But we won’t see cabernets until March 2019.

SW: There is lots of colour and tannin in the reds. Pinot is down a little in quantity but the quality is very good. The colour and depth look amazing at this stage. Mid-season reds, syrah and gamay are beautifully aromatic and complex. This summer was ideal for the later reds like cabernet that need time to develop tannins. The cabernet sauvignon is as good as we have seen for 20 years.

We don’t really know the potential of wines in cask until spring when they have completed malo and are showing some ‘non-fermentation’ aromatics and flavours. Pinot noir, at this stage, looks like early January and the fuller reds will come out in mid-March.

IH: Our red wines in oak will range from 12 months to three years in barrel prior to their release.

DB: Which of your 2017 vintage wines will be the best sellers?

LC: The riesling. At this stage, the wines we’ve got in bottle are the 2017 rieslings from the likes of Frankland River, Mount Barker and Porongurup and they’re some of the best I think I’ve ever had. They’re always really strong, but they’ve just got everything this year.

SW: Quite simply, anything with a ‘pinot’ in front of it.

IH: Whilst its early days, the grenache, mataro and shiraz wines display great fruit and I think they’re going to have a promising future.

DB: Are there any other 2017 vintage wines from your region that you’ve seen and think trade should look out for?

LC: The southern end of Margaret River was tricky for reds but very good for whites, whereas the northern end of Margaret River was generally fairly consistent, with some very good reds. In the end, it was a good year for quality and quantity.

SW: Chardonnays will be as good as we’ve seen in years. Pinot noirs are looking like they will be plump, aromatic and broadly appealing. Cabernet sauvignon for the resurrection!

IH: A few of the local winemakers are talking up Eden Valley riesling this year, so I will be looking out for some when it’s released.