ESCAPE FROM FIRE, BUT NOT DROUGHT

THE 2009 vintage in Victoria will go down as the vintage from hell but despite drought, bushfires, smoke taint and water shortages, some winemakers remain upbeat. The Yarra Valley, where around five per cent of the region's crop was lost or damaged in the fires, still expects to produce some good wines. Some makers were talking up their chances of pulling off good shiraz and pinot, while others noted little effect from the fires or the resulting threat of smoke taint. Strong winds that kept the bushfire danger alive for weeks following the February 7 conflagration also shifted smoke up and away from many grapevines. Valley makers said it was a different situation in 2007, when bushfire smoke  hung in the air and caused noticeable taint in some wines. Other regions affected by fire included Beechworth, Bendigo, Gippsland and Heathcote.

But fire and smoke are just part of the fallout. A far bigger problem for the 2009 crop has been drought and the shortage of water, which are believed to have cut yields across the state by 10 to 30 per cent. Many producers report having to decide which vines to keep watering and which to let go. In the north-west of the state, some let whole vineyards go and did not produce a crop.