East Coast Tasmania winemakers lose 50 per cent of yield after wet season

Tasmanian winemakers on the East Coast are praying to the weather gods after a dismal season which left many producers with only half as much yield.

Pinot grapes in Hobart. PICTURE: MATT THOMPSON

Tasmanian East Coast wine growers say their future is in the “lap of the gods” after challenging weather conditions left their yields down by up to 50 per cent.

According to Wine Tasmania, Tasmanian wineries produced 895,000 cases of wine, 38 per cent of which was sparkling wine.

Across the state there were 12,390 tonnes of wine grapes grown.

On the East Coast, an area known for being dry, conditions left vineyards harvesting a smaller amount of grapes.

Gala Estate vineyard cellar door manager Kelsey Walker said vineyards had been hit hard across the East Coast.

“We lost about 45 per cent this year, I know there are other vineyards that won’t even have a vintage in 2023,” she said.

Gala Estate cellar door manager Kelsey Walker. Picture: The Mercury.

Ms Walker said last year had been the wettest season on record.

“The weather has been a challenge … the issue is, we need really hot weather in September, December and March and last year it rained in September, December and March,” Ms Walker said.

Ms Walker said it had also slowed down production at a new venture.

“We have two sites, [at Cranbrook] we have 11ha and we have another vineyard on the south side of Swansea, that’s 17ha,” Ms Walker said.

“We planted that five years ago, expecting to be able to pick that in three years, but with the weather we’ve only just picked our first vintage.

“We are looking forward to 2024 and are hoping our yields will be higher with good weather coming in.”

At Freycinet Vineyard, cellar door manager Kavita Bartel had been praying for clear skies.

“When you’re working in the viticulture industry, the week before flowering you cross your fingers and hope for no rain,” Ms Bartel said.

Freycinet Vineyard cellar door manager, Kavita Bartel.

“For 2023 we were all really down in yield because at flowering we had really bad weather, lots of rain.

“All across the board on the East Coast, we’re roughly about 45 and 50 per cent down in our yield.

Ms Bartel said it meant bottles would likely be snapped up quickly.

“None of us bring in grapes from anywhere else, we just have our own grapes so it’s a very lean 2023 for us,” she said.

“We’re going to sell out of everything very quickly.”

She hoped the warm and dry weather would return.

“In a good year we can get anywhere between 150 to 200 tonnes, hopefully we can start seeing those numbers again,” Ms Bartel said.

“We’re not going to have as much rain so the wine’s going to be a bit happier.”

Milton Vineyard was also hit hard by the weather conditions.

“The 2023 vintage was down by about 50 per cent, which is about the same for the last two years, that’s due to the cold weather mainly,” vineyard manager Robert Elliott said.

Milton Wines vineyard manager Robert Elliott.

“Drought conditions it’s easy to grow grapes, wet conditions it’s hard to grow grapes that’s a bit of a problem.

“We haven’t had a summer.”

But Mr Elliott said he was confident the conditions would ease.

“They’re saying we’re meant to be going into drought conditions this year,” he said.

“We’re in the lap of the gods, so it depends what the gods throw at us.”