Some hope for “alcoholorific” vintages

New technology may help Australia’s winemakers cope with higher alcohol levels brought about by the freak weather conditions of the 2008 vintage.

Alcohol levels have risen in the last decade or so from an average content in red wines of 12.5 percent to 14.0 percent, with some as high as 17 percent, writes John Harvey from Adelaide. The abnormal conditions of the current season have exacerbated the situation. It is hoped that reverse osmosis techniques will remove the alcohol from wine to achieve more traditional levels whilst maintaining quality for a market in which consumers are increasingly seeking lower alcohol products.

The industry is already calling it the “vicious vintage”. The record late season heat wave in March has thrown many Australian wine regions into chaos. Prolonged high temperatures have accelerated grape ripening to a critical point and put severe pressure on production facilities, already full with crushed fruit and fermenting juice. Some growers report that they have to wait for up to two weeks to ‘book space’ at a production facility. Regions where red varieties are yet unpicked estimate volume losses at 10 percent and rising daily. Some growers say they have lost 5 percent volume each day in the second week of March alone. As shiraz and cabernet berries shrivel in the sun and yellowed vine leaves drop, old hands report not having seen a vintage like this for 35 years or more. Areas most affected in South Australia include the Barossa and Clare valleys, Langhorne Creek and McLaren Vale.