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Thistledown Vintage Report

There is no denying the fact that vintage 2020 will always be remembered as the vintage of the bush fires, but we owe it to all those affected to craft the best wines possible from what is turning out to be an amazing ripening season.

Adelaide Hills has been affected by both the destruction of vineyards and the consequent smoke taint and as a result of this, Thistledown won’t be making any Chardonnay this year but we have already picked Sauvignon from Kuitpo and this looks delicious.

Elsewhere, the season is being characterised by relatively low yields (sometimes extremely low) and a very gentle, long ripening period in which flavours and acid balance are amongst the best we have ever seen. Barossa Shiraz is just delicious with amazing freshness and energy that suits the Thistledown style so well.

Our beloved Grenache looks to be in fine form this year and though some of our growers are suffering from low yields, the mild temperatures and very cool nights are allowing us to fine tune the picking times and will give us so many blending options when the time comes. With a couple of Grenaches already in and the majority coming in over the next 10 days, the anticipation is building.The weather looks set to fine and vintage 2020 is all set to be a cracker for Thistledown!

Keep your eye on our social media for more updates throughout vintage.

Take a look at all the Thistledown Wines