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What a Start....

When choosing a vineyard site, we have had the luxury of many possibilities. With Gala’s 4000 hectare land area and diversity of soil, aspect and micro climate, we were able to select some of the very best terror available in a district that is fast growing a reputation as the premier Pinot Noir producing area in Tasmania.  

“Gala Kirk Hill” was chosen as our primary vineyard site because of its harsh, shallow ironstone soils and warm northern aspect. The top of the vineyard is only 500 meters from the 42 degree southern parallel, comparable to Bugundy, which lies on the 42 degree northern parallel. It is considered that this latitude delivers the optimum climatic balance for cool climate wine production, with warm days and cool nights which prolong the ripening process and enables the berries to express their full fruit flavours with tight acidity.

When designing the vineyard it became apparent that there is no common model to follow. The Tasmanian wine industry is young and vibrant however we have a long way to go before we find our place in the domestic and international markets. For this reason there is still a great amount of debate about most aspects of vineyard design and management. Nearly every decision requires a trade-off between quality and quantity or quality and costs of production. While our bank manager encourages us to pursue the model that provide the best gross margins on today’s market, we have opted to plant for the future, to pursue the highest quality rather than highest margins in the short term. Purshing the niche top end of the wine market has been a strident choice for Gala. This is a break from the past, as for 7 generations, Gala has had to be a price taker on agricultural commodity markets.

The vineyard has been planted at a density of 3300 vines / Ha with 2.5 metre row spacing and 1.2 metre vine spacing. We use a VSP (Vertical Shoot Position) trellis that stands 2.8 metres high to optimise exposure to sunlight and allow a clean airflow through the vineyard. The grapes are cane pruned.

Chardonnay (sparkling base) is planted in the coldest part of the vineyard which is the base of the hill. Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris planted further up the hill with Pinot Noir perched majestically on the throne of the hill with the warmest aspect.

Throughout the seasons, tending to the vines is a constant balancing act which is site specific and ever changing. Our main tools to keep the vines in balance with their environment would be moisture control and canopy management. We try to use the overhead irrigation as long as possible to give the soil an even moisture profile and encourage root development outside of the drip irrigation zone. Irrigation changes to drippers when the vines reach half canopy in November to avoid disease pressure in a wet canopy. The shallow free draining soils on the hillside allow us to effectively turn the moisture off in summer when we want to restrict growth and encourage fruit development. Canopy management is a constant assessment of leaf area, fruit load, airflow and sunlight penetration. This is managed throughout the growing season by a devoted team of casual employees who hand prune, debud, remove lateral growth, leaf pluck and remove excess or uneven fruit. The crew finally return to hand pick the grapes in March, April and May.

 The greatest production risk at Gala is caused by late frost that can burn new growth and flowers if the temperature drops below -1.5 degree C at canopy height. To mitigate this risk we use overhead irrigation as frost protection. The ambient heat of the water is not the protection but rather the latent heat caused in the production of ice around the vine. This continual freezing process ensures that the flowers do not drop below -0.5 degrees and protects foliage from damage. On a cold October or November night the valley can be a hive of activity with producers starting wind generators and large areas of overhead irrigation in an effort to protect the 7 vineyards and 2 walnut orchards that generate significant income in our local community. By sunrise, the overhead irrigated frost protection has produced spectacular ice gardens with ice stalactites up to 6 inches long hanging from the thousands of wires that make up the VSP trellis system.

It is the combination of ideal terrior, Tasmania’s true cool climate and our dedication tending to each and every vine, that produces sensational fruit and so a stunning range of crisp, fruit driven, textured wines.

 

Ironstone, vineyard rockbase