behind the scenes
With Flowering now underway in the Estate Vineyard in Stone Well, Vintage 2026 is well underway. 120 days to picking, Mid March it is!
Vintage 2025 certainly was a year for the record books, one of the hottest, one of the driest, and for me one of the very best. Classic wines. But where does it sit and how does it compare to what has come before. We have had a string of excellent vintages, but what made them so good, and why are they so different.
The Barossa has been warm and dry, one of the driest years in recent history. The green appearance of the vines can often disguise the lack of moisture in the soil. But on 2 January, 2025, a spark set off a reaction that ultimately burnt our Estate Block 6 and 8, and some of our Northern neighbours grazing land, but the situation could have been so much worse. Nobody was injured, the fire was quickly brought under control by the CFS and we are hopefully that less surviving vines in these block recover in the coming years. We are expecting a great vintage for those unimpacted blocks.
Vintage 2024 is one we approach with great excitement, something we do each and every year. A time to reflect on the weather of the past 9 months, and we consider the impact it will have on the vintage ahead. 2024 has been a return to normal, well the old normal, and we are excited at what lays ahead.
At Hayes Family Wines we have always sort grow the grapes and make the wine at the best quality level we possibly can. Part of this we see as an obligation to minimise the environmental impact we have on our soils, vines and people. We are seeing consumer preferences evolving, new and older generations are expecting businesses to take actions that are consistent with their own expectations and care for the environment and interest and knowledge in what they are eating, drinking and consuming. But this is a journey, not and end point, and Hayes Family Wines is making some progress.
The Schulz’s have been growing grapes in Ebenezer for more than 150 years. Primrose is their family home, and also a wonderful vineyard. Planted to Grenache, Shiraz, Mataro, Cabernet, Merlot and Chardonnay, it is a diverse block with diverse soils. Our Sections are now Certified Organic and Certified Sustainable. The Chardonnay block is much smaller than it once was, but we are so very lucky to have the remaining 8 rows, or half an acre. It claims its own piece of Barossa History.
Having Pruned and Reworked our Old Stone Well Blocks, we took the opportunity to replace the sub-mains, dripper tube and wires after 30 plus years of service. We have not needed supplementary water for the past 3 years, but now, with hot dry conditions forecast, we may need access to a reliable source of external water for the summer ahead.
Reworking an old vineyard can appear tough, but the vineyard will thank us for the effort for years to come. Old unproductive or diseased wood is removed, and the vine refreshed for the years to come. A tough prune you could say, but the hard love will deliver for us and the vines in the warm years ahead.
Our Estate Vineyards and our family owned Grower Vineyards are the hart of what we do. We have access to some of the best grapes in the world. All of our growers are multi-generational and have been on their land growing grapes in the family for over 100 years, many more than 150 years. They know their land and we all benefit from the knowledge that has been passed down for generations. Once a year we get together and drink the fruits of their labour, and what a night it is!
The Dosage decisions have been made and the much anticipated 2021 Hayes Family Wines Blanc de Noirs will soon be disgorged, labelled, and ready for dispatch in late spring. One not be missed!
Pruning is without doubt the most important activity of the year. It requires great skill, persistence and special people. Mandy has been in charge of pruning for years at Hayes Family Wines, we trust her implicitly. Vintage 2024 and 2025 is dependent on her work. Conditions are tough but the vines appreciate it!
Marcus is one of the great people of the Barossa Valley, and Marcus Schulz is a pretty good bloke too. Our latest ‘prize’ from the Auctions has been a great help over vintage. Feel free to drop in and say hello on your way to Cellar Door
Vintage 2023 has been long but very successful. With all the fruit now picked, crushing, pump overs and ferments complete the last few batches need to go thru the press before being barrelled for the winter ahead. What a wonderful vintage 2023 has been. Time for reflection before we hit the road.
Vintage 2023 is drawing to a close. The Last of the fruit has been picked and crushing is done. Now we have 2 weeks of pump-overs and barrelling to go before we can close out Vintage 2023. Then it is time to hit the road and come and visit all our wonderful friends.
Vintage 2023 has finally kicked into gear with more than 60% of our predicted harvest arriving in the winery in the space of 7 days. Our Estate Fruit, Block 15, Primrose Reds, and the 1919 Shiraz all arriving inside a week. Many of our very best blocks are now safely in the winery, crushed and fermenting away. With a few key blocks still to come from the North and East, we still have a month to go but with good quantities and very good quality, both Growers and Winemakers have cause for happiness.
After a slow start to Vintage 2023, today, 3 April marked the start of vintage at Hayes Family Wines for the dry red destined fruit. The first pick, Block 1 from the Estate Vineyard in Stone Well. Beautiful clean fruit, excellent cropping levels (best in some years). A picture perfect start to vintage 2023 for the reds. We expect we will see a lot of fruit over the coming days with Southern Fruit expected from Williamstown tomorrow. Busy times ahead.
The Fromm’s have been growing grapes in Williamstown for more than 100 years. At the helm is 3rd generation Ryan Fromm and his wife Sally. Salt of the earth people that grow truly special grapes. They have some very old blocks, many more than 100 years old. The Fromm grapes feature across our range, we are proud to count them as friends.
Syrah and Shiraz refer to the same grape; Syrah is how the variety’s was originally referred to while Shiraz is how it has become known in Australia, with the term then being adopted elsewhere for wines that share the stereotypical Australian Shiraz’s style. But what is the difference in the glass?
The Schulz’s have been growing grapes in Ebenezer for more than 150 years. At the helm is 4th generation members Marcus Schulz and his wife Roslyn. Their home block has been the source of great grapes for generations, Grange, RWT, Runrig and many others. The key blocks being Block 14, 15 and 16, legendary Shiraz. Block 15 is the source of some our very best wines, and we are very proud to receive this wonderful fruit.
Vines as they age face various risks, some natural, some mand made, some accidental. We are very fortunate that our vineyard although now more than 70 years old has very few gaps, but when a vine does die what do we do, how do we restore productivity to the panel missing the vine or vines.
After a period of appointment only, our cellar door will reopen for regular hours from June 1. We have a new team, a new look and some great new wines to show our visitors. So book a time and we welcome you with open arms!
It is often said that it takes a lot of beer to make good wine. Let me add, coffee is almost as important. But where do we buy it in the Barossa Valley?
Hayes Family Wines is a small team, just the three of us full time, but we bring together growers, winery workers, pickers, vineyard workers, suppliers and so many more people to contribute to each Vintage at Hayes Family Wines.
With Vintage 2022 coming to a close, it is time to turn our attention to the vineyard once more. Wines are made in the vineyard. And this year, we are adding some mulch and straw to the tough blocks up the hill.
Vintage 2022 has been a long season. It is slowly coming to an end. On 28 April the last our fruit has been delivered, with now 3 weeks ahead to finish for another year. A wonderful vintage, cannot fault it. Time will tell just how good it is (we suspect very good).
After fermentation, we put the grape skins into one of our two small basket presses to extract the ‘pressings’ to combine with the free run juice already extracted. Pressing tend to by higher in tannin, deeper in colour and generally more intense. A critical component of many of our end wines.
Vintage 2022 after a slow start is now into full swing. Our Shiraz at the Estate Vineyard is now picked, as is our Eden Valley Shiraz the first of the Shiraz from Ebenezer. A number of Grenache blocks have also been picked. Pressing our Fromm Shiraz is also complete. And the grapes looks spectacular!
Vintage 2022 has started, almost 2 weeks later than last year. We have picked Chardonnay, Semillon and the fruit for our Rose. All resting safely in the winery. Beautiful fruit, a wonderful start to the vintage. The reds are still some weeks away.
The Hayes Family Wines team, although small, is exceptional. The winery and vineyard team consists of myself, Andrew Seppelt and Mandy Mader, Kylie looks after Finance and Operations. Mandy looks after the vineyards and as this year’s Barossa Viticulturalist of the Year, Mandy is a godsend, and a truly wonderful woman in wine,
Vintage 2026 certainly was a year to remember. 3rd year in a row of drought, extremely hot January, but a vintage saved by some rain in early March. Classic wines. So where does it sit? We have had a string of excellent vintages, but they are all different. 2026 reminds many of 1996, and for good reason. Time will tell how good it actually is but I for one have it at or near the top of the list.