Smoke taint forces Canberra winemakers to abandon their 2020 vintage
The 2019/2020 summer bushfires devastated a number of winegrowers and winemakers throughout NSW and the ACT. In total there were 49 days where locals were encouraged to stay inside due to the hazardous conditions. While there wasn’t any physical destruction to the Canberra Wine District, the smoke taint from the surrounding fires certainly affected the 2020 harvest. Canberra District winegrowers extensively tested their wines for smoke taint and widely found the vintage undrinkable. The smoke’s impact is extensive with the vast majority of local winemakers deciding not to harvest. Some notable names include Clonakilla, Ravensworth and Shaw Wines.
Tim Kirk from Clonakilla Wines explained how smoke taint effects the wine making process - "what happens is it sits on the skins of the grapes and gets sucked into the grapes as they start to ripen. Once you crush the grapes and begin to ferment them, those smoke compounds are released into the wine”.
