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Tatiarra Heathcote Vineyard occupies a unique parcel of earth.
Around 500,000,000 years ago, natural forces, moulding the world, hardened the planet’s surface forming Cambrian rock. Today, that rock exists as a discontinuous band of red earth, extending from Heathcote township and running north past Colbinabbin, parallel to the Mount Camel range. The Tatiarra Vineyard is sustained by a band of this ancient Cambrian soil in which Shiraz vines thrive, producing fruit of incomparable quality and wines of matchless character. The resulting wines are perfectly balanced, possessing tremendous exuberance and are capable of long term cellar development.

NEW DEVELOPMENTS 2008-2009

New Plantings: 10 acres of new vineyard have been established in 2008 and should be in useful production by 2015. A small crop is expected to be used to be used for inclusion in Culled Barrel in 2013. The new plantings bring the planted area to 33 acres with further expansion anticipated in 2010. New Infrastructure: The change in climatic conditions has resulted in a complete re-evaluation of the Tatiarra infrastructure to allow for further expansion into the future. A 5 megalitre plastic lined dam has been constructed and the existing 30 megalitre dam has been repaired and clay lined to ensure any water collected through natural rainfall will be held. The plastic lined dam has been built at a considerable expense, but with the shortage of water it has been determined to be a necessary investment moving forward. Tatiarra has reconfigured its irrigation regime giving the viticulturist great flexibility in applying water to areas on an as needed basis. Again the entire process is carefully monitored by computer to ensure that water is applied only as required.

Water: Tatiarra vineyard operates with minimal water, however, it must be emphasised that in the Heathcote district the climatic conditions have changed over the past decade with winter rains being well below average. Viticulturists who have attempted dry land farming in this district have failed miserably and wasted valuable resources pursuing a ‘fantasy; that does not work in the district. There are critical periods in the vines growing cycle which require some water to avoid vine stress. One such period is during flowering – if the vine is stressed at this stage a poor set will occur. The period during variason is also particularly important – for if stress occurs at this stage, the vine will shut down and drop fruit rather than continue to ripen. Viticulturalists may introduce tension in the vines at this stage, but not stress. It is also good practise to water the vines in after vintage, whilst there is still a good green canopy. This assists in the final development of carbohydrates in the cane for the following growing season. At Tatiarra, drip irrigators are used and they are radio controlled by probes in the ground which are constantly measuring soil moisture content. This technique allows for judicious application of water to the root zone only when required by the vine. Gone are the 'wet finger in the air' days of guesswork. These techniques also maximise the effectiveness of any water that is applied to the vine. Tatiarra has access to two bores on the property from which water flows and salinity levels are monitored. Should salinity levels rise above 800 ppm this water is then ‘cut’ with pure dam water, thus avoiding any salt build up in the soil.

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