While John is quick to point out his loss isn’t as devastating as those who have quite literally lost everything in other regions, the loss of the winery’s entire Merlot crop just before harvest is a huge blow to the anticipated yields for the 2011 harvest.
Caught in the floods that ripped through the Tenterfield region where John Cassegrain’s Richfield Vineyard is based, eight hectares of the vineyard were almost completely submerged, resulting in a loss of prized 14-year-old vines with little hope of salvaging anything from the damaged hectares.
John Cassegrain says, “Our vines were quite literally swimming. Last year we lost a large part of the Richfield harvest to frost, so for floods to hit this year — and right on the eve of harvest — is a double blow. Locals are saying this flooding is the worst the region has seen in 60 years.”
The Tenterfield vineyard also lost the fuel tank for their irrigation pump, had the shed demolished, with paddock fences ripped down across the estate as a result of the flooding.
Despite his loss at the Richfield Vineyard, John Cassegrain says he is looking forward to a bumper 2011 harvest, with high expectations for the quality of the remaining crops.
“It has been a good year for our Hastings vines and we’re looking forward to harvesting and then beginning production on the 2011 range,” he said.
“We were proud to win quite a few awards with our wines last year, including the honour of having our Cassegrain Edition Noir Chardonnay Pinot Noir NV named by renowned wine expert James Halliday as one of the top eight in Australia, so our expectations are high for this year.”
