Yvonne Lorkin: How vineyards survive winter (+ wines to try)

Special tools keep vines ready for spring.

Oh September. It feels like I'm only just getting my head around secondary cuts in the slow cooker, constantly wiping the dog's feet before she comes inside, digging out the spencer and woolly tights every day, and then you're on my doorstep with your promises of all things bright and shiny.

It's all a big tease though; I know there are probably some roaring spring frosts on the way.

Vineyards across the country will soon burst into life. Every bud on every vine will contain an embryonic shoot already with everything it needs to develop into fruit and leaves.

Spring re-establishes the connections between the vine's buds and its roots. As soils warm up, the roots kick into gear, they absorb more water and nutrients, sap begins to flow trough the vine's trunk and this causes the buds to swell and burst. There's a lovely time-lapse video of the process online at vimeo.com/45257535.

Frost damage occurs when temperatures drop below 0C after green growing tissue or "colour" has appeared from a bud. Twelve years ago, Hawke's Bay experienced three devastating frosts (September 15 and 26, and October 5) in which temperatures dropped as low as -3C.

You can't control the weather, you can't prevent a frost, but you can do loads of things to prevent or lessen the damage. Growers in France line up 210-litre drums along the rows and light fires in them, tending them through the night.

Local growers use frost pots which burn diesel, or frost fans (wind machines). Others might invest in helicopters, which circulate the air above the vines, stopping the cold air from settling - but shaking up the bank balance in the process.

It's heartstopping stuff, which makes me appreciate what ends up in the bottle so much more.

Fab taste in labels

When I'm scanning the enormous smorgasbord of wine choices on the shop shelf, if the price is right and I have no other information - then for me it's all about looks. I want that bottle to look great on the dinner table; I want it to become a talking point.

Thankfully, these wines taste as good as they look.

Mojo Barossa Valley Shiraz 2013, $24

The label says the storybookish, fantasy forest creatures artwork was done by Ghostpatrolwhile "listening to K. Frimpong and his Cubano Fiestas". Delicious aromas of dusty spices, leather and cocoa lead to sweet plum and berry-soaked goodness in the mouth. The finish is edged with vanilla and pepper. blackmarket.co.nz

Zeppelin "Big Bertha" Barossa Shiraz 2014, $24

Saturated magenta colour and oozing with sweet cherry and berry aromas, gentle spices and a palate soaked with fruit, vanilla, pepper and hints of dark chocolate. This is a cracker of a wine that's smooth, velvety and dangerously easy to drink. For stockists, contact Red & White Cellar 09 376 0760.

Two Hands Gnarly Dudes Barossa Shiraz 2013, $38

There's something oddly comforting about drinking a wine from a bottle that has a picture on the label of a grapevine so old and gnarly it looks like Treebeard the Ent, from Lord of the Rings. Dark, inky-magenta coloured and bursting with dusty leather, eucalypt, ultra-ripe blackcurrant and plum flavours, pepper and concentrated, lip-smacking spices; it's fantastic. Ph (09) 376 0760.