While farmers are struggling due to the drought, the Wairarapa grape harvest is well under way with the outlook for the vintage buoyed by the stunning weather.
Chief winemaker at Palliser Estate in Martinborough Allan Johnson said it had been an excellent season to date and the "warm days andcool nights were pretty much ideal".
Mr Johnson said the reason Palliser Estate was anticipating a good harvest was down to a combination of ideal conditions and irrigation measures.
"We expect to start the main part of our harvest around the 25th of March," he said. "The grapes on the vine are in excellent condition and we're expecting them to be of excellent quality."
Jane Cooper, general manager and winemaker at Matahiwi Estate just outside Masterton, said they would be picking in about six weeks but she said apart from some irrigation challenges, the conditions had "laid a good groundwork for a very good vintage".
She was hopeful the dry and warm conditions would continue until harvesting in late-April.
New Zealand Winegrowers CEO Philip Gregan said winegrowers understood the pain the current drought is causing in the pastoral sector, but he said the conditions had been perfect for growing and ripening grapes. "As we move into autumn, still with warm days and now slightly cooler nights prevailing, the prospect is for an outstanding vintage in all our grape-growing regions."
