It’s September, it’s spring, and vintage 2018 is on its way! And what could be more glorious than a sunny spring day in the vineyards?

Growing up in Sydney, I was never acutely aware of the change of seasons. For a young city-dweller about the only thing I really noticed was whether it was warm enough to hit the beach or cold enough to put on an extra layer of clothing.

But 20 years of living and working in the glorious Barossa Valley have changed all that. Living in a rural community whose lifeblood relies upon a perennial plant, has allowed me to grow much closer to nature. And for me, there is no better way to watch the change of seasons than through the unfolding annual cycle of the grapevine.

By tracking the grapevine’s lifecycle, we gain a valuable understanding of how these living, breathing marvels are responding to the weather, and this helps us predict the season ahead.

Each stage of a grapevine’s growth cycle displays its own beauty. But spring budburst has a fragility and delicacy unmatched at any other time of year.

Budburst is a time for optimism, a sure sign that winter is over. Time to embrace the celebrated glories of spring.

Our first burst of warm spring weather in the Barossa has seen the vineyards come alive with new growth. So here it is: the splendour of the Kurtz vineyard, as the vines take their first tentative steps and wake up to spring.