GALAFREY WINES

The harvesting of wine grapes (vintage) is one of the most crucial steps in the process of winemaking.The time of harvest is determined primarily by the ripeness of the grape as measured by sugar, acid and tannins levels with winemakers basing their decision to pick based on the style of wine they wish to produce. The weather can also shape the timetable of harvesting with the threat of heat, rain, hail, and frost which can damage the grapes and bring about various vine disease. In addition to determining the time of the harvest, winemakers and vineyard owners must also determine whether to utilize hand pickers or mechanical harvesters.The question of using mechanical harvesting versus traditional hand picking is a source of contention in the wine industry. Mechanical harvesting of grapes has been one of the major changes in many vineyards in the last third of a century. First introduced commercially in the 1960s, it has been adopted in different wine regions for various economic, labor and winemaking reasons. In Australia, the reduced work force in the wine industry has made the use of mechanized labor almost a necessity.

Viticulture (from the Latin word for vine ) is the science, production and study of grapes which deals with the series of events that occur in the vineyard. When the grapes are used for winemaking, it is also known as viniculture.   

Duties of the viticulturist include: monitoring and controlling pests and diseases,fertilizing,canopy management, monitoring fruit development and characteristics ,deciding when to harvest and vine pruning during the winter months. Viticulturists are often intimately involved with winemakers, because vineyard management and the resulting grape characteristics, provide the basis from which winemaking can begin.

Fertilizers can be placed into the categories of organic fertilizers (composed of plant or animal matter), or inorganic fertilizers (made of simple,non-carbonaceous chemicals or minerals).