Argentina
It was a cold winter in the Andes with some snow fall but not enough to end the cumulative drought. Not surprisingly the bud burst was delayed. Once the shoots did emerge in the spring there was great anxiety about a series of frost “events”. This culminated on the night of 30th November / 1st December when a polar front brought icy conditions to Mendoza. Damage was extensive and it was clear from this point that the 2023 harvest would be small
As is so often the case, after punishing cold in the spring the summer became brutally hot and dry. What precipitation did fall came in the shape of hail – not the ideal source of moisture
February was particularly warm and this advanced the picking by up to a month. With everything apparently ripening simultaneously there was a rush to gather the grapes. Even the most patient estates were finished by the first week of April. There were no disease issues so quality should at least be good. As predicted, the spring frost and chronic drought saw yields reduced markedly. The national crop was down 19% against 2022 and a vicious 29% against the five year average. News of the frost saw the price of Malbec spike upwards but with muted export demand in 2023 the market has stabilised and sensibly priced Malbec is currently widely available.
