QUICK FACTS

• First planted in 1990 (33 years old in 2023).
• Our steepest vineyard – average slope is almost 6° – and our highest vineyard, reaching 206m at its highest point.
• This west facing vineyard experiences great afternoon and evening heat loads right up to the point of sunset and, for soil temperatures, into the evening. Partly due to this the Judd Vineyard is much more generous in the fruit flavour profiles which offers a unique point of difference from the elegance of Wallis and delicacy of McCutcheon.
• 115 (and sometimes 114) from the Creek Block provides the fruit for the Judd Pinot Noir.
• P58 from the Poplar Block provides the fruit for Judd Chardonnay.
• On average, Pinot Noir ripens here 21 days later than Coolart Road, 2 days later than Wallis and 5 days earlier than McCutcheon.
• Also home to our Sauvignon Blanc.

HISTORY

In 1988 on instructions from the original owner, the Gurry family, viticultural consultant Ian MacRae conducted a feasibility study on establishing a vineyard on the property. The report concluded…

“The property has approximately 10 hectares of land highly suitable for viticultural development…this site is capable of supporting economic crop levels of winegrapes of very high quality.”

As Splitters Ridge Estate, the first grapes, 3.2 hectares of Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, were planted in 1990; subsequent plantings by the original owners included 1.2 hectares of Chardonnay in 1993 and, in 1994, 0.8 hectares of Sauvignon Blanc and 0.4 hectare of Pinot Noir.

The Judd family bought the property in 1996 and in 1999 founded Ten Minutes by Tractor. Although all three families sold the wine business in 2004, the three founding vineyards continue to be represented in our estate and single vineyard wines.

SLOPE ORIENTATION

Due west. This vineyard sees slow morning warming as the sun rises over the ridge and experiences great summer and autumn afternoon and evening heat loads right up to the point of sunset and, for soil temperatures, into the evening. Partly due to this the Judd Vineyard is much more generous in the fruit flavour profiles of all the varieties planted which offers a unique point of difference from the elegance of the Wallis and delicate nature of the McCutcheon.

ROW ORIENTATION

Except for a small parcel of Pinot Noir (the North-South Block), all the vine rows run down the slope, orientated east to west. This facilitates drainage down the slope, orientates the rows perpendicular to the strongest of the prevailing winds (north and south to south-west), reduces the impact of any intense heatwave bursts (the hottest afternoon sun from the west has less impact than on west facing rows, ie those running north-south), achieves the longest and most efficient row length and is safest for any tractor operations.

TEMPERATURE

Taking Pinot Noir harvest dates from our reference blocks as a proxy for temperature, Coolart Road is our warmest vineyard followed by Wallis then Judd and McCutcheon. This we would expect – Coolart Road is the lowest followed by Wallis then Judd and McCutcheon is the highest. And of course it is never that simple, there are specifics in each reference vineyard that effect the averages…

• Judd Pinot Noir is the earlier ripening 115 clone; Coolart Road, McCutcheon and Wallis are the later ripening MV6.
• Judd and Coolart Road Pinot Noir is on hybrid rootstock; McCutcheon and Wallis are on their own; the rootstocks on Judd and Coolart Road contribute to a short vegetative cycle.
• Judd faces due west, McCutcheon due east; Coolart Road and Wallis are flatter with a slight northerly aspect. Wallis is close to Bass Strait and exposed to cooler breezes from there.

19 Year Average Pinot Noir Harvest Dates…

• Coolart Road (A Block MV6, altitude 69m) 7 March (10 year average)
• Wallis (Middle Block MV6, altitude 128m) 27 March
• Judd (Creek Block 115, altitude 163m) 28 March
• McCutcheon (Ridge Block MV6, altitude 201m) 2 April Harvest differences (days)…

SOIL

The soils here are the red ferrosols common to the Main Ridge sub-region.

The top soil, classed as a silty clay loam, runs to a depth of about 20-30cm over these red ferrosols. It suffers little from compaction and is generally well aerated, with excellent drainage and no water logging. The upper zone of the vineyard has thinner topsoil and dries out faster than the lower zone.

Water drains to the west, along the vine rows, with land contours and slowly seeps into the lower zone creating higher soil moisture content. Due to this long term water penetration the lower soils are slightly more fertile than those higher in the vineyard. This has resulted in the planting of all the Pinot Noir onto phylloxera resistant rootstocks which also add a de-vigouring effect; this has greatly assisted with yield control and vine balance which in turn has led to an improvement in flavour development.

These are very broad soil classifications and we are continuing to investigate the more specific details in each vineyard, in fact, each block.

WIND

Wind breaks along the northern and southern boundaries protect the vineyard from the strongest winds – the northerlies and south-south westerlies. Summer northerly’s can be strong here and can have a drying influence although fertile soils keep vine health at a desired level and winter southerly’s can make this a very cold vineyard to prune.