A week of 40C to 45C (103F to 113F) Heat ruins grape harvest.

It is summer in the wine area of the Barossa Valley, in South Australia, Australia. Just 80kms (50miles) north of Adelaide. In a few weeks time the grape picking harvest starts and what had looked like to be a good harvest  has now been ruined by about a third because we have just had a week of 40C to 45C (103F to 113F) heat, SHADE temperatures that is and the grapes are NOT in the shade and we have ANOTHER WEEK  forecast of this same heat. For many grape growers this could be the final hit at them after a few years of drought conditions or where they did managed to get a good harvest the winery prices for the grapes per tonne (ton) has not been worth the money of pruning, picking delivery etc of the grapes. Last year many hundreds of tonnes of grapes in the area were left on the vines to rot because of the low prices. This year many hundreds of tonnes of grapes will have shrivelled in the sun and of no use for making wine.  It is NOT global warming but just part of the cycle of weather that happens in South Australia although this past week has been the hottest since 1908, 101 years ago, so they had it just as bad then but they did not call it global warming.   This photo of SHIRAZ grapes was taken this morning, Tuesday 2nd February 2009 at friends small private winery.