George Taylor, vineyard manager for Foster’s Wine Estates’ Barossa properties insisted I put on protective paper booties before venturing into the famed Kalimna Homestead Block 42 vineyard, home to Penfolds’ prized Cabernet Sauvignon vines. These aren’t just any vines. They are likely the oldest Cabernet 
Sauvignon vines in the world, planted in 1888 to1890 by the Fowler family when they purchased the Kalimna Homestead property. Some of the fruit from these vines went into the early vintages of Grange, before it became 100% Shiraz, and it still goes into Penfolds Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon.
So why the paper protective gear? I had been visiting Coldstream Hills in Victoria near where phylloxera had just been discovered about 6 months earlier. Having been told I would be in a ‘phylloxera exclusion zone’ in Victoria, I was cautioned to wear shoes there that I would not wear in South Australia. Even though I wore different shoes, the protective booties were just one more layer of ‘protocols’ that Fosters–and others–have put in place to try to prevent the spread of the disease into South Australia, a state that has never had phylloxera.
Whether the protocols will work is anyone’s guess. What’s certain is that sales of boots have sky-rocketed. Vineyard workers in Victoria can’t wear the same boots to walk in two different vineyards, so workers need several pairs each. Tractors and other equipment must be quarantined and steam cleaned after going into vineyards before being allowed into neighboring ones. No grapes–only wine–can be transported from one state to another.
Wineries are planning ahead. Although South Australia dodged the bullet when phylloxera infected neighboring Victoria in the late 19th century, the industry is very different now. One hundred years ago, there was no mechanization and little mobility from one area to another. Now, with corporate ownership of vineyards throughout Australia, workers and equipment routinely shuttle from one area to another. Some winemakers, who preferred to remain anonymous, think it’s only a matter of time before 
phylloxera hits South Australia. Sue Hodder, winemaker at Wynns Coonawarra Estate, doesn’t think it’s inevitable, but notes nevertheless that since 2001 all their new planting have been on phylloxera resistant rootstock.
Even if phylloxera spreads, its effects won’t be felt for years. A much more immediate threat is the continuation of the severe drought conditions in South 
Australia. ‘This is the driest it’s ever been,’ according to Peter Gago, Penfolds chief winemaker. ‘We had to irrigate vines at Magill Estate this year just to keep them alive.’ The drought, combined with a severe frost in October 2006 means the total crop in Australia will likely be done to levels not seen for 5 years.
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