Crush survey shows a rebound in 2025?

A MAJOR industry report shows the total volume of wine grapes crushed in the Barossa Valley and Riverland, plus the area of planted vineyards, slightly increased during 2025.

The Wine Australia SA Winegrape Crush Survey 2025 showed the total reported crush of South Australian wine grapes in 2025 was 687,564 tonnes. This was 11 per cent above the 2024 crush of 619,358 tonnes, and 10 per cent below the 10-year average (2015-2024) of 760,348 tonnes, although it was only 7 per cent below the five-year average (2020–24) of 736,081 tonnes.

It was the fourth-smallest reported crush from South Australia since 2015. There were 311 respondents reporting grapes crushed from SA regions in 2025, compared with 278 in 2024.

After recording the lowest crush for 10 years with 391,828 tonnes in 2024, the Riverland saw a 3 per cent increase to 401,459 tonnes in 2025. This slight improvement still makes it the second-lowest crush over a decade.

The Riverland’s 2025 crush was also 13 per cent below its 10-year average of 463,084 tonnes.

Crush value and average value

The total estimated value of the crush was $531m, up $74m (16 per cent) compared with 2024, reflecting the increased crush size combined with a 4 per cent increase in the overall average purchase value, which increased from $675 per tonne in 2024, to $700 per tonne.

The weighted average prices for the top variety in each major region decreased in the case of reds. The exception was Barossa shiraz, which saw a slight increase (up 2 per cent), to $1905 per tonne, after declining for the past four years in a row.
Riverland Chardonnay increased 11 per cent, to $406 per tonne.

Varietal overview

The red crush from South Australian vineyards was 455,730 tonnes in 2025, up by 25 per cent compared with 2024 and 2 per cent below the five-year average of 462,984 tonnes.

All the top varieties increased. Shiraz increased by 24 per cent, cabernet sauvignon was up 46 per cent, merlot was up 24 per cent and pinot noir was up by 28 per cent.

Grenache recorded a smaller change, but still increased by 2 per cent. Shiraz accounted for 47 per cent of the red crush, with cabernet sauvignon second (29 per cent) and merlot a distant third (8 per cent).

On the other hand, the white crush decreased by 9 per cent year-on-year to 231,833 tonnes. As a result, it decreased its share of the total crush from 41 per cent in 2024, to 34 per cent in 2025.

The overall decrease was largely driven by a decrease in chardonnay (down 21 per cent), which made up 45 per cent of the whites. Other top varieties also contributed to the decline including muscat gordo blanco (down 8 per cent), colombard (down 21 per cent) and riesling (down 4 per cent).

Vineyard plantings

Planting data derived from the Vinehealth Australia vineyard register shows there were 74,591 hectares planted to vines in South Australia as at 30 April, 2025. This represents a net decrease of 141 hectares in the last 12 months.

Despite the net decrease, there were plantings over the last year, with a total of 163 hectares planted to wine grapes in the 2024–25 planting season (including topworking and replacements), compared with 540 hectares in the previous season.

The most-planted varieties across the state were sauvignon blanc (38 hectares), shiraz (24 hectares) and grenache (24 hectares). The largest area of new plantings in the state was in the Barossa Valley (52 hectares), followed by the Riverland (27 hectares).

There were 3160 vineyard owners registered with Vinehealth Australia as at 30 April, 2025, compared with 3182 in 2024.