I don’t think I’ve ever had a response to a blog like the one I had to last week’s.

Thanks to everyone who came to the defense of poor little Sauvignon Blanc.

Here are just a few of the lovely comments my post inspired…

“In my opinion, there are three types of sauvignon blanc. The first is the cut grass flavour and smell of anything produced in Australia by amateurs. The second is the flowery lolly water produced by New Zealand WiNemAKERS (anagram the capitals) and the third is the wonderful stuff produced in the Adelaide Hills with Rob leading by a country mile.”

“…as you know I am not one to change the Sauvignon Blanc to anything else quite the opposite I change others to Sauvignon Blanc. I have no idea why ‘persons’ do not drink it but it does leave more for those that do.
Long may they not like it (selfish I know)”

“NZ has set a style that had points of difference from European versions, and that’s been exploited to the hilt. They still produce many fine examples, just don’t pay less than $20.”

“With many, many litres of experience I can expertly say your Sav Blanc is one of my absolute favourites and I cannot wait for your 2023 masterpiece!”

Certainly a lot more positive than last week’s quotes!

So, again… I urge you all to give Rob’s a try. I guarantee* you’ll be pleasantly surprised!

(*guarantee not guaranteed)

But that was so last week.

 

 

I obviously talk a lot about the Adelaide Hills.

For obvious reasons.

But I thought it might be nice to give the rest of Australia a bit of love this week.

I’d hate for you to think I’m “state-ist”.

As a matter of fact, I grew up in Victoria. And although my address, number plates and licence make it impossible to deny, it’s taken me a long time to come to terms with my status as a South Aussie.

 

Australian Wine

Australia has one of the most diverse wine scenes in the world, with more than 100 different grape varieties grown across
65 wine regions.

It is the world’s sixth-largest country by land mass (we’re bigger that the whole of Europe), the only island continent and one of the most geologically and biologically diverse countries on the planet.

Wine is produced in all six states and two territories. Most wine production is concentrated around the southeast and southwest of the country, where temperatures are coolest.

Roughly 145,000 hectares (or 0.02%) of Australia’s total land mass is under vine. This is slightly less than Bordeaux and Burgundy combined.

The climate and soils of Australia are extremely diverse, ranging from the alpine zones of southeastern Australia and Tasmania, to the Mediterranean areas of southern and southwestern Australia, to the tropics of Queensland.

In the southern regions, where vineyards are concentrated, the cold and stormy Southern Ocean keeps temperatures cool and contributes to an ideal climate for producing wine.

 

 

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I’ll probably turn this post into a two-parter.

So, for now, let’s just focus on the history of Australian wine (thanks to our friends at Wine Australia for all the facts)…

 

THE HISTORY AND HERITAGE OF AUSTRALIAN WINE

THE PIONEER ERA:

1788

With European settlement, the first vines were planted in New South Wales at the current site of the Sydney Botanic Gardens.

The vines were collected by the First Fleet from Rio De Janeiro and Cape Town on the journey from England to Australia.

1791

Just a few years later there were three acres of vines, around 8,000 plants, at Rose Hill near Parramatta and 800 cuttings at
Norfolk Island.

Since no one in Australia had viticultural or winemaking experience, these early efforts were unsuccessful.

1815

Pioneer and agriculturalist John Macarthur planted 3.5 hectares of vines on his property in Sydney in 1797, but his most important contribution to Australian wine came 20 years later.

John headed to Europe with his sons James and William with the aim of  “collecting vines and of obtaining information regarding their culture”. They propagated these vines in their nurseries at Penrith and Camden Park and then distributed them throughout the colony of New South Wales.

1822

The first bottle of Australian wine was exported – to London.

1823

By 1823, around 20 acres of grapevines had been planted in the Hunter Valley along the northern banks of the Hunter River, and in the years that followed, successful commercial grape growing began in the region.

Former convict Bartholomew Broughton planted the first significant vineyard in Tasmania. Around a decade later, in 1834, settler William Henty sailed to Victoria with grapevine cuttings and plants. These cuttings became the source of the first vineyards in Victoria and South Australia.

1829

The first grapevines in Western Australia were planted near Fremantle soon after the first colonists arrived. By 1832, botanist Thomas Waters of Olive Farm was making and selling the first Western Australian wine.

1832

James Busby, a Scottish civil servant and viticulturist, arrived in Australia in 1824.

In his short time in Australia, he wrote books on grape growing and winemaking while contributing greatly to the establishment of Australia’s wine community. During his four-month tour of Spanish and French vineyards, Busby collected hundreds of vine cuttings. These cuttings became the heart and soul of Australia’s collection of old vines.

1838

The first vines were planted in the Yarra Valley, making it Victoria’s first major wine-growing district. 

1838

Young farmer John Reynell established South Australia’s first commercial vineyard in McLaren Vale. He was joined in 1850 by Thomas Hardy, who learned from Reynell before establishing his own property in 1853. He went on to become a legend in Australian wine.

1842

The Barossa Valley was established when European settlers arrived.

In 1847, the first Eden Valley vines were planted by Joseph Gilbert at Pewsey Vale. Many of these early vines planted in the Barossa are still producing fruit today.

1844

The Penfolds story began when Dr Christopher Rawson Penfold, a medical practitioner from England, and his wife Mary
arrived in South Australia and purchased land in Adelaide. That same site is now famous as the home of Penfolds Magill Estate. It took just over 50 years for Penfolds to grow into Australia’s largest producer of fortified wines.

1849

Samuel Smith arrived in Australia in 1847 and quickly realised the soil and climate of the Barossa were perfectly suited to vines. He planted the first Yalumba vineyard in 1849, sowing the seeds that would grow into one of the world’s great wine families.

1858

The founder of the Hunter Valley’s famous Tyrrell’s Wines, Edward Tyrrell, purchased land for his first vineyard in 1858. Vineyards were planted in 1867, 1879 and 1908, and Tyrrell’s became a champion for Hunter Valley Semillon and Shiraz. In 1971, Tyrrell’s released Australia’s first ever varietally labelled Chardonnay, sparking an Australian wine revolution.

1864

George Morris used his fortune gained as a shopkeeper on gold diggings in Victoria to purchase 100 hectares of land. Like many others in the region, he planted vines. By the mid-1880s, the number of vineyards in the region had trebled and Rutherglen was the largest wine producer in Victoria. Today, the region is Australia’s capital of fortified wines.

1877

Samuel McWilliam planted vines on the outskirts of Corowa in New South Wales. His son JJ McWilliam went on to pioneer
the Riverina region, helping to develop it into one of Australia’s most important commercial wine areas.

Today, McWilliam’s Wines is one of the biggest names in Australian wine.

Phylloxera arrives

Phylloxera was introduced to Victoria in 1877 on European vine cuttings, and in 1884 it was detected at Camden in New South Wales.

But strict quarantine regulations meant many vineyards and regions remained phylloxera-free, including the whole of South Australia. Today, South Australia is home to some of the oldest vines in the world, growing on original European rootstocks – and most of Australia’s main vineyard regions are free of the pest.

1891

Pastoralist John Riddoch planted the first vineyard in Coonawarra. In 1951, David and Samuel Wynn bought Riddoch’s property and established the famous Wynns Coonawarra Estate.

 

THE FORTIFIED ERA:

1910

The Riverland is Australia’s highest-volume wine-producing region, making a diverse range of wines.

It all started with Carl ‘Skipper’ Angove who recognised the region’s viticultural potential and planted vines in 1910. Vineyards grew steadily with the help of European immigrants after World War I, who brought new winemaking traditions.

1921

One of Australia’s most famous winemakers, Maurice O’Shea, persuaded his mother to purchase the historic Mount Pleasant
property at Pokolbin. He had a passion for Semillon as a single-varietal wine (uncommon at the time). He made thrilling
table wines when most wine produced and consumed was fortified.

1928

Founded when Vittorio De Bortoli crushed a modest 15 tonnes of grapes in the Riverina for friends and family, De Bortoli Wines has grown to become an Australian icon. Famous for its groundbreaking ‘Noble One’ Semillon dessert wine, De Bortoli continues to lead through innovation and quality.

 

THE RENAISSANCE ERA:

1951

Penfolds Grange is arguably Australia’s most famous wine, created by legendary winemaker Max Schubert with the help of
research chemist Ray Beckwith. They proved that Australia was capable of producing wines equal to the best in the world.

1955

The Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) was established. Along with universities and other leading research institutes, it ensured – and continues to ensure – that viticultural and winemaking decisions are supported by the latest science.

The AWRI has become known as the world’s foremost wine research facility, challenging winemaking convention with scientific insights and illuminating the path for winemakers intent on putting taste above tradition.

 

THE GOLDEN AGE:

1963

Victoria’s first wine-growing district almost didn’t make it after phylloxera hit the state in 1877. This, combined with economic downturn, led to vines being removed in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

But in the 1960s and ’70s a group of wine pioneers rediscovered the region’s potential. Reg Egan from Wantirna Estate was the first to re-plant vines in 1963, and Yarra Yering’s Dr Bailey Carrodus made the first commercial vintage produced in the region for over 50 years in 1973.

1967

Cardiologist Dr Tom Cullity planted Margaret River’s first modern commercial vineyard, Vasse Felix. Today, Margaret River produces wines to match the world’s best.

1979

Vines were planted in the Adelaide Hills as far back as the 1870s, but most were removed by the 1930s.

The rebirth of the region began when winemaker Brian Croser and his family planted Chardonnay. He was soon joined by other wine pioneers and today there are around 100 producers in this premium cool-climate region.

1980s

The gradual shift towards table wines continued and for the first time in Australia’s wine history. More table than fortified wine was consumed.

The cool-climate region of Orange in New South Wales has a grape-growing heritage that stretches back to the 19th century,
but it wasn’t until the 1980s that things really kicked off.

In just over three decades, it’s grown to include more than 60 wineries and world-class wines. Orange’s rapid success highlights the growing popularity of Australian cool-climate wines.

2007

Exports of Australian wine globally peaked at A$950 million.

2010s

A new generation of experimental winemakers began to emerge, with artisan production and organic/biodynamic credentials being explored.

These creative producers added diversity to the fascinating ongoing story of Australian wine.