Australia is gradually settling into being a world class wine producer of some repute and while still considered “New World” as far as wine production is concerned, the wines are well established on the world stage and very often are people’s first choice for affordable elegant wines. Today,

Australian Wines

are found on the finest of wine lists world wide and have brought some dazzling wines to the market because of the unique climate and soil types of Australia. Perfect to accompany any meal or to drink alone, Australian wines will delight any palate.

Australian Wine making History

In 1788 Captain Arthur Phillip sailed into Sydney Cove importing Australia’s first grape vines from Brazil and the Cape of Good Hope. This tentative start was the birth of a thriving viticultural industry that in little over 200 years would be exporting over 800 million litres of wine to the world. The earliest vines were planted in Sydney and unfortunately due to the heat and humidity of the Farm Cove site the vineyard never flourished. John Macarthur on his Camden Park property some 50km South West of Sydney is widely credited with cultivating Australia’s first commercial vineyard and winery early in the 1800’s. Principal varieties grown were Pinot Gris, Frontignac, Gouais, Verdelho and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Commercial vineyards for wine production were well established in most States by 1850. The ancient Australian soil, protected by their remoteness from industrialization and disease, proved extremely fertile. From the gently undulating soils of the Hunter Valley, to the steep, windswept gradients of the Eden Valley, maritime slopes of Geelong, the early winemakers embraced the diversity of the vast Australian landscape. By 1854 the first wine export to the United Kingdom had been formally recorded – 1,384 gallons (6,291 litres).

In the mid 1800’s, Phylloxera small, sap-eating, greenish insect related to the aphid decimated over two thirds of the vineyards in Europe and by 1875 Australia fell victim. Strict quarantine regulations, restricting the movement of vine material between Australian wine regions, enabled South Australia’s wine regions, such as the Barossa Valley, to remain Phylloxera free and thus today lay claim to some of the oldest vines in the world – still growing on their original European rootstocks.

Australian Wine Industry Expands

Domestic consumption of wine vastly increased during World War Two (WWII). The critical shortage of beer saw the thirsty armies of both the US and Australia seeking alternative beverages and until the 1960’s approximately 80% of Australian made wine was sweet fortified sherry and port styles, known in the UK as ‘Colonial Wine’. Contemporary tastes swung slowly away from fortified wine under the influence of post-WWII migrants from Europe who introduced their culture of enjoying food with table wine in restaurants and at home.

Interestingly as early as 1925, the legendary Maurice O’Shea had been quietly championing table wine at his Mount Pleasant vineyard in the

Hunter Valley

. A master blender, O’Shea’s finely crafted table wines were unprecedented in Australia at the time. Twenty six years later, Penfold’s pioneering winemaker Max Schubert experimented with his first vintage of Grange – the iconic dry red destined to become Australia’s most lauded wine.

By mid 1970, fueled by consumers’ thirst for

dry red table wine

, sales of fortified were finally eclipsed and 1980 saw domestic wine consumption per capita reach 17.3 litres, ‘bag in box’ packaging had been perfected, and the liberalization of alcohol licensing laws had spawned a profusion of outlets to sell wine, beer and spirits. Consumers were spoiled for choice the Australian palate swung firmly in favour of white wine.

Australian Wines Export Success

The volume of Australian wine exports for the 1981/82 financial year was just over 8 million litres, valued at almost A$14 million. Australia’s principal export market was Canada followed by New Zealand. Approximately 170 Australian wineries were using almost 500,000 tonnes of grapes for wine production from just over 60,000 hectares of vines.

Six years later export volume for the 1987/88 financial year had soared to 39 million litres with a value of A$97 million, and Sweden and the United Kingdom had taken first and second positions as Australia’s prime export markets.

Today, Australia with just 4% of total world wine production is the fourth largest exporter by volume behind the traditional wine producing giants of Italy, France and Spain. In the year ended July 2007 Australia’s wine exports reached record levels for both value (A$3 billion) and volume (805 million litres) and vine bearing area exceeded 160,000 hectares with over 2,100 producers using more than 1.3 million tonnes of grapes for wine production.

The Australian Wine Scene Today

Today Australia has an enviable restaurant culture where internationally recognised wines can be enjoyed with exciting and ever changing cuisines. There are wines to suit spicy Asian cuisines and classic food. No barbeque is complete without wine and there are wines that suit the outdoors perfectly too. With over 60 designated wine regions, the diversity of grapes and resulting wines is on offer the world over and showcases Australia’s established and credible offer of quality wines at every price point. That so many wines are produced by small independent producers gives a diversity of flavour as well as a touch of personality from the grower.

Australian viticulturists have an enormous diversity of soils, some over 500 million years old that affords them the luxury of planting each variety in an environment guaranteed to see it thrive. Whether free draining soil littered with ironstone, ideal for the exacting

Pinot Noir

, or the famed

Terra Rossa

, beloved of

Cabernet Sauvignon

the result of carefully considered plantings is outstanding quality fruit.

Home to many world renowned research and educational facilities Australia’s next generation of winemakers and viticulturists have the sound technical skills necessary to allow unbridled expression of their creative spirit in an international market.

A Personal View from Robert Hill Smith, Managing Director –

Yalumba, Barrossa Valley

, South Australia
“Nearly 160 years ago, from modest beginnings and 30 acres of land in South Australia’s Barossa, the winery named “Yalumba” – an aboriginal word meaning “all the land around” – has grown in size and stature; embodying all that has made the Australian wine success story.

Though the founder Samuel Smith was English an important early winegrower influence in the Barossa was the German immigrants who settled the area having fled religious persecution in Silesia and other parts of northern Europe. Scattered amongst the Lutheran churches and villages, are their descendants who work tirelessly in the vineyards established by their forefathers to produce premium grapes. Some of these vines are over 100 years old and among the oldest in the world.

The history of

Yalumba

mirrors, to a large extent, the history of the Australian wine industry. During the years when Australia was known primarily for fortified wines, Yalumba developed an envied reputation for its quality “ports” and “sherries”. But the true nature of the winery’s evolution only really became apparent in the early 1980′s at a time when the international wine world was about to experience dynamic change that would see Australia emerge as a powerful force revolutionising attitudes to table and sparkling wine production.

We harboured a dream to focus the family business on the fine wine market crafting some of the country’s finest varietal and blended wines. A vision encompassing Estate vineyards on prime sites in Eden Valley, Coonawarra, and

Barossa Valley

and latterly the new “Wrattonbully” region, was matched by significant modernisation of the winery itself. In addition to establishing environment management systems that complemented the making of superior quality varietal wines that suited the world’s changing tastes, Yalumba also saw the value of true “brands”.

We are 160 years young, dynamic and looking confidently towards the future.”

As a relative new comer in the world of wine, Australia has conquered the mainstream consumer market and will build on this success through showcasing world class wines that express the enormous diversity of the people who craft them and the unique regional characteristics they express. Australia boasts Landmark wines of pedigree, elegance and longevity that have established a reputation for winemaking excellence that cannot be duplicated. This reputation will undoubtedly grow as Australian innovation and standards seek ever higher pinnacles. To quote Australian wine legend Len Evans, “Australia’s best wines are all before it.”

Australian Red Wine

Australia’s red grapes are amongst its greatest assets: after all, who could imagine a world without classic Australian Shiraz?

Australia is blessed with abundant sunshine which enables the grapes to ripen to perfection.  Whatever the vagaries of a particular red grape variety, there will be a part of Australia that can give it everything it needs.   Even tough grapes to cultivate like rustic

Malbec

or the black Petit Verdot turn out to perfection.

In general, the warmer the wine region, the more likely it will produce rich, full flavoured styles which many people come to associate with Australian red wine.  However, Australia also has cool climatic conditions well suited to red varieties which produce lighter and more delicate red wine styles.

The world’s classic premium red grape varieties are all found in abundance in Australia. Cabernet Sauvignon has several natural “homes” amongst

Australia’s wine regions

.  The famous

Coonawarra terra rossa

soils have produced excellent Cabernet Sauvignon for over a century, while few regions can match Western Australia’s

Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon

for sheer stylishness. In cooler regions, the tricky grape Pinot Noir is a seamless fit, while the versatile Shiraz, expresses itself wonderfully in all but the coolest regions. Several of the milder climate regions are also home to a beautifully eccentric Australian speciality wine, sparkling red Shiraz.
Whatever you’re looking for in terms of red wine, the chances are Australia will be making what you desire somewhere.

Australian Red Wine Grape Varieties

Barbera
Of the Italian varieties,

Sangiovese

and Barbera have had the most success in Australia. 

Barbera

is perhaps the most suited to the country with its full-on plummy fruitiness being at home in hot temperatures.

Cabernet Franc
Cabernet Franc is included in blends with

Cabernet Sauvignon

or Merlot.  A slight pity as in its own right it’s full of wild-strawberry and cherry fruitiness – lighter in style than Shiraz and great for drinking in warmer weather!

Cabernet Sauvignon
Usually considered the noblest of red grapes, probably due to its pride of place in the history of old world classics.

In Australian wines, it tends to be resident in the medium to cool regions. The wines will have powerful flavours full-bodied and deep with blackcurrents.  The best hails from

Coonawarra

and

Margaret River

– the latter region coming up with lovely good blends with Merlot.

The Yarra Valley in Victoria is another Cabernet Sauvignon producer, making wines that have elegant pure fruit flavours. 

McLaren Vale in South Australia

and Mudgee in New South Wales also generate wines with a hint of chocolate, black currant and berry characteristics.  All of these wines are rich and well structured and benefit from extra ageing age in bottle, making them ideal to lay down for a year or two.

Grenache
Grenache is another red grape variety from the Rhône, which is just as at home in Australia as Shiraz is. Like Shiraz it was taken for granted for a long while – prized principally for its juicy rosé and fiery fortified wines.  Today, with the discovery of some of the original old vines first planted over 150 years ago, growers now realise that this grape makes luscious cherry and raspberry-filled wines.  Renowned for their sweet ripeness, these grapes (which grow best in Australia’s warmer regions) make wines which are high in alcohol and low in tannin.

Merlot
Merlot is a grape variety which is rarely used on its own in Australia. If you do find this single grape variety wine, it will be full of attractive primary fruit flavours and velvety softness.  Merlot makes a perfect partner for Cabernet Sauvignon; it adds smoothness to Cabernet’s stern, serious structure.

Fine examples of

Merlot blended wines

are available from the warmer inland regions, such as Riverina, Riverland and Murray Darling.  Unblended Merlot is also being increasingly seen from these areas, where similar to the Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale it produces a soft dry red often described as plush and plum like.
In cooler climates such as the

Yarra Valley

or Margaret River, unblended Merlot tends to take on more savoury flavours with firmer tannins.

Mourvedre
Mourvedre (or

Mataro

) was another grape used in Australia’s bulk wines during the1960s.  Mourvedre has since been rediscovered for its fabulously rich, spicy old-vine/bush-vine wines.  The

Barossa Valley

has some wonderful examples of this variety which should be treasured for their history and for their spice and liquorice concentration.

Pink or Rose Wines
Rosé style wines are made by pressing ripe, red grapes but leaving the juice in contact with the skins for just a short while so that the wines just acquire a pink blush.  These wines are generally drunk young, while they are still fresh and vibrant.

They tend to be drunk chilled, an increasingly popular option during warm Australian days.  As Australian winemakers are using their favourite grapes such as Shiraz and Grenache for the wine with their tendency to produce more complex flavours, Australian rosés fall mid-way between whites and fuller bodied reds.

Pinot Noir
This delicate grape is a challenge to grow at the best of times but in a sun-drenched Australia it is an even greater challenge.  Persistence paid off and a handful of

Australian Pinot Noir

styles have emerged.  Being a cool climate variety, growers in the coolest regions are seeing great success in regions like the Adelaide Hills, Tasmania, Mornington Peninsula, Geelong, the Yarra Valley and Great Southern.

In these regions the wines tend to come out strawberry / raspberry- fruited when young, then get progressively more mushroomy and savoury with age.  The best styles of all come from vines with a little age, which haven’t been harvested too heavily and from wines given a gentle maturation in oak barrels.

Sangiovese
Of the Italian varieties,

Sangiovese

and Barbera have had the most success in Australia.  Sangiovese’s sour-cherry tones have proved more difficult to perfect but a few from the McLaren Vale region have shown good potential.

Shiraz
No other grape has such a uniquely Australian character. The unique mulberry, spicy, slightly ‘wild’ flavour is Australia’s own.

Shiraz (the same grape as Syrah in France’s Rhône Valley) was one of the first vine varieties to arrive in Australia in 1832.  So at home was it on its new turf that plantings prospered and it wasn’t long before the local population began to take it for granted.  However, by the 1980s people had begun to realise how versatile it could be, its character changed depending on the region in which it was grown.

Every style emerged from elegant, peppery cool climate styles (

Heathcote in Victoria

) to more intensely flavoured spicy styles of Coonawarra and Margaret River to powerful and minty (Clare Valley), sweet and chocolaty (

McLaren Vale

), muscular, and ripe-fruited (Barossa), and leather and rich (Hunter Valley). Shiraz, which has traditionally been blended in both cool and warm climates with Cabernet Sauvignon, is also blended with Grenache and Mourvedre in warm climates.

In recent years, with the availability of increased plantings of Viognier in Australia, winemakers have increasingly

blended Shiraz Viognier

combinations.  Typically, Shiraz Viognier blends have a perfumed aroma and softer tannins which make these wines suitable to enjoy while relatively young.

Tempranillo
Tempranillo is known for its sweet, plumy berry flavours that are balanced by savoury, dry tannins. Originally from Spain this grape is adapting well to new homes in Australia. In cool regions Tempranillo can be ‘spicy’ while warmer regions bring out sweeter fruity flavours but stronger tannins too.

Zinfandel
Zinfandel is a thin-skinned grape that performs best in warm, dry conditions.  In Australia the

Cape Mentelle winery

in Western Australia’s Margaret River region has played ambassador to the grape producing dense, high alcohol wines with intense flavours that have developed a cult status.  However other Australians are now using the grape to produce lighter, spicy wines that can, in the Californian fashion, be savoured much younger.

Australian White Wines

Australian white wines have an extraordinary quality and diversity and have a story to tell all of their own. The winemakers who create them have a unique approach that sets their wines apart from the rest of the world.

When you look at it in the glass, a white Australian wine can be anything from opulent golden yellow – orange almost – to palest lemon yellow.  The colour depends on the region it comes from (how cool or warm it is) and on the grape from which it was made; for example,

Rieslings

are paler than Chardonnays. Colour can be a clue to the taste (the deeper it is, the richer the flavour) but a better indication comes from taking a big sniff.  Swirl the glass round and sniff again.  One thing you’ll be sure of from Australia is that you will be smelling the product of well grown and fully ripened grapes.

Delicious, concentrated ripe fruit, harvested in perfect conditions is easier to obtain in Australia than almost anywhere else in the world.  Beyond this it is difficult to generalise, so different are the aromas, flavours and taste sensations that come from each of the grapes, blends and regions.

Chardonnay
This classic grape variety first came to Australia in the late 1920s but it wasn’t until the 1970s that it become the most widely planted variety in the country.

The peak of its fame came in the 1980s and looking back, the critics now criticise some of those wines for being “oaky” and unsubtle, but people loved them.

Pick up a bottle today and you will discover

Australian Chardonnay

to be consistently well made, often with a hint of vanilla/oak flavours and plenty of ripe, melon/grapefruit to ripe peach fruit.  From warmer inland regions (Murray Darling, Riverland, Riverina) they will often exhibit tropical fruit flavours.  From the coolest regions, such as Tasmania, Adelaide Hills and Mornington Peninsula the characters will be much more subtle with citrus (grapefruit and lime characters) predominating.

The Yarra Valley, Margaret River and Coonawarra all produce wonderful Chardonnay examples that show fruit richness and complexity.  In truth, Chardonnay is Australia’s most versatile white wine grape, as evidenced by outstanding examples from the coolest to the warmest regions.

Chenin Blanc
Chenin Blanc is a favourite with growers over in Western Australia with the Swan Valley and the

Peel regions

particularly well suited.  Its appley flavours and crisp acidity can fare well in hands of the right winemaker – or after a few years in the right cellar.

Colombard
Although often blended with Chardonnay and sometimes Sauvignon Blanc, on its own

Colombard

produces a full-bodied wine with good acidity. Regionally examples to seek out include

Adelaide Plains

and Murray Darling.  It is a grape variety that generally does better in warmer climates.

Gewurztraminer
Growers are in two minds about

Gewurztraminer

, do we or don’t we?  Try out some of the versions from Clare Valley, Great Southern or Tasmania and you’ll agree they definitely should.  Spicy lychee, Turkish delight and floral flavour predominate; add to this Gewurztraminer’s distinctive rich mouth texture, and you have the ideal wine compliment for the spicy flavours of Thai, Chinese and even Indian cuisine.

Marsanne
Although much-admired in the Rhône wines of southern France,

Marsanne

is a variety that has only recently captured the enthusiasm of Australia. It is particularly good in the Goulburn and Yarra Valleys (Victoria).  Basically, it’s like Chardonnay and Semillon but more so.  More honeyed, more peachy, more spicy and there’s just a little more lemony acidity, too, which saves this grape from luscious overkill.  As with its cousins from the Rhone, you won’t see too many of these wines around but if you spot a bottle, grab it, it’ll be worth trying.

Muscat
In Australia, as elsewhere, this variety’s greatest triumph is with its sweet wines.
Grown in the Rutherglen district of Victoria, fully ripened grapes are harvested, then are partially fermented and (traditionally) left to mature in barrels. This dessert wine is ambrosial. The Muscats from north-east Victoria are truly one of Australia’s “gifts” to the word of wine.

Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio
Australian Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris is another fairly recent arrival that is starting to develop a strong following worldwide.  This should be no surprise, as its Alsace cousin, Riesling, has been an Australian star for several decades.

It comes in two main styles, each equally fashionable: fresh, crisp, unwooded and simple (ideal for hot summer day drinking), and later-picked spicier, richer wine (delicately buttery) which keeps a treat in the cellar. Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula and Great Western regions and the State of Tasmania all produce stunning examples of this now popular variety.

Riesling
Unlike their European counterparts,

Australian Rieslings

are generally made in dry styles.  The result is another international gem, which due to their crisp fruit and acid balance are a perfect food accompaniment.

Riesling also has an ability to mature with age as well as delight with its youthful freshness.  Look out for examples from the Clare or Eden Valleys of South Australia which develop this grape’s classic honey and citrus characters.

There are more fine examples of

Rieslings from Western Australia

’s Great Southern region (great complexity), from Tasmania (crisp and perfumed) and the Barossa Valley (more rounded and full-flavoured).

Sauvignon Blanc
Australian Sauvignon Blanc is a variety which is both fast-growing in popularity and increasing plantings.

As elsewhere in the world, it is a variety which shows its best when grown in cooler wine regions. Australia’s huge diverse landmass provides the perfect growing conditions for this classic variety in several of its regions.

Yarra Valley, Adelaide Hills, Margaret River, Orange in New South Wales and Tasmania, are all regions which produce wonderfully expressive Sauvignon Blanc.

In the coolest regions and vintages, these vines have “grassy”, gooseberry characters, whereas, in slightly warmer vintages the more passionfruit flavour with a zing of acidity, are more typical. In Margaret River, Sauvignon Blanc is often blended with Semillon which creates a perfect partnership and fuller palate style.

Semillon
Semillon is one of the very best grapes for demonstrating the different characters emerging from Australia’s varied wine regions.

Start with Semillon from the Barossa Valley to get a glimpse of this grape at its most luscious.  Deep yellow in the glass, aromas of peaches and mangoes fill the nose and in the glass the flavours will continue the theme – with added vanilla (Barossa Semillon is often wood-aged like Chardonnay).

Semillon from the Hunter Valley is another matter altogether.  It’s a lean, rather pale-looking wine that seems to have little more than flintiness in its favour.  Give it a few years in bottle, however, and as if from nowhere it turns into a honeyed, nutty, complex classic.  Go west and Margaret River’s versions are a fine balance between these two styles, and they age well too.  Find a Semillon from anywhere in Australia and you’ll almost certainly be able to distinguish it by its warm, peachy character.

Verdelho
Verdelho as a varietal still wine is a success story the Australians can claim as their own. It originally arrived in the country for the purpose of making intensely sweet fortified wines, just as it does on the island of Madeira.  However, when bottled as a still table wine (unfortified) the winemakers of Australia found they’d hit on something really special.

Nutty/savoury in character it makes a striking contrast to the voluptuous style of, say, a Chardonnay or Semillon but yet isn’t quite as tangy as Sauvignon Blanc.

Look out for this variety in Western Australia, the Hunter Valley and increasingly in South Australia.

Viognier
Acclaimed for the stunning whites it makes in the Rhône, this grape is set for more success in Australia than it’s ever received so far. It is challenging to grow, however,

Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula

and the Eden Valley and McLaren Vale of South Australia, several vineyards have had success.  Like Chardonnay, Australian Viognier is also great when matured or fermented in oak barrels.

Australian Sparkling Wine

Sparkling Red
Australia’s unique style of wine,

Sparkling Reds

have been made since the 1860′s; mainly from the Shiraz grape. These wines are lots of fun, with great fruit, slight tannin and sweetness to give great balance – just the wine to keep your taste buds tingling and a great match for a meal. This is the wine Australians have with the turkey at Christmas.

Sparkling White
Sparkling Australian wine comes in all shapes, sizes and hues. White versions vary from everyday fizz, full of fruit and fun, to top-notch traditionally made (fermented in the bottle) true classics.

Not surprisingly, the cool regions of Australia are producing outstanding base material for these quality wines: Tasmania and the Yarra Valley being amongst the best.

Fortified Wines

Fortified wines hold a proud place in Australian wine history and continue to hold a special place in the hearts of aficionados of fine and dessert-style wines.

These wines are sometimes described as “liquid sunshine”, as the grapes are generally left on the vine much longer than usual.  This allows the berries to store more natural sugar while drying out slightly in the warmth of Australia’s autumn days.

Wine fortification, which generally involves the addition of a small amount of brandy spirit to the partly fermented red wine, ensures that colours and flavours are retained, regardless of the wines’ storage or treatment. After fortification, the wine is generally left to mature in small oak barrels, sometimes for decades, maturing into complex, aromatic wines, with immense depth and concentration of flavour.

In the 1850s, the infant

Australian wine

industry adopted the wine fortification process within a few years of white settlement as it overcame the distance from the English markets and the challenge of getting wines safely across the equator.  The technique was also suited Australia’s relatively warm climate and the red grape varieties, which were brought by the pioneers – Shiraz, Grenache and Mourvedre.

Muscat (fortified)
One of Australia’s most celebrated

fortified wines

is the renowned liqueur Muscat.  Muscat Blanc Petits Grains grapes are left to ripen and even shrivel well beyond normal maturity before being harvested. The Rutherglen region in north-east Victoria is best known for these Muscat and other fortified styles of wine and has an international reputation for the rich, mellow flavours it captures.

Rutherglen Muscats

are classified as either ‘classic’, ‘grand’ or ‘rare’ (the richest of the lot). These are about the most intense, ‘toffee-ish’ dessert wines you’re ever likely to experience.

Tawny
One of Australia’s best known fortified wines traces its genesis back to a barrel of fine fortified wine set aside by the Seppelt wine making family in the Barossa in 1878.  Patriarch Benno Seppelt decreed that this barrel, the finest of that vintage, should remain untouched for one hundred years.  In 1978 the family released the first of the precious Para Liqueurs.  In succeeding years, the family and subsequent corporate owners have continued the tradition, releasing limited bottles of Para Liqueur Vintage tawny wines on the 100th anniversary of their creation.

White Fortified Wines
Many

Australian wineries

also produce fine white fortified styles.  These wines are fine lighter textured, and aromatic with varying levels of sweetness.  They can be appreciated as either aperitif or dessert wines.

In typically Australian fashion, the custom of assigning nicknames to favourite friends has been extended to these wines which are affectionately known as “

stickies

”: a reference that captures the luscious “sticky” texture of these wines which slide like runny honey over the palate.

The Noble Rot
The majority of

“stickies” in Australia

are made using another traditional technique that takes advantage of a naturally occurring fungus, botrytis cinerea.  Commonly called “noble rot”, botrytis attacks the grape gradually drawing the moisture from the berry, intensifying the sugar concentration, acidity and fruit flavour.  The Riverina region of New South Wales, where warm damp autumns encourage the development of noble rot, is particularly well known for these wines. “Stickies” are intensely flavoured white wines, deep gold in colour with bouquets of dried apricots, rich sweet flavour and a sharp acid finish.  Their intensity of flavour means they are often sold in half bottles and drunk to accompany or even replace desserts.

These botryised sweet wines contain a delicate, acidic balance that creates a sensational accompaniment to fruit desserts.  They are also the perfect accompaniment to blue or soft cheeses.

Riesling
Riesling is also responsible for some of Australia’s greatest sticky sweet dessert wines.  They’re either made with a touch of that benevolent “noble rot”mould botrytis or harvested when all the berries have dried and shrivelled on the vines in late autumn.  In either case, the perfumed rich intensity of these wines is magnificent.

Semillon
Semillon is one of the very best grapes for demonstrating the different characters emerging from Australia’s varied wine regions.  Start with Semillon from the

Barossa Valley

to get a glimpse of this grape at its most luscious.  Deep yellow in the glass, aromas of peaches and mangoes fill the nose and in the glass the flavours will continue the theme – with added vanilla (Barossa Semillon is often wood-aged like Chardonnay).

Semillon from the

Hunter Valley

is another matter altogether.  It’s a lean, rather pale-looking wine that seems to have little more than flintiness in its favour.  Give it a few years in bottle, however, and as if from nowhere it turns into a honeyed, nutty, complex classic.  Go west and Margaret River’s versions are a fine balance between these two styles, and they age well too.  Find a Semillon from anywhere in Australian and you’ll almost certainly be able to distinguish it by its warm, peachy character, whether it be a simple regional blend, a sweet botrytised wine from the Riverina of New South Wales.

Acknowledgements
Wine Australia
Australian Wine & Brandy Corporation Export Approval Data
Australian Bureau of Statistics Vineyard Surveys
HE Laffer The Wine Industry of Australia, The Hassell Press, Adelaide 1949
Campbell Mattinson Wine Hunter, Hachette Australia, Sydney 2006
John Beeston A Concise History of Australian Wine, Allen & Unwin, St Leonards 1995
Campbell Mattinson Why the French Hate Us, The Wine Front in conjunction with Hardie Grant Books, 2007