Australian Wine Summary and Notes
Some regions of the world have been producing wine for thousands of years, but Australia isn’t one of these. That doesn’t mean it’s not into wine, however – production started within fifty years of European contact with this continent. Before long, the country was full of vineyards, mostly concentrated in the south.
Over the course of the past hundred years, the Australian wine industry has gone through some dramatic expansion. During the 1910s, this country produced only about four and a half million gallons of wine, or about seventeen million liters, annually. By the mid 1970s, that figure had gone up to almost a hundred million gallons, or more than three hundred sixty million liters, as the world became more aware of Australia’s vineyards and wine.
There are many different soil types and climates in this interesting country, which makes it a great place to grow lots of different kinds of wine grapes. Running the range between the damp and cool to the hot and dry, conditions are right for just about every kind of grape, with some areas mimicking the climate of the best of the European wine regions. Some areas are even irrigated to aid in the production of good quality wine grapes.
Soil types mostly involve clay and limestone (if you dig deeply enough) but vary just as much as the temperatures and overall climate. This allows the winemakers to match different types of grapes with the soil that will grow them best, creating high quality fruit and getting a better yield.
For a long time, Australian wine was relatively unknown to the rest of the world, with nineteenth century judges insisting that fine Victoria wines must actually be French, since Australia couldn’t possibly produce that kind of quality. However, in the late twentieth century, the first Australian boom occurred. High quality Australian wines first came to the attention of wine lovers around the world, and production soared.
There was another boom, too – a more recent one favoring the least expensive Australian wines, which were exported everywhere. Interest has waned somewhat due to over-saturation, but there are still plenty of great wines on the market, even if they’re not as fashionable as they were a few years ago. Good wine has nothing to do with what’s in style, after all.
After all, as the fourth largest wine exporter in the world, Australia has a lot to offer. Even major wine producers, like Spain, France and Italy, buy wines from this country’s producers. Known for its characteristics “GSM blends” – wines made from a blend of Mourvedre, Shiraz and Grenache, as well as many other types, Australia has been called the most powerful influence in wine today.
If you’ll be visiting Australia on your next holiday, don’t forget to have a look at some of the country’s excellent wine regions, and try a few wines. If you can’t make it to Australia, be sure to look at the options the next time you buy wine for your table. There are some really great wines waiting for you to find them.
