Australianwine has dominated the UKsupermarket shelves and restaurant tables for at least twenty years. In fact Australia is now responsible for the most winessales by volume to the UKthan any other country in the world. However despite it being a big seller whenit comes to the UKit is only in the top 10 when it comes to overall wine production statistics.
InitiallyAustraliawas known primarily for its Chardonnay. It was this oaky white wine whichreally bought it to the forefront of the British market. Because of theAustralian climate the grapes tended to mature more than the same grapes wouldin Europe ? producing a wine with a highersugar and in some cases higher alcohol content than its European counterpart. Theclimate has also led to Australiabeing able to produce fewer weak wines and therefore the wine produced is moreconsistent than that produced in Europe whichis more at the mercy of changeable weather. However as tastes change and timehas moved on the wine industry has too and Australia now produces a wide rangeof wines.
Thereis a vast amount of wine produced in Australia and we are now going totake a whistlestop tour around some of the wine regions concentrating on thosewhich produce red wine.
InNew South Wales the best known region is HunterValley,here you will find some excellent Shiraz.Wines can be labelled as being form the upper or lower valley but both areasconcentrate on Shirazfor their red wine.
Alsoin New South Walesis Mudgee and the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area. This area was previouslyresponsible for some of the cheaper lower quality wines but this has changedover the last few years and there are some really good Shiraz wines now coming out of this region.
Forgreat Pinot Noir wines head to Victoria, TheMornington Peninsula and the YarraValley are both producersof some fine varieties of this type of wine. In fact Victoria is singlehandedlyresponsible for a great deal of red wines that end up on tables across the UKwith Goulburn Valley, Great Western, Rutherglen, King valley and Milawa allproducing some fantastic wine.
South Australia is where many of thewines produced for mass consumption come from. Coonawarra is seen as one of thefinest wine regions of the area producing rich Cabernet Sauvignon and fiery Shiraz. Also notable inthis area is the wine region of BarossaValley which is one of the oldest andbest known places for viticulture in Australia. Shiraz is what the region made its name fromso it is definitely worth checking it out!
Fora great range of Australian red wines, or just to browse wine in general, it isa good idea to consult an independent online wine retailer. You can browsewines in your chosen price range, and you can research before you buy.
