Viticulture in Australia

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Australian Wine is mainly limited to the southern regions of Australia , so focused on the states of Victoria , New South Wales , South Australia (z. B. Barossa Valley and Coonawarra ), Tasmania and a few places in Western Australia (eg. B . Swan Valley ), where the climate is temperate.

The climate between the 30th and 40th southern latitude , where Australian viticulture takes place, is characterized by relatively mild summer temperatures of around 20 ° C. However, the amount of rainfall is very low at times, so that many winegrowers are forced to artificially irrigate their vineyards . In the production of the wine , products from different growing areas can be mixed. However, the Australian Wine Act stipulates that over 85% of the wine in a bottle must come from the growing area indicated on the label. This law, compliance with which is continuously monitored by the Wine and Brandy Corporation , has existed since 1987.

history

Australia had been producing wine since the 18th century, initially only for its own market. For this purpose, mostly simple, undemanding grape varieties were used. Around 1820, Gregory Blaxland settled on his first estate in Australia, Brush Farm. From there he undertook various economic activities, such as wine trade, tobacco and grass breeding. Blaxland is considered one of the first winemakers in Australia to successfully grow wine.

Blaxland traded land, wine, and brandy. On the occasion of his first wine export to England in 1822, his wines were awarded a medal , the great silver medal, by the Royal Society of Arts . He was the first Australian to be honored with a medal for his wines and five years later Blaxland received the gold medal. Due to the general simplicity of the wines, production declined around 1920 as end users preferred to drink imported, high quality wines.

Since then, more and more attempts have been made to cultivate sophisticated and high-quality grape varieties and people began to make "European wines", mainly classics such as Chardonnay , Cabernet Sauvignon , Riesling or Shiraz . In some cases, this is also associated with enormous costs for artificial irrigation. Nevertheless, Australian wines are now classics themselves and have a quality that is hardly inferior to wine from Italy or France . Australian wine - also with its highly qualified winemakers - has successfully spread throughout Europe.

Vineyard in the Hunter Valley

Grape varieties

A total of almost 140 grape varieties are grown in Australia . Of the total of 173,776 hectares of vineyards, 42 percent are planted with white wine varieties, the remaining 58 percent with red wine varieties. Some of the red wine varieties are also used to make rosé wine .

Of the grape varieties grown, only about 35 are of any market significance.

Leading grape varieties in Australia (as of 2006)
variety Wine synonym Surface % Area ha
1. ' Syrah ' RW Shiraz 25.0 43,418
2. ' Chardonnay ' WW 18.5 32,150
3. ' Cabernet Sauvignon ' RW 16.1 27,909
4. Merlot RW 6.2 10,791
5. ' Sémillon ' WW 3.9 6,752
6. ' Sultana ' WW Thompson Seedless 3.3 5,781
7. ' Sauvignon Blanc ' WW 3.2 5,544
8. ' Riesling ' WW 2.6 4,432
9. ' Pinot Noir ' RW Pinot Noir 2.5 4,392
10. ' Colombard ' WW 1.6 2,757
11. ' Muscat d'Alexandrie ' WW Muscat Gordo Blanco 1.5 2,567
12. ' Pinot Gris ' WW Pinot Gris 1.4 2,469
13. ' Grenache ' RW 1.2 2.011
14. Verdelho WW 1.0 1,782
15. ' Petit Verdot ' RW 0.80 1,387
16. Viognier WW 0.80 1,379
17. ' Ruby Cabernet ' RW 0.69 1,202

Source: Australian Government This is followed by the varieties ' Gewürztraminer ' (842 hectares), ' Mourvèdre ' (795 hectares), ' Chenin Blanc ' (684 hectares), ' Cabernet Franc ' (588 hectares), ' Sangiovese ' (479 hectares), Malbec (440 hectares), ' Durif ' (451 hectares), ' Trebbiano ' (226 hectares), ' Tempranillo ' (312 hectares), ' Muscat rouge à petits grains ' (200 hectares), ' Muscat blanc à petits grains ' ( 226 hectares), ' Tarrango ' (201 hectares), ' Muscadelle ' (197 hectares), ' Marsanne ' (199 hectares), ' Barbera ' (163 hectares), ' Doradillo ' (96 hectares), ' Schwarzriesling ' (126 hectares ), ' Crouchen ' (101 hectares), ' Nebbiolo ' (97 hectares), ' Palomino ' (79 hectares), ' Touriga Nacional ' (58 hectares), ' Roussanne ' (46 hectares) and ' Taminga '.

The most important wine-growing regions in Australia

Wine-growing zones in Australia

The information on the label is subject to strict regulations. This applies in particular to the designations of origin.

South Australia

South Australia

There are the following wine-growing regions in South Australia :

Victoria

Victoria

In Victoria there are the following wine regions:

New South Wales

New South Wales

In New South Wales there are the following wine regions:

  • Hunter Valley
  • Mudgee
  • Riverina
  • Canberra District
  • Cowra
  • Gundagai
  • Hasting River
  • Hilltops
  • orange
  • Pericoota
  • Shoalhaven Coast
  • Southern Highlands
  • Tumbarumba

Western Australia

Western Australia

Large areas of Western Australia can only be used as grazing land for sheep because of the dry and hot climate. However, the area around the city of Perth enjoys a pleasant Mediterranean climate.

There are the following wine-growing regions in Western Australia :

Tasmania

Tasmania

Recently, Tasmanian wines have also attracted attention. In particular, the wines made from the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grape varieties produce the finest qualities here, as they feel comfortable in the island's cooler climate.

In Tasmania there are the following wine regions:

Features and criticism

The style of Australian wines is often characterized by great abundance of fruit and is therefore closer to wines from South America or California than to the Old World . Those who reject this style occasionally criticize Australian wine for the “jammy” character of many wines, and also occasionally for its factory-like, large-volume production method, which is contrary to the more artisanal wine tradition of Europe. However, there are also some very interesting, excellent wines that sometimes fall back on a wine-growing tradition that is over 100 years old. Various of these varieties have been awarded for over 30 years and some wineries have been awarded the highest rating of five stars.

Wine industry

Australia ranks sixth among the world's largest wine producers with a total harvest of around nine million hectoliters in 2001. The country's wine exports are growing enormously. From the summer of 2006 to the summer of 2007, Australia exported a total of over two billion Australian dollars worth of wine. Between 2001 and 2005 the export volume doubled. It is likely to double again in the next five years.

A number of high-quality and internationally awarded wineries, such as Peter Lehmann , Lindemans, Logan, Penfolds , Sandalford and Wolf Blass, come from Australia .

classification

The “Labeling Integrity Program” ensures that the label states the area of ​​manufacture, the vintage and the grape varieties used. A system of "Geographical Indications" defines the areas of origin on different levels. "Produce of Australia" is the basic name, followed by "South-Eastern Australia", with which popular blends are often identified. "State of Origin" is even more specific, and each Australian state has a number of "Zones". "Regions" and "Subregions" are even smaller units. Wine from top vineyards can be labeled Outstanding or Superior .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Historic Buildings - Brush Farm House on ryde.nsw.gov.au ( Memento of February 14, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) accessed on November 26, 2014
  2. ^ Landscape and Archeology Assessment. For the former Brush Farm Estate Eastwood, NSW. Edited by Geoffrey Britton of the City of Ryde: Brush Farm Landscape & Archeology Assessment. Final Report, December 2004 ( Memento of February 21, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) accessed on November 26, 2014
  3. ^ Transactions of the Society Instituted at London. Instituted in London for the Encouragements of the Royal Society of Arts (Great Britain) with the Premiums of the Year 1822. Vol. 41-42, Mister Gregory Blaxland on Wine of New South Wales. P. 285. Online on Google Books , accessed May 8, 2010
  4. ↑ a b Information on the official website of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade ( Memento of May 1, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) accessed on November 26, 2014
  5. ↑ Areas of vines and grape production by variety - 2007-2008. In: Annual Report 2008–2009. Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation, 2009, p. 89 , accessed November 25, 2014 .

See also

Web links

Commons : Viticulture in Australia  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

literature