Wines of Victoria

While Victoria may be one of Australia’s smaller states it is one of the biggest when it comes to wine; not only big in production, but big in quality and big in distinctiveness.

The colony of Victoria was settled after NSW and Tasmania, and at first it was settlers from those colonies that moved into Victoria’s fertile valleys to seek prime grazing land for their sheep and cattle. They did this often after reading the reports of the explorer Thomas Mitchell, who named many of the features of Victoria, usually after English politicians, or more imaginatively, heroes from Greek history. Unfortunately, Victoria’s richness also meant it had a relatively dense population of local people who were not dealt with kindly by newcomer’s intent on fattening their cattle no matter what the cost.

Even before NSW, Victoria was greatly transformed by the discovery of gold, which brought both great numbers of new people and ensured ready markets for those with cattle and sheep to sell. It was in these gold rush years that many towns throughout the Victorian regions were founded, leaving a legacy of elegant Victorian buildings throughout the aptly named Victoria. Though mention of this period is never complete without also mentioning Ned Kelly, that most famous of bushrangers who became a folk hero to some, a criminal to others, and a tourist icon to all in the regions where he and his gang operated; Glenrowan and Euroa (in the Strathbogie Ranges region) to name only two.

With the decline of gold deposits, many towns and regions returned to being sleepy agricultural villages and districts. Others enjoyed the advent of the paddle steamers along the River Murray as this form of transport and communication reached its peak, only to decline again as the railways established another transport network that in turn benefited other towns and districts.

For a few Victorian regions, wine began with the earliest settlers as they sought to establish a supply of drink for themselves. For many more regions it was in the wake of the gold rushes that vineyards were established. Again this was in part to supply thirsty miners, but also because many ex-miners, often from France, Germany or Italy, were seeking other forms of income now that gold had disappointed them. Some regions, such as the Rutherglen and Bendigo, developed their wine making well beyond the needs of local consumption and successfully exported to Britain as well as winning many international prizes.

Unfortunately a combination of the dread phylloxera and inept government interventions greatly weakened the Victorian wine industry. But the death blow came when changing tastes eliminated the demand that had once existed for wine. Those that survived as wine producing regions, such as Rutherglen, were generally producers, or became producers, of heavier fortified wines.

All this changed in the 1980s and 1990’s as changing tastes once again transformed the wine regions of Victoria. New vineyards were planted and old ones re-vitalised. More wine regions sprang up as vines began to be planted where there had never been vines before. This was particularly so of the many driers areas of Victoria, especially along the Murray River, where irrigation allowed wine production in areas with limited rainfall.

Many of the newer vineyard operators are small, or boutique style, and many of these prefer traditional methods and are organic, or at least minimum chemical use. The result is a fascinating range of delightful Victorian wines.

Like most things in Victoria the geography is intense, meaning quite a lot is packed into a small area. With long stretches of coastline facing the Southern Ocean, and with nothing separating Victoria from the continent of Antarctica, the result is cool windy climates for regions in the south such as Geelong or the southern parts of Gippsland region. The final stages of the Great Dividing Range spread out in Victoria, resulting in numerous mountain influenced micro-climates in regions like the Macedon Ranges and Pyrenees that provide excellent opportunities for cool climate wines. Further to the north and west, as the landscape flattens out, the rainfall also lessens. Here, in regions such as Swan Hill and Murray-Darling, the challenges of growing grapes have been meet through irrigation; with warm days and cool nights, as well as low humidity allowing for consistent production of grapes on a large scale.

Many of the older vineyards of the Victorian regions, those that survived the late 19^th century downturn, did so by producing world class Muscat and Tokay, and this they continue to do. Many of the bigger operations focus on standards such as Chardonnay and Riesling while the smaller wineries focus on these as well as Shiraz, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir. It is often growers of Italian heritage, those who switched to vines only after tobacco and dairy incomes declined, who have gone into less well known varieties, such as Dal Zotto Estate Wines in the King Valley region. The cool climate sparkling varieties, such as those produced by Seppelt’s winery at Great Western in the Grampians region, are also well represented.

Brown Brothers, Seppelt’s Great Western, and Simeon Wines, these are some of the big names in the wine industry and they all have their presence in the Victorian regions. In addition, there are many older vineyards, such as the Jones Winery and Vineyard of Rutherglen region that have been operating since the 19^th century. Others, including the Mt. Ophir Estate, also of Rutherglen, and Goon Warra in Sunbury region, have re-established old names or taken over and restored former vineyards to continue a traditional interrupted for many years. But throughout the Victorian regions are found family owned and operated wineries and vineyards such as the Blackgum Estate in the Macedon Ranges region, or Robinvale Organic Wines in the Murray-Darling region, who purposely aim at low yield and intense flavours. They hand pick and forgo the use of chemicals, or even irrigation in many cases, all with the aim of achieving the most flavoursome wines possible.

With such a great range of regions and climates, the Victorian regions naturally produce a great range of wines. Delicious sparkling wines from its many cool climate regions, excellent table wines produced from fiery Shiraz, smooth Pinot Noir, graceful Chardonnay or special Colombard are all to be found. Not to mention the many fortifieds such as Muscat and Tokay.