Australian Wines

To mark our milestone 100th episode we thought we would have a special episode where we look at the four best wines in Australia. To narrow it down a little we decided to break it up into four categories.

The first category is a white, and unusually for us the top wine is a chardonnay, and not a riesling. It’s a great drop from the Margaret River region and will be no shock to anyone being named Australia’s best white, especially given the current vintage.

Our next top wine is a cult wine, from a relatively new producer. It’s a big, powerful, red from a Barossa producer who has a legion of fans across the globe thanks to some great reviews from the top wine writers. But it’s not all about power with this red, as a splash of viognier adds subtlety and grace to the super old shiraz vines.

Of course no list of Australia’s top wines would be complete without our next wine. A true icon of Australian winemaking, the name is known across the world. People who don’t drink wine know this wine’s name and know it’s reputation as Australia’s finest drop. This red is ideal for cellaring for the long term, and is the wine that so many Australians have celebrated important milestones by opening.

To round things out we thought we would include a wine that is uniquely Australian. The fortified wines of the Rutherglen region are truly distinctive and recognised as singularly exceptional when at their best. Some producers from the region have stock of old wine dating back many generations. Our pick has dipped into some incredibly old wine to offer a blend that is exceptionally rare and worth every dollar of it’s high price tag.

Duration : 0:8:7

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Technorati Tags: all, art, australia, best, drink, expensive, food, grange, leeuwin, muscat, museum, penfolds, Red, reviews, run-rig, saints, series, tips, torbreck, White, wine

I need some help with Society and Environment homework. Anyone know the factors that influence where grapes are grown in Australia, and how growing grapes and making wine Impacts the environment? All answers would be appreciated, thanks!

Australia is the sixth largest country in the world in area (about 18% smaller than the U.S.) and is the 7th largest wine producing country in the world. It produced just under 8% of the worlds wine production in 2001. There are over 1,100 wineries in Australia and wine is produced in many regions that are widely spread across the southern half of the country. Each of these regions has different climate and soils and should be considered to be as distinctly different as Bordeaux and Burgundy in France or California and Washington in the United States.

Australia aggressively expanded its wine grape planting and production in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. Australia had approximately 366,000 acres under vine by the end of 2001. While white grapes dominated (57%) of the acreage as late as the 1996-97 growing season, the percentage of red grape varieties as a percentage of recent plantings is overwhelming.
Australia is one of the most innovative wine regions in the world. There is a freedom from bureaucracy and regulation that is unheard of in most older wine producing countries. Most of the vineyards are in the cooler southern part of the country and most particularly along the southeast coast. The most successful grape variety is the Shiraz (known as Syrah, in many parts of the world). Shiraz accounts for over 37% of the red grape acreage. Depending on the growing region and the winemaking style, Australian Shiraz can range from light and fruity to big, bold and very long lived. The other noble grape varieties of the world are also grown (including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, Semillon and Riesling).

While winemaking started in Australia in the early 1800’s the quality of the wines was poor until stainless steel tanks and temperature controlled fermentation came into use in the late 1950’s. When modern techniques were introduced, the quality of the wines began to improve almost immediately.

Like many new world wine producers, Australian wineries generally designate the grape variety of a wine on the label. The laws require that wines with varietal labeling must contain at least 85% of that variety. Australia has been the primary producing country to market wines with the names of two grape varieties on the label (i.e. – S�millon/Chardonnay). In two grape blends, the variety that represents the greatest portion of the blend is named first.

Australia is in the southern hemisphere and it’s growing season is the reverse of the United States and the European countries. Harvest begins in March and continues into April.

Australia ranks as the 12th largest wine consuming nation by volume and the 21st largest by per capita. As of 2001, Australians consumed 20.5 liters per capita. This continues a trend of increased per capita consumption in Australia.

source and lots more info here:

http://www.cellarnotes.net/australia.html

The Hunter Valley was the first area in Australia where grapes were planted for wine production. The first vines were planted there in 1827, and today there are more than 120 vineyards in the area, and over half of them are boutique wineries. What makes Moorebank different to the others is its passionate focus on growing grapes using organic principles.

It is a small vineyard of 6 hectares, which produces only 2,000 cases of wine per vintage. Its varieties are Semillon, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer and Merlot. Ian Burgess and Debra Moore have been involved in the wine industry all their lives and they are both dedicated to producing premium quality grapes with a minimum use of synthetic chemicals. Traditionally wine production is carried out with a high use of chemicals to bring the fruit to maturity in the best condition, and Ian feels that this is not a sustainable practice. Their philosophy follows principles that restrict the use of popular chemicals. They try to use biological controls wherever possible, and use sustainable viticulture practices to produce the quality of grapes that they require to make their specialist product. Their wine caters to those people who suffer allergies, reactions to sulphur, tannins and histamines and who can’t drink mainstream wines.

source and more info here:

http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s867067.htm

First steps in hobby wine making process. A small batch of Shiraz from 180 four year old vines in a dry climate at Gingin in Western Australia. The equipment was obtained from Malthouse in Welshpool (the crusher) and Bunnings (some 25L plastic bottles). Firstly we pick grapes and drive them to the garage. Then crushing the grapes twice and after that, removing the stems and sticks by hand. Finally we have the mix. The next step is to obliterate the natural yeast for 12-24 hours then add pectinase for 12-24 hours to help break down the grapes. Then the yeast is added and the brews are stired three times daily to let the pink froth of the fermentation come out. After about 5 days at 25degress C, the sugar content has dropped from 13% to 5%. Then the wine is decanted and the solids are pressed to remove extra wine. The pure wine is then sealed from the air and allowed to do anaerobic fermentation for a few weeks. During this stage the rest of the sugar should convert to alcohol. I’ll update this next week if it all goes OK.

Duration : 0:0:48

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Technorati Tags: australia, crushing grapes, Gingin, Perth, picking grapes, removing stems, shiraz, Wine Making

I do not want to go to store- making chicken recipe and I only have an Australian red wine, normally make with white wine. If I can ever get the flippin thing open, I’m going to have a glass regardless! Not sure of chicken cooked with red wine, what do you think? Good Day! Can someone open my wine, please?

I don’t think it would hurt anything, other than add some color to it, which may or may not be a good thing, if it’s a ‘light’ colored dish it may become pink or something! LOL! But I think the tastes would be similar. I’d drink to that!

Across Australia, there are over 60 recognised wine regions. We’ve got wineries on the edge of red
deserts; perched on the side of snow-capped mountains; and overlooking surf beaches. Theres sandy soil, deep volcanic loam, flinty earth and the famous terra rossa.

Australia: a continent of contrasts.

Duration : 0:4:10

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Technorati Tags: Australian wine, red wine, white wine, wine, Wine Australia, Wine Making, Winemakers.

Australian Wine order (http://www.bloomfieldwine.com)

Duration : 0:3:26

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Technorati Tags: australia, Red, wine

Maybe it’s just here in Canada so far but I doubt it. An Australian wine producer….Billy Goat Hill I think they’re called is now making wine in a can. I tried it over the weekend and I have to admit it’s pretty good and I really didn’t taste a difference from what comes in the bottle and I’ve tried all of Billy Goats Wines.

Glad you liked it. Hang my head in shame that another Aussie came up with this idea…..

http://www.abc.net.au/rn/breakfast
Despite the economic stimulus, the Australian wine industry has been doing it tough of late. A glut of grapes has been driving down prices, over recent months cleanskins have been cheaper than bottled water at just $1.99. It’s also been very tough on the export front with sales down by 10% in the last financial year, the second year of decline.

Now twelve of Australia’s top wine-making families, representing wine regions across four states, are getting together to tackle the problem. They’ve begun a global marketing initiative, to be launched at the Sydney Opera House today.

Duration : 0:7:50

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i got an ass and i cant find anything about the cycle of wine making can u plz help?

The seasons are reversed in the Southern Hemisphere, so their harvest time (fall) starts around March, depending on the weather. In a few months time you will be able to buy wine from the 2008 vintage (mostly whites and roses).