The Wines of Australia are so diverse and quality so excellent – they are a great match to food from all over the world. Ranging from crisp dry whites to full-bodied and richly flavoured reds as well as sparkling wines and dessert wines, there is an Australian wine to suit all occasions, dishes and tastes.
Duration : 0:5:2
Australia’s red grapes are amongst its greatest assets: after all, who could imagine a world without classic Australian Shiraz?
Australia is blessed with abundant sunshine which enables our grapes to ripen to perfection. Whatever the vagaries of a particular red grape variety, there will be a part of Australia that can give it everything it needs. Even toughies like rustic Malbec or black-as-pitch Petit Verdot turn out a treat.
In general, the warmer the wine region, the more likely it will produce rich, full flavoured styles which many people come to associate with Australian red wine. However, Australia also has cool climatic conditions well suited to red varieties which produce lighter and more delicate red wine styles.
The world’s classic premium red grape varieties are all found in abundance in Australia.
Duration : 0:3:37
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
Fizz and Stickie is Australian slang for sparkling and dessert wines and on the 22nd of September, John McDonnell, Manager of Wine Australia, Ireland presented some fantastic examples.
Duration : 0:1:46
Don’t assume that if you’ve tasted Australian Chardonnay, that you have experienced the extraordinary diversity and quality of all that Australian white wine has to offer.
Australia’s white wines have a story to tell thats all their own, and it won’t surprise you to learn that the winemakers who create them have a unique approach that sets their wines apart from the rest of the world.
When you look at it in the glass, a white Australian wine can be anything from opulent golden yellow orange almost to palest lemon yellow. The colour depends on the region it comes from (how cool or warm it is) and on the grape from which it was made; for example, Riesling’s are paler than Chardonnay’s, and so on.
Colour can be a clue to the taste (the deeper it is, the richer the flavour) but a better indication comes from taking a big sniff. Swirl the glass round and sniff again. One thing you’ll be sure of from Australia is that you will be smelling the product of well grown and fully ripened grapes.
Delicious, concentrated ripe fruit, harvested in perfect conditions is easier to obtain in Australia than almost anywhere else in the world. Beyond this it is difficult to generalise, so different are the aromas, flavours and taste sensations that come from each of the grapes, blends and regions.
Duration : 0:3:13