Australian Spirits

Australia has been criticised for its industrial approach to wine production and a lack of individual character that has come from a tendency to blend too readily (even Australia’s most notable wine ‘Penfolds Grange’ is an ever-changing blend of varieties and vineyard sites). Recently however, more and more single- vineyard wines are coming out of Australia as producers recognise the importance of terroir. South Australia is the main wine state; the ancient Shiraz vines of the Barossa Valley produce the most concentrated of red wines. Riesling, grown in the Clare Valley on slate reminiscent of Germany’s Mosel Valley, has established itself as a New World classic. Coonawarra offers one of the world’s most concrete explanations of the word terroir through its distinctive Cabernet Sauvignon’s grown on a distinct strip of terra- rossa soil. Elsewhere the cities of Sydney and Melbourne have their adjoining wine regions in the form of the Hunter and Yarra Valley. Close to Perth, the wine regions of Western Australia are cooled by the brisk sea breezes from the Southern Ocean and result in some of the cleanest, most refreshing whites and reds of Australia