Australian Wine Regions

Australian wine regions are situated in the following areas: Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia.

Australian Capital Territory (ACT):
Created from farmland in the 1920s, this land is situated half-way between Sydney and Melbourne. The ACT was excised from New South Wales and became home to Canberra, the national seat of Government and the nation’s administrative centre. The Canberra District wine region incorporates the majority of vineyard developments is the northern part of the territory and adjoining area of New South Wales. Most popular in this area are the full-flavoured Chardonnays and Shiraz, created lower down the slopes, where the climate is generally cool autumn-like.

New South Wales:
The first State in Australia to be colonised by Europeans and the first to grow the grapevine. New South Wales includes the Australian wine making regions of Canberra District, Cowra, Gundagai, Hastings River, Hilltops, Hunter, Mudgee, Orange, Perricoota, Riverina, Shoalhaven Coast, Southern Highlands and Tumbarumba. The climate in this area varies from cool to warm. New South Wales is also home to one of Australia’s best known wine zones, The Hunter Valley. Queensland: Granite Belt and South Burnett are the wine regions in this area. Queensland was thought of as too hot to produce quality wines due to its situation close to the tropics – until recently that is. It has been noticed that temperatures in the higher altitudes are cooler and one can find rich volcanic soils in this area - ideal for grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Chardonnay and Viognier.

South Australia:
Found at the centre of the continent, this area is host to some of the world’s oldest vines. Most Australian wines are produced here. Climate here ranges from cool breezes to hot temperatures, and all in between. Wine regions in this area are Adelaide Hills, Adelaide Plains, Barossa Valley, Clare Valley, Coonawarra, Currency Creek, Eden Valley, Kangaroo Island, Langhorne Creek, McLaren Vale, Mount Benson, Padthaway, Riverland, Southern Fleurieu, Southern Flinders Ranges and Wrattonbully.

Tasmania:
This is Australia’s most southerly State, and the wine region here – Tasmania! The climate here resembles that of cooler Europe and Tasmania produces some of Australia’s most outstanding cool climate wines. The speciality is sparkling wines, created from wines such as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Victoria: the long list of Australian wine regions in this area includes Alpine Valleys, Beechworth, Bendigo, Geelong, Gippsland, Glenrowan, Goulburn Valley, Grampians, Heathcote, Henty, King Valley, Macedon Ranges, Murray Darling, Pyrenees, Rutherglen, Strathbogie Ranges, Sanbury, Swan Hill, Upper Goulburn and Yarra Valley. The climates of these regions also vary from cool to warm and dry. Western Australia: Blackwood Valley, Geographe, Great Southern, Manjimup, Margaret River, Peel, Pemberton, Perth Hills and Swan District are the regions you will find in Australia’s largest State.