Just fifteen years ago, Australia wines were practically unknown outside the country. Today, it is a very different story, since they have managed to carve a place for themselves among the New World's most innovative wines, especially in English speaking markets. Without native vines, and the nobility and greatness of the country's wines stem to a large extent from those imported from the rest of the world.
The British colonizers were the first to settle in the Barossa Valley, a key area on which the prestige of early 19th century Australian was built. There, the English well-to-do classes maintained the traditions of their elegant European lifestyle: they fox hunted, rode, and of course enjoyed good food and entertaining their friends with the best Bordeaux vintages. However, the wines from the Old Continent did not travel well on the long sea voyage out to Australia, which sometimes lasted months.
Under the circumstances, the best solution at that time was to produce their own wine. And without realizing it, they also left the best possible legacy, for these historic vineyards still survive (never succumbing to phylloxera), from which much sought-after wines are produced due to their unique flavours. Good examples of which are the exceptional wines of Everton, Great Burge, Henschke, Meter Lehmann, Rockford, St. Hallet and The Willows.
In Australia, the period from 1993-2003 is regarded as the “prodigious wine decade”. Throughout this time, both the extension of vineyards and grape production doubled, and for the first time exports surpassed overall domestic consumption.
The Australian wine industry has earned itself international acclaim; nowadays, it is possible to find quality Australian wines anywhere in the world, despite the fact that the country still lags behind in terms of global production. However, one of the wine industry’s objectives for 2025 is to become not only one of the main producers but also one of the most influential and prosperous. To achieve this aim, the industry has many advantages, such as the lack of a European-style Designation of Origin, allowing them to adapt to market trends very quickly, under the sole control of the country’s geographical areas. This freedom allows Australian winemakers to mix grapes from different areas of the country – raising an outcry from the most purist Europeans – which nevertheless produces excellent results.
Low production costs and higher yields, along with an innovative use of technology and a simple and direct marketing that allows their labels to simply indicate the vintage, winery, region and type of grape used, have allowed Australian wineries to produce wines that are a great success in countries like UK, where they are currently disputing market leadership with French wines. Besides the British, U.S., Canadian, German and Scandinavian consumers are paying increasing attention to these wines, which are beginning to penetrate the emerging Asian markets of China and Japan, Malaysia and Thailand, among many other countries worldwide.
But despite the fact that their excellent value for money is their most prominent feature, Australian wineries also produce top-quality wines, some of which figure among some the world’s most renowned vintages, such as Penfolds Grange, a very sought-after wine costing over EUR 300 per bottle, Grange Hermitage, a symbol of the world’s oldest producing vineyards, Dalwhinnie, a sample of the finest pinot noir of the Pyrenees, and the unbeatable results obtained by the premium Rosemount Estate. Thanks to these wineries, in addition to famous brands such as Jacob’s Creek, Nottage Hill, and Lindeman’s, Australian wines are now highly prized in international markets, and have been the revelation at wine competitions over the last decade.
