Australia > Wine Industry

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The Australian Wine Industry is the fourth largest exporter in the world, exporting over 400,000,000 liters a year to a large international export market that includes "old world" wine-producing countries such as France, Italy and Spain. There is also a significant domestic market for Australian wines, with Australians consuming over 400,000,000 liters of wine per year.  The wine industry is a significant contributor to the Australian economy through production, employment, export and tourism.   History   Vine cuttings from the Cape of Good Hope were brought to the penal colony of New South Wales by Governor Phillip on the First Fleet (1788).  An attempt at wine making from these first vines failed, but with perseverance, other settlers managed to successfully cultivate vines for winemaking, and Australian made wine was available for sale domestically by the 1820s.  In 1822 Gregory Blaxland became the first person to export Australian wine, and was the first winemaker to win an overseas award. In 1830 vineyards were established in the Hunter Valley.  In 1833 James Bushby returned from France and Spain with a serious selection of grape varieties including most classic French grapes and a good selection of grapes for fortified wine production. Wine from the Adelaide Hills was sent to Queen Victoria in 1844, but there is no evidence that she placed an order as a result. The production and quality of Australian wine was much improved by the arrival of free settlers from various parts of Europe, who used their skills and knowledge to establish some of Australia's premier wine regions.   In recent years organic and biodynamic wines have been increasing in popularity, following a worldwide trend. In 2004 Australia hosted the First International Biodynamic Wine Forum which brought together biodynamic wine producers from around the globe. Despite the overproduction of grapes many organic and biodynamic growers have enjoyed continuing demand thanks to the premium prices winemakers can charge for their organic and biodynamic products, particularly in the European market.   Grape Varieties   Major grape varieties are Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, and Riesling. The country has no native grapes, and Vitis vinifera varieties were introduced from Europe and South Africa in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Some varieties have been bred by Australian viticulturalists, for example Cienna and Tarrango.   Although Syrah was originally called Shiraz in Australia and Syrah elsewhere, its dramatic commercial success has led many Syrah producers around the world to label their wine "Shiraz". About 130 different grape varieties are used by commercial winemakers in Australia.   Australian winemaking results have been impressive and it has established benchmarks for a number of varietals, such as Chardonnay and Shiraz. Moreover, Australians have innovated in canopy management and other viticultural techniques and in wine-making, and they have a general attitude toward their work that sets them apart from producers in Europe. Australian wine-makers travel the wine world as highly skilled seasonal workers, relocating to the northern hemisphere during the off-season at home." They are an important resource in the globalization of wine and wine critic Matt Kramer notes that "the most powerful influence in wine today" comes from Australia (Kramer).   Major Labels   Grapevines at Russet Ridge Winery near Naracoorte in the Wrattonbully region Australia's most famous wine is Penfolds Grange. The great 1955 vintage was submitted to competitions beginning in 1962 and over the years has won more than 50 gold medals.   Australia has almost 2000 wine producers, most of whom are small winery operations. However, the market is dominated by a small number of major wine companies. After several phases of consolidation, the largest Australian wine company by sales of branded wine was Foster's Group in 2001, 2002 and 2003 and then Hardy Wine Company in 2004 and 2005. Hardy Wine Company, part of the world's biggest wine company, Constellation Brands, had the largest vineyard hectareage and the largest winegrape intake in the years 2001 - 2005.

The above data is courtesy of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_wine, last modified on 27 November 2007.  Text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. If you would like to view the original page or edit its content, feel free to visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_wine.