Australia Flashcards
What is Australia’s GI hierarchy?
Zones
Regions
Sub-regions
Give the full GI hierarchy for Eden Valley and Barossa Valley.
South Eastern Australia Zone
South Australia Zone
Barossa Zone
Barossa Valley
Eden Valley
The climate in Australia is dry, warm or hot & usually Mediterranean (see page 31). What are the 3 cooling effects that some regions experience?
Cooling ocean (proximity or breezes) e.g. Indian and Southern Oceans
River systems e.g. Murray River System
Altitude e.g. Adelaide Hills
What are the two biggest risks to grape growing in Australia?
Drought
Fires, giving smoke taint to wines
Which is Australia’s principal grape variety?
Shiraz
Which two hot climate regions in Australia produce Shiraz that has a full body, intensely fruity with earthy spice, developing leather aromas with age?
Barossa Valley
Hunter Valley
Name two regions in Australia making Shiraz in a lean, peppery style.
Heathcote
Geelong
Which two regions in Australia are considered classic regions for Cabernet Sauvignon, producing wines with firm tannins, high acidity and blackcurrant & black cherry aromas with toasty oak?
Margaret River
Coonawarra
Why is Merlot often blended with Cabernet Sauvignon in Australia?
It provides body and fleshy plummy fruit.
Lowers acidity & increases alcohol in the blend, giving more body.
Which grape variety from Australia’s cooler regions has medium body, medium alcohol, medium to high acidity and typical flavours of cherry and strawberry?
Pinot Noir
What is Australia’s most planted white grape variety, made in a range of styles?
Chardonnay
Chardonnay from Australia that is used as a less expensive blending component from multiple regions, often has peachy fruit and vanilla & toast characteristics. How are the vanilla & toast characters often imparted?
Oak chips or staves.
High quality Chardonnay from the moderate climate areas of Adelaide Hills, Mornington Peninsula & Yarra Valley, along with warmer Margaret River, often have which three winemaking treatments?
Lees contact
MLC
Oak maturation
Which region in Australia has a reputation for Sauvignon Blanc from a moderate climate, with concentrated passion fruit and high acidity?
Adelaide Hills
Which Australian wine region is considered the classic region for Semillon, producing wines that are light in alcohol, almost neutral in flavour when young, but can develop honey and toast with up to 20 years of ageing?
Hunter Valley
Which other Australian region produces a similar light style of Semillon to Hunter Valley?
Barossa Valley
Which Australian region produces Semillon with an herbaceous style, similar to Sauvignon Blanc?
Western Australia
Margaret River
Great Southern
Which grape variety is used to make the classic Australian white wine described below.
Dry, unoaked with pronounced lime, lemon, grapefruit rapidly developing tertiary characteristics of toast, honey and petrol?
Riesling
Australia’s South Eastern Australia region includes which states/zones?
South Australia
Victoria
New South Wales
Queensland
Tasmania
What links the following:
Riverland in South Australia
Murray Darling in Victoria
Riverina in New South Wales
They are all inland, fertile & irrigated areas, typically labelled as South Eastern Australia.
They are typically high volume branded blends.
Summarise South Eastern Australia wine styles, grapes & climate.
South Eastern Australia
Warm Mediterranean
High volume brands lacking concentration.
A blend of wines, from the following states (key regions in brackets).
South Australia
(Riverland)
Victoria
(Murray Darling)
New South Wales
(Riverina)
Queensland
Which state produces most of Australia’s wine?
South Australia
Where is Margaret River located?
200km South of Perth in Western Australia.
Which zone is Australia’s Great Southern part of?
Western Australia
Barossa produces a light style of Semillon similar to Hunter Valley, but what other style of Semillon does it also produce?
A fuller bodied, softer style of Semillon.
Which two Australian regions make a Riesling with characteristics described below
Dry unoaked with pronounced lime, lemon, grapefruit rapidly developing tertiary characteristics of toast, honey and petrol?
Clare Valley
Eden Valley
Where is Barossa Valley located?
South Australia, north of Adelaide.
For the Barossa Zone, give the two subregions and their climates?
Barossa Valley’s climate is warm Mediterranean
Eden Valley’s climate is cool to moderate Mediterranean
In Barossa, what is a contributing factor to the production of outstanding Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon & Grenache?
Old Bush Vines
A wine with a full body, ripe tannins, ripe black fruit with sweet American oak & developing into leather and spice as it ages describes which black grape variety from Barossa Valley?
Shiraz
Which white grape variety from Barossa can be made into a fresh unoaked style, but traditionally was a fuller softer style?
Sémillon
Which grape variety & region from the Barossa Zone can create white wines with intense lime & grapefruit with steely character, the best of which age well, developing marmalade and toasty characters?
Riesling from Eden Valley
Summarise the Barossa zone and its two regions?
Barossa Valley
Warm & dry Mediterranean
Old vine reds
Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Grenache
Semillon
Eden Valley
Cool to moderate Mediterranean, cooled by altitude.
Outstanding Riesling (lime)
Riesling, Chardonnay
Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon
Where is Clare Valley located in Australia?
South Australia, approximately 100km north of Adelaide.
What is Clare Valley’s most important white grape variety?
Riesling
Riesling prefers a cool to moderate climate, how is the warm climate of Clare Valley tempered?
Cooling afternoon breezes
Cold nights retain acidity
Altitude 300-400m
A white wine from Clare Valley is dry with high acidity and intense lime aromas. Which grape variety is this?
Riesling
Which two black grape varieties from Clare Valley have long cellaring potential?
Shiraz
Cabernet Sauvignon
Summarise Clare Valley grapes & climate.
Clare Valley
Cooling afternoon breezes
Cold nights retain acidity
Altitude 300-400m
Riesling (dry, lime, high acidity)
Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon
Where in Australia is Adelaide Hills located?
South Australia, approximately 25km east of Adelaide.
What is the climate for Adelaide Hills and what helps it stay cool?
Moderate Mediterranean
Altitude > 400m
Adelaide Hills with its low rainfall, Mediterranean climate and soils that don’t hold water, mean what is often necessary?
Irrigation
In Adelaide Hills Chardonnay & Pinot Noir are often blended to create which style of wine?
Sparkling wine.
Summarise the grapes & climate in Adelaide Hills.
Adelaide Hills
Moderate Mediterranean
Cooled by Altitude >400m
Chardonnay & Pinot Noir => Sparkling
Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay
Pinot Noir
Where is McLaren Vale in Australia located?
South Australia, south of Adelaide.
What cools McLaren Vale?
Afternoon ocean breezes
What is the climate in McLaren Vale?
Warm Mediterranean
McLaren Vale has a reputation for old vine wines from which two grape varieties?
Shiraz
Grenache
McLaren Vale has a reputation for producing red wines with dark fruits and soft ripe tannins from which four grape varieties?
Shiraz
Cabernet Sauvignon
Merlot
Grenache
Summarise McLaren Vale grapes & climate.
McLaren Vale
Warm Mediterranean
Cooling afternoon ocean breezes
Old vine Shiraz & Grenache
Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Grenache