What is the best way to explore modern Australian wine? Take a leisurely journey through the southeastern state of Victoria, home to many of the country’s finest wine treasures. Victoria unveils the true excitement of what’s happening right now in Australian wine: offering an impressive array of modern winemaking expressions and the greatest concentration of cellar doors open to the public in Australia.
Start in the state’s capital city, Melbourne, and within a short drive in any direction you’ll encounter more than 2,951 wine grape growers, 650 wine companies, and more than 600 cellar doors, providing more wine tasting experiences than any other Australian wine-producing state.
Distinct destinations
There are five distinct premier winemaking destinations that produce signature wine styles. Commonly known as the Five Pillars of wine in Victoria, you’ll find exemplary Shiraz, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and a host of exciting new wines in these regions, yet each has a speciality on which it has built a solid reputation.
Shiraz Central, as it’s known locally is an area that covers many of Victoria’s wine regions that specialise in Shiraz wines. Credit: Robert Blackburn for Visit Victoria.
Shiraz Central
Shiraz Central, as it’s known locally, sprawls across central Victoria’s heartland, and it’s here that the flavour profile of lean and spicy modern Australian Shiraz is defined. This area incorporates Ballarat, Bendigo, Goulburn Valley, the Grampians, Heathcote, the Macedon Ranges, the Pyrenees, the Strathbogie Ranges, Sunbury and the Upper Goulburn. This vast, verdant hinterland, once full of gold mines, now offers more than 250 wineries to visit, where you can taste exemplary Australian Shiraz, notable for its complexity and finesse.
Terrindah Estate (pictured) produces Pinot Noir wines, for which Victoria’s cooler southern coast is renowned. Credit: SHERPA Projects Pty Ltd.
Pinot Noir: Exploring the southern coast of Victoria
Pinot Noir thrives along the cooler southern coast of Victoria – from Geelong to the Mornington Peninsula and across Gippsland, a vast 750km spread has seen 261 wineries emerge over the years, building on the foundations laid by lauded Pinot pioneers, Kooyong, Yabby Lake, Gary Farr, Stonier to name but a few.
The Yarra Valley’s cool climate makes it perfect region for Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and sparkling wines, such as those grown at the Seville Estate (pictured). Credit: Dylan McMahon.
Yarra Valley: The home of cool climate winemaking
Yarra Valley, a short drive east from Melbourne, is Victoria’s oldest wine-growing region, where the first vines were planted in 1838 to take advantage of its cool climate. This has made the region home to superior Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and sparkling wines, which have gained international recognition.
Old vines are typical in the Rutherglen region in north-eastern Victoria, which has a winemaking history of more than 140 years. Credit: Phoebe Powell.
A uniquely Australian fortified: Rutherglen Muscat
In the Rutherglen region in north-eastern Victoria, situated close to the Murray River that divides the state from neighbouring New South Wales, you’ll find uniquely Australian Muscat – a fortified wine of renown, with a reputation built on a deep history of more than 140 years. A long ripening season here, helps create wines of intense flavour, which is a signature of this region’s fortified and rich table wines.
The King Valley region in Victoria’s Alpine zone – viewed here from Powers Lookout Scenic Reserve. Credit: Josh Van Cuylenburg.
King Valley: Rediscovering Italian varieties
The King Valley’s high-country vineyards in the shadow of Victoria’s Alpine zone is home to many Italian grape varieties: Italian farmer Otto Dal Zotto planted Glera from his homeland in the 1980s. His neighbours followed suit, and now the King Valley sees plantings of Sangiovese and other Mediterranean grape varieties which have found a prosperous new home in this region.
With such diverse terroir and winemaking influences from all around the world, Victoria has been a perfect place for intrepid winemakers to experiment with the production of a variety of wines, free from the shackles of denominational regulation, yet guided by heritage, to produce distinctive and world-celebrated wines.
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