Wine regions - Grampians
Grampians Victoria
The Grampians region of Victoria is one of Australia's most stunning wine regions. Shiraz is particularly suited to the region, producing finely structured wines with intense regional spice.
The Grampians is a jewel in Victoria's natural history crown. It is an area of stunning beauty and natural diversity, much of which is protected within the Grampians National Park.
The region is also a jewel in Australia's sparkling crown as it is home to Great Western, Australia's best-known sparkling wine brand. Great Western is in fact a town on the Western Highway between Ararat and Stawell.
Its debut as a sparkling wine region was partly due to its French connections. Anne Marie Blampied, Jean Pierre Trouette whom she married, and her brother Emile arrived from France in the late 1850s to make their wealth provisioning the goldminers. They established St Peters vineyards.
The French connection continued when Charles Pierlot introduced the methode champenoise for sparkling wine production. He did so at the Great Western Estate established by Joseph Best in the early 1860s. This estate was purchased in turn by Hans Irvine and then Seppelt. Much later came another Frenchman Dominique Landragin who continued as winemaker at Seppelt.
While famous for its sparkling wine the mainstay of production is high quality table wine. The region grows Chardonnay, Riesling, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz. They also grow Ondenc and Chasselas, white varieties particularly suited to the cool climate.
Although the region is wedged between The Grampians Range and Serra Range to the west and the Pyrenees Range the region itself is not high at around 350 metres. Vineyards are planted on slopes receiving plenty of sunshine for their late ripening varieties.
The natural beauty, cooler summer temperatures and cellar doors gives this region a high mark for wine travelers.
Harvest time: mid March to mid May
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