Wine regions Australia - Pyrenees

Pyrenees   Victoria

The Pyrenees is a region dotted with high quality boutique wineries. Fragrant Shiraz and complex Cabernet Sauvignon excel throughout the region.

The Pyrenees Region is in the Western Victoria Zone. The Pyrenees Range is part of the western reach of the Great Dividing Range. The Avoca River runs north-south through the region.

The beautiful Pyrenees Ranges as seen from Warrenmang Vineyard

The climate is temperate with variations due to altitude. Much of the vineyard area lies between the towns of Avoca, Redbank and Moonambel.

Soils are acidic, sandy loams with quartz grains, a good draining quality.

The region first developed as a pastoral area and then was turned over to the gold rushes from the 1850s to 1870s. Vineyards were planted as early as 1848 but these early estates did not see past 1945.

The resurgence began in the 1960s when the French Remy Martin group established vineyards to produce brandy. They eventually changed course with the changing consumer market, producing sparkling and table wines at Chateau Remy, now Blue Pyrenees Estate.

The region is very scenic and there are plenty of cellar doors for the wine traveller a number of which are along the Sunraysia Highway, the main route from Ballarat to Mildura.

Vintage Report 2004

The 2004 vintage in Victoria was marked by very cool and dry conditions. Picking started 3 weeks behind last year’s vintage. However, a late ripening in perfectly dry conditions brought about a classic end to a successful harvest. Here again, abundance of fruit in the vineyards was controlled by intensive crop thinning soon after veraison. As a result, our 2004 vintage in the Pyrenees produced some average sized crops, with great ripe flavours. We are very pleased with our Sauvignon Blanc and Sparkling bases this year.
In my view, the 2004 vintage in the Pyrenees will be remembered as a great year for reds. Our Cabernet Sauvignon is outstanding and so is our Shiraz. I should also comment that I find our reds from the Pyrenees are more subtle than last year and more approachable when young.Their fruit structure is by far the best I have seen in years. We are extremely happy with the juice in the tanks. Both our Shiraz and Cabernet are deep in colour and rich in flavour thanks to an exceptional April. My bet is that 2004 will be a year to enjoy laying down!

The 2004 is written by Leigh Clarnet - Chief Winemaker at Taltarni.

Harvest time: mid March to mid May

Sites with more information: Pyrenees A Guide to the Pyrenees

Many wine events centre around the Avoca Race Course