Fleurieu is a wine zone located South of Adelaide, the administrative capital of South Australia, which takes its name from the French explorer Charles Pierre Claret de Fleurieu. Across the zone Shiraz is the most common Grape variety, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc are among the supporting cast.
Five wine regions can be found within its boundaries: Currency Creek (to the west of Lake Alexandrina), Kangaroo Island, Langhorne Creek (between Lake Alexandrina and the town of Strathalbyn), McLaren Vale (in the northwest of the peninsula) and Southern Fleurieu (located on the peninsula and a section of the Mount Lofty Ranges).
Overall, the Climate of Fleurieu is heavily affected by its proximity to the sea, producing a predominantly Mediterranean influence.
The seasons are characterized by milder temperatures than those experienced in some of South Australia's inland and high-altitude regions. The five regions within the zone have variable mesoclimates, dictated by their elevation and proximity to the coast. These conditions combine to make the peninsula an area which can support a variety of grape types.
Merlot noir is a grape variety that originated in France (Bordeaux). It produces a variety of grape specially used for wine making. It is rare to find this grape to eat on our tables. This variety of grape is characterized by small to medium sized bunches, and medium sized grapes. Merlot noir can be found in many vineyards: South West, Languedoc & Roussillon, Cognac, Bordeaux, Loire Valley, Armagnac, Burgundy, Jura, Champagne, Rhone Valley, Beaujolais, Provence & Corsica, Savoie & Bugey.
sparkling wines from the region of Fleurieu go well with generally quite well with dishes of beef, lamb or game (deer, venison) such as recipes of navarin of lamb, lamb tagine with prunes or rabbit with white wine.
Frost returned to French vineyards early this month as France recorded its coldest April night since 1947. Temperatures plunged to minus nine degrees Celsius in some parts of the Champagne region on the night between 3 and 4 April, with minus seven reported in areas around Bordeaux and minus six in Chablis. Some winemakers lit candles and fires between vineyard rows to help protect young buds. Yet while scenes were reminiscent of the devastating frosts that struck French vineyards in April 2021, ...
Château La Tour Carnet said it will expose an experimental vineyard to artificially higher temperatures to replicate some of the conditions the Bordeaux 2050 vintage may face due to climate change. It’s part of the ‘Oracle’ project at the fourth growth estate, which is among those in Bordeaux seeking to understand how well classic grape varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot can adapt to climate change. At La Tour Carnet, warming cables more commonly used in aeroplanes will be employed thi ...
Only 10? I feel a little like I do when faced with a hefty restaurant wine list. So many lovely wines, so little time to do them justice. My mind tracks the names, vintages and regions in fleeting time, flipping like a kaleidoscope. The effort is always accompanied by that nagging worry you’re missing the absolute gem. All the while, your dinner date is itching simply to get on and tuck into the evening with a good glass of wine. The Tooley household has been through a lot in 2021, including som ...
