Southern New South Wales is an Australian wine zone covering a roughly rectangular area around the capital, Canberra. Stretching for approximately 100 miles (160km) North and south of Canberra, the zone reaches right down to the southern edge of New South Wales, where it meets the eastern edge of Victoria">Victoria. Although not traditionally known as a source of prime Australian wines, the zone is home to some of the country's most promising new wine regions, often producing cooler Climate wines from relatively high altitude Vineyards.
As a Young wine region Australia's most popular Grape varieties dominate its vineyard inventory.
Shiraz, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon have led the way in the early years of the 21st century, with Shiraz increasing its dominance. As with the whole of New South Wales, Aromatic whites Viognier and Verdelho are growing in popularity here, with Verdelho plantings in particular increasing more than tenfold.
Canberra, the Australian administrative capital since it was sited, designed and constructed in the early 20th Century, gained its own wine-specific GI (Geographical Indication) in February 1998. Its GI covers the entire Canberra District but also contiguous parts of New South Wales, which surrounds the Australian Capital Territory.
Lying at the Center of southern New South Wales, this area is by far the most densely populated but by no means the most densely planted, producing only a small percentage of the zone's annual output.
Tumbarumba lies 120 kilometers (75 miles) south-west of Canberra, near the New South Wales border with Victoria. Here, on the inland edge of the southern Great Dividing Range, the climate is considerably drier than further east, with a classic continental climate. A northern section of the Australian Alps, the hills here are known as the Snowy Mountains; most Tumbarumba vineyards lie between 300 and 800 meters (1000 and 2600ft), making this one of Australia's most promising cooler viticultural regions.
Gamay is a Burgundian grape variety that has existed since the 14th century. For fear of competition with the pinot noir of Burgundy, gamay was finally uprooted and planted in the Beaujolais region, from Mâcon to Lyon. These siliceous and granitic soils suit it perfectly, and it gives its best here. But it is also planted all over France, such as in Lorraine, in the Loire Valley, in Bugey, in Savoie and in Auvergne. Gamay is early and very productive and needs to be limited so that quality prevails over quantity. Short winter pruning of the shoots and high density of vines per hectare are the methods that allow it to produce very fruity, fresh and greedy red wines. Gamay is also very popular in red wine futures, and produces wines from the Beaujolais region with very interesting character and ageing potential. The AOCs Crémant-de-Bourgogne, Mâcon, Anjou, Touraine, Rosé de vallée de la Loire, Côtes-d'Auvergne, Saint-Pourçain, Bugey, Gaillac, Côtes du Luberon... and many vins de pays are proud of it. Today, about 36,000 hectares of Gamay are cultivated in France, including 22,000 hectares in Beaujolais.
red wines from the region of Southern New South Wales go well with generally quite well with dishes of beef, lamb or game (deer, venison) such as recipes of beef tournedos with boursin, mathieu's lamb tagine or lamb chops marinated with herbs.
On the nose in the region of Southern New South Wales often reveals types of flavors of cream, cherry or oaky and sometimes also flavors of smoke, earthy or blackberry. In the mouth in the region of Southern New South Wales is a powerful with a nice freshness.
