Top 100 wines of Victoria - Page 3
Discover the top 100 best wines of Victoria as well as the best winemakers in the region. Explore the varietals of the wines that are popular of Victoria and the best vintages to taste in this region.
Discovering the wine region of Victoria
Victoria is a relatively small but important Australian wine state. Located in the Southeastern corner of the continent, with a generally cool, ocean-influenced Climate, Victorian wine is remarkably diverse, producing all sorts of wines and styles in different climates. In all, the state covers almost 250,000 square kilometres (over 90,000 square miles) of land (almost the same Size as the US state of Texas), well under a quarter the size of its western neighbour, South Australia, and less than a third the size of New South Wales to the North. As such, Victoria's size - and to some extent, the state's viticultural history - can defy generalization.
Climate and soils vary enormously, from the cool, positive Macedon Ranges just north of the state capital, Melbourne, to the alpine valleys of the Australian Alps in the east, to the vast, flat, Dry Murray Darling, shared with New South Wales in the North West Victoria Geographic Indicator (GI). Despite its vast size, North West Victoria has only the Murray Darling and Swan Hill as wine regions within its boundaries. The majority of regions are clustered in the south of the state, with most in an area radiating out from Melbourne for about 200km (130 miles), generally divided into five other GIs. Melbourne itself is located in the Port Phillip GI, based around the eponymous bay.
Discover the grape variety: Roussanne
Roussane is a white grape variety, planted on an area of more than 700 ha. Originally from Montélimar, it is also found in Savoie, Languedoc and Roussillon, and grows very well in calcareous, poor, stony soil. It prefers to be pruned short. Roussane is also called fromenteau, barbin or bergeron. The young leaves are bubbled with fine down. When adult, they become thicker. It flowers in June and matures in mid-September. The grapes are cylindrical in shape, the berries are small and turn red when ripe, and the wine produced from pure Roussane is of extraordinary quality. It has a delicate aroma reminiscent of coffee, honeysuckle, iris and peony. The taste of this wine improves with age. It is part of the blend of the appellations Vin-de-Savoie, Côtes-du-Vallée du Rhône or Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
Food and wine pairing with a wine of Victoria
wines from the region of Victoria go well with generally quite well with dishes of pork, rich fish (salmon, tuna etc) or vegetarian such as recipes of wild boar stew, pan-fried salmon papillote or leek, goat cheese and bacon quiche.
