CANBERRA: The inside story of Australian wine is a heartbreaking tale of boom and bust. Veterans still shake their heads over “The Great Vine Pull of 1987.” After five years of uncontrolled surpluses, the government actually paid growers to remove Shiraz vines and leave their land barren. The result was the loss of thousands of acres of the best old-vine Shiraz.
The industry recovered and another boom ensued, only to come crashing down in the recession of 2007-2008. Then a strong surge in the value of the Aussie dollar made entry-level wines such as Yellow Tail no longer seem like appealing bargains. To make matters worse, consumers moved toward a preference for a cleaner, more natural style of wine, which further weakened the appeal of Barossa’s high-alcohol, overripe, and heavily oaked reds.
Australia’s best winemakers are finally coming up for air, with a caveat—their most successful wines now originate in cooler climates, regions that turn out grapes with higher acidity and more grace than the killer Shiraz with which we’re all familiar. One such area is the Adelaide Hills, sandwiched between the city and the Barossa Valley. Another is Tasmania, the southernmost island Down Under. Remember, in the Southern Hemisphere, the weather becomes cooler as you head south.
