The Hunter Valley in New South Wales is Australia’s oldest wine region. It has established an international reputation for its own styles of red Shiraz and white Semillon wines.
Some of the Shiraz vines are more than a century old and produce tiny, but concentrated, flavour-packed yields. The local style produces silky, smooth wines with spicy flavours giving way to earthy notes with age.
The signature grape of the Valley, however, is Semillon. The grape originates from the Bordeaux region of France where it is the somewhat anonymous part of the blends for Bordeaux Blanc and Sauternes. The Valley produces it as a single varietal which can be enjoyed as a fresh young wine, or stashed away for a decade or more to develop mineral notes.
You will find a lot more than just these two vines in the region including all the usual suspects, but also less likely grapes such as Verdelho and Tempranillo. The Valley has achieved this success despite being a difficult place for vines, often plagued by excessive humidity and inopportune rain causing rot in the vineyard.
Although the Hunter Valley is likely the only wine region you may have heard of from New South Wales, it is just one (a very important one) of fourteen defined wine appellations in the state. The other regions highlight the diverse terroirs of the state, taking advantage of altitude, or more continental and reliable weather, to define themselves. Many of these “new” regions were first planted with vines in the 19th Century.
Orange is a region defined by altitude as only vineyards in the area which are above 600 meters can carry the appellation name. The lower areas produce red varieties which develop more slowly than they would a even lower, hotter altitudes. Vineyards reaching up to 1,000 meters are ideal for cool climate varietals such as Pinot Noir in the volcanic soils.
The Southern Highlands, as the name implies, is another region featuring high vineyards and cool climate varietals. Cowra is getting a reputation for Chardonnay, and Mudgee for Cabernet Sauvignon, both relying on warm sunny growing conditions with cool nights to extend and slow ripening. Riverina is staking its reputation on “noble rot” wines such as the de Bertoli Noble One.
I’ve recently tasted more than fifty wines from all over New South Wales and not a single one has been anything less than a score of 14, with almost all of them rating in the Very Good category, and even a couple of Excellents. There were many small wineries with very good product which we are not likely to ever see on our local shelves.
The Brangayne Sauvignon Blanc 2015 is produced from vineyards at 1,100 meters in Orange (not available locally). The abundant aroma is less exuberant than similar New Zealand wines, showing citrus and slightly floral characteristics. A sip is greeted with vibrant acidity, medium body, and some length in the finish. Score: 16/Very Good.