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You’re never too far from a wine region of note when out and about in the state of Victoria.
It may be one of the smallest Australian states by landmass, but Victoria is the third largest producer and exporter of wine in the country (behind South Australia and New South Wales), and boasts no less than 22 extremely diverse wine producing regions and around 700 wineries. You’ll almost certainly have heard of high-profile hubs like the Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula, and Heathcote, but they’re just some of the many staves (slats) on the wine barrel.
Here’s a handy guide to exploring the best of Victoria’s wine regions.
Yarra Valley
Winemaking in Victoria dates back to 1838 when the first vines were planted in the Yarra Valley — roughly 70 kilometres north-east of Melbourne. Today, this picturesque pocket is home to around 80 wineries and is recognised as one of the country’s top cool climate wine regions. It produces finely nuanced pinot noirs, chardonnays, shiraz, and cab savs, all of which pair nicely with the cornucopia of artisanal foodstuffs that originates in the same area. Exploring the Yarra Valley from Melbourne is a breeze, thanks to the many wine tours in operation — most of which roll food and wine tastings into one deliciously decadent day out.
Mornington Peninsula
The magical Mornington Peninsula may be roughly the same distance from Melbourne as the Yarra Valley, but it’s a world away in terms of the terroir. Surrounded by water on three sides, coastal climatic factors play a key part in shaping the region’s viticultural output. The Peninsula is best known for its pinot noir (generally sweet and with a generous middle palate), alongside chardonnay and pinot gris. It gets less attention from day trippers than its northern cousin, but therein lies an enormous part of the allure for wine connoisseurs. The Mornington Peninsula is easily done as a self-drive day trip and is also home to some of Victoria’s most awarded restaurants.
Heathcote
Located 40 minutes’ drive east of the Central Victorian city of Bendigo, and noted primarily for the production of full-bodied shiraz, Heathcote forms part of a belt of wine regions stretching from Henty on the south-western coast, to the Goulburn Valley on the border with New South Wales. Heathcote is distinct from the neighbouring Bendigo wine region, but both can be easily combined on a day out from the gold rush-era municipality. There are some 40 wineries across Heathcote, all of which make good use of the ancient Cambrian soils, warm summers, and cold and wet winters to inform their production.
If you’re short on time during your stay in Bendigo, substitute a day amongst the vines with a visit to the Wine Bank on View. As the name suggests, this wine bar/store occupies a former bank building and showcases many of the best vintages from the surrounding area.
Rutherglen
Up there with the Yarra Valley in terms of public recognition, although very different in terms of its signature offering, Rutherglen sits in Victoria’s High Country on the border with New South Wales. It can be reached in 30 minutes by car from Wangaratta to the south or Albury Wodonga to the east, and either makes a great base for exploring this wine region’s seductively sweet side.
Endowed with a classic Mediterranean climate, Rutherglen threw its lot in with fortified wines back in the 1930s. Today it’s synonymous with the production of arguably the world’s best muscats and topaques, and generations of winemakers down the line continue to uphold methods of production that no one else has managed to replicate. Bold durifs, zesty chardonnays, medium-bodied shiraz, and richly flavoured cab savs are also produced in these idyllic hills.
King Valley
Situated to the south of Wangaratta and bordering the Glenrowan and Alpine Valleys wine regions, the King Valley is one of Australia’s highest wine-producing areas and has an intriguing backstory. Following World War II, immigrant Italian tobacco farmers moved to the area and planted crops in the fertile soil alongside the King River. As the call for home-grown tobacco headed south, almost all of the farms were converted to vineyards in the 1980s and 90s. Today the region is best known for its Mediterranean-style wines (including sangioveses and pinot grigios) and has largely driven the meteoric rise of Australian prosecco. The distinctive tobacco drying sheds are still visible on many properties.
Murray Darling
Straddling the mighty Murray River around Mildura in the far north-west corner of Victoria, it seems counter intuitive that the Murray Darling region — as close as it is to the arid outback — should be the state’s ‘food bowl’. That achievement is thanks largely to the vision of pioneering Canadian brothers William Benjamin and George Chaffey, who established an innovative irrigation system here in the 1880s. Today, large-scale farms, orchards, and vineyards coat the landscape, and the prodigious output includes an estimated 80% of all wine grapes grown in Victoria — predominantly chardonnay and shiraz varietals. Increasingly though, boutique producers are setting up shop here and handcrafting premium product. Plan your visit using this list of great Mildura wineries and enjoy a full day of grape grazing.
Geelong/Bellarine Peninsula
We wrap up this whirlwind tour of Victoria’s winelands back in relatively close proximity to Melbourne. In addition to the Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula, you may want to check out the Macedon Ranges (probably best known for producing light and bright sparkling whites) and Sunbury — the closest wine region to the city and notable for its brassy shiraz.
An hour’s drive south-west of the capital will bring you to Geelong — the state’s second city and the gateway to the magnificent-but-surprisingly-low-profile Bellarine Peninsula. The Bellarine is home to upwards of 40 wineries, and the cold and dry conditions produce amazing pinot noir, shiraz, and chardonnay. For a tasting opportunity with a difference, the Q Train’s First Class experience will see you enjoying a sumptuous five-course degustation lunch or dinner matched with top-notch local drops.
This post was published thanks to Mildura Gateway.
Browse our range of Victoria tours and experiences here.
Do you have any tips to add to our guide to Victoria’s wine regions? Join the conversation on our Facebook page.
Cover image: Scion Wine, Rutherglen. Image: Visit Victoria
About the writer
Adam Ford is editor of Top Oz Tours & Travel Ideas, and a travel TV presenter, writer, blogger, and photographer. He has travelled extensively through Europe, Asia, North America, Africa, and the Middle East. Adam worked as a travel consultant for a number of years with Flight Centre before taking up the opportunity to travel the world himself as host of the TV series Tour the World on Network Ten. He loves to experience everything a new destination has to offer and is equally at home in a five-star Palazzo in Pisa or a home-stay in Hanoi.
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