Australia is primarily a hot, dry country. However, it has regions of cool climates suitable for cultivating wine grapes. Wine grapes don’t like hot climates as they give their best flavours when ripened in mild to cool conditions. To compensate in warm regions, vignerons plant vineyards at high altitude.
Canberra’s highest vineyard is at 860 metres above sea level. The town of Orange in the state of New South Wales has many high elevation vineyards, while Australia’s highest vineyard is located in Guyra at 1,320 metres above sea level. The Orange region is often referred to as the Central Highlands of Australia producing apples, pears and cherries. It has a mild to warm summer with maximum temperatures of 32 degrees Celsius (90F) with cool to cold nights during the wine grape growing season.
At a one-day symposium in June 2007, at Snows Lake Vineyard in Northern California’s Lake Country (2,000 feet or 610 metres above sea level), vignerons and viticulturists from around the world discussed the characteristics of wine grapes grown at high elevations. The benefits of high altitude wine growing were that the total tannins increased with higher elevations while bitter tannins decreased; sunlight intensity was higher resulting in increased photosynthesis and production of grapes; and skins were thicker. These are all attributes of high quality wines.
However, high altitude wine grape growing is complicated and expensive because geography and climate affects production. For example, high elevation sites have lower average temperatures, lower heat accumulation, but higher daytime temperature fluctuations. The geography can affect power supply, water supply, erosion, pests, and bird damage. This results in high production costs which are passed onto high retail costs. Generally consumers don’t ask for high altitude wines and hence they may not be clear about the differences in costs.
There is no real definition regarding at what height wine growing becomes high altitude. In Europe, the wine industry uses factors such as degree of slope, altitude above sea level and existence of terraces, but in many other countries and regions, there are no specifications.
The Orange region – 206 kilometres or 128 miles west of Sydney - is often referred to as the Central Highlands of Australia producing apples, pears and cherries. It has an elevation between 600-900 metres (1,968-2,952 feet). The soil varies widely and it has a mild to warm summer with maximum temperatures of 32 degrees Celsius (90F) with cool to cold nights during the wine grape growing season. It is dry during the summer and can become quite windy which is both an advantage and a disadvantage for growing grapes. Wind helps to reduce spring frosts but it can damage sensitive grape varieties such as Merlot. The major threat to the grapes in the Orange region is from birds. The main wine styles produced are Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot and Shiraz (the most widely planted variety).
Guyra is on the Northern Tablelands in New South Wales 511 kilometres (317 miles) north of Sydney. It’s one of the highest elevated towns in Australia. The principal industries include wool, sheep, beef cattle, potatoes and tomatoes.
(http://www.winesandvines.com/)
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