Victoria’sHighCountryhasbecomeoneofthemostdynamic
winemakingregionsinAustralia.MICHAELHARDEN
heads north for a lesson in unusual drops.
F
ashionis rarelya pluswhenit comesto
wine-makingbutrightnowit’sserving
Victoria’sHighCountrywell.Winehas
beenproducedinthisbeautiful,fertile
regionofmountains,valleysandriver
flatsinthestate’snorth-eastformore
than 150 yearsbutthenatureofthewinemaking–
mostlysmaller-scale,family-ownedenterprisesbest
knownforfortifiedwine– meanttheregionhasoften
beenslightlyoff-radarforallbutdedicatedwinegeeks.
Butnowthatsmall-scale,owner-operatedand
artisanarebuzzwordsat theheightofvinousfashion,
theregionfromRutherglentoKingValleyto
Beechworthis garneringalmostasmuchattention
foritswineasit doesforitssnowfieldsandflashy
autumnleaves.Anddeservedlyso.
Overthelastdecadeorso,a newgenerationof
winemakershasbeenpushingtheboundariesand
challengingthestereotypesofwhattheHighCountry
is capableofproducing,pioneeringItalianvarieties
andfindingnewwaysofworkingwitholdschool
grapeslikedurif.It hasbecomeoneofthemost
dynamic,originalandinterestingwine-making
regionsinthecountry.
“ThebeautyoftheNorth-Eastis thatthereareso
manysmallwineregionsthatarespecialfortheirown
reasons,theiruniquedifferentiations,”saysRaquel
Jones,thewinemakerat WeathercraftWinein
BeechworthandrecentlyinductedYoungGunof
Wine.“Thevariableclimateandsoilmeanthat
there’ssomuchscopeforpeopletotrynewthings.”
RaquelandherhusbandHughboughttheir
vineyard and winery in 2016 and are a good example
ofthenewHighCountryattitude.Smallscale
andhands-on,theyhaveaddedtempranilloand
albarinototheirvineyard’soriginalplantingsof
shirazgrapesandproudlywavetheflagforthe
diversityofvarietiesintheregion.
They’vealsosignedontoa newinitiativeof
immersivewineexperiencesbeinglaunchedacross
theregion.Theprogrammeinvolvessmallgroup,
bookings-onlytoursthatprovideuniquedeep-dives
intolocalwinemakingthroughthoughtful,bespoke
experienceswithwinemakers,matchedwithfood
madefromtheamazinglydiverseandversatilelocal
produce.It’sallaboutthesensory– smellingthe
ferments,tastingthegrapes,touchingthesoil.
AtWeathercraft,smallgroupsarecollectedfrom
theiraccommodation,takenintothevineyardand
thewinerybyRaquelorHughtoparticipateinbarrel
tastingsbeforereturningtothetiny,light-filledcellar
doorthatoverlooksthemainvineyardtotasteflights
oftempranilloservedalongsideplatesoftapas,also
madebyRaquel.
Theexperiencesvaryasmuchastheregion’s
microclimatesandsub-regionsandcanbecalibrated
fromnovicetobuff.
AtJoneswinery,forexample,lunchatownerand
winemakerMandyJones’French-accentedrestaurant
canbefollowedbya dessert-basedtastingexperience
ledbyMandyinthecellardoor.Basedaroundmuscat,
it canincludeeverythingfroma muscatspritzto
matchingclassicmuscatwitha choc-orangeparfait.
It’sanexcitingtimetobeintheHighCountry.
Herearesomeoftheexperiences that are making
it even more so.➤
DROPS
GOURMET TRAVELLER 113
