The Wines of the Barossa Valley

Written by: Cameron Ward

Published: 01/13/2017

Reading time: 3 mins

The Barossa Valley in Australia is one of the world’s best-loved wine regions.

Boasting ancient vines and centuries-old vineyards that bring the flavours of rural Australia to the rest of the country and beyond. Today, it boasts more than 550 families that grow and create grapes and wines. Many with sixth-generation members of the family still working on the vineyards.

A huge proportion of Australia’s most popular wines come from the Barossa Valley, including the world-famous Barossa Shiraz and the Eden Valley Riesling. These delicious tipples have become somewhat regional heroes. Not far behind come the region’s Cabernet Sauvignon, Mataro, Grenache, and Semillon. All of which play a huge part in Barossa’s wine-making history and its current wine landscape.

Barossa as a whole encompasses the Barossa Valley and Eden Valley, which makes it one of the only areas Australia with both warm and cool climate growing conditions. This means that a range of different wines have been grown in the region for more than a hundred years.

The Shiraz of the Barossa Valley

The Barossa Valley is probably best-known for its Shiraz. The bold red holds flavour of ripe blackberries, dried currant and mocha aromas. There’s also a hint of tobacco in the flavour, which comes from an earthiness that’s prominent throughout the Valley.

But it’s not just Shiraz that packs a punch in the Barossa Valley. The flavour is often combined with Cabernet to create fruity Shiraz-Cabernet blends. Many wineries in the region produce their own blends to create even more complex flavours. This ingenuity keeps teh Australian wine industry moving forward.

The History of the Barossa Valley and its Wines

The Valley dates back to the 1840s when it was founded by settler George Fife Angas. The Mediterranean climate of the region was found to be perfect for fruit growing and, over the years, this developed into winemaking, which soon became a huge industry in Australia.

Since then, it has seen numerous winemaking families bring their favourite flavours to the rest of the country and further afield, and continues to be one of the most forward-thinking wine producing regions on the planet.

The future of the Barossa Valley is looking rosy, with plenty of new blends and distinctive flavours coming out of the region every single year from established wineries and new ones.

Related article: The Most Spectacular Wine Region in Barossa Valley

Cameron Ward
Cameron Ward
Managing Director at Sightseeing Tours Australia

Cameron Ward turned his travel passion into a thriving Australian tourism business. Before he co-founded his own business, Sightseeing Tours Australia, he was enjoying being a Melbourne tour guide. Even now, Cameron delights in helping visitors from all around the world get the most out of their incredible Australian trip. You’ll see Cameron leading tours or writing about his favourite Australian places where he shares his local insights.