Spotlight on Australia: Heartland regions – Riverland, Riverina & Murray Darling
We’re excited to continue the 🌍🍷 “Wines of the World Series” with a spotlight on Australia. We've been exploring key regions and varieties with resources from Wine Australia, who have generously agreed to share their content with the Berlin Wine School Community. One way to look at Australia’s wine regions is by climate type. We’ll conclude the exploration of Australia’s zones and regions with an overview of warm and hot continental climate regions and the “heartland”.
📖Heartland regions key facts:
These regions are a “powerhouse” of Australia’s wine industry, producing large volumes of wine.
Large-scale production in these regions and the tradition of big cooperatives have allowed for great international export success of Australian wine.
The climate is hot or warm and irrigation required and enabled by the Murray-Darling river system.
Many world-renowned wine brands as well as boutique producers are based in these regions.
Recently, new brands and innovative ideas have emerged in these regions as a consequence of generational change.
📍Riverland:
Australia’s largest wine region with a total 22,000 ha vineyard area at altitudes between 10 to 80m.
It provides over 30% of Australia’s annual wine production.
The climate is warm continental with long sunny days, mild winters, and relatively low humidity ensuring vine health and stability.
The low risk of disease pressure has made the region ideal for organic and biodynamic farming.
It has ancient, nutrient-rich red soils (sandy loam over clay) around the Murray River and wind- blown sands over lime and clay in higher altitudes.
More than 80 varieties are planted.
It is best known for its Shiraz, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon.
📍Riverina
It is the biggest region in New South Wales.
It has a Mediterranean-influence climate with high evaporation and humidity later in the season. This allows for botrytis, and the region is recognized for its noble rot sweet Semillon wines.
The region is mostly flat, with a 20,000 ha total areas of vineyards at altitudes between 80 to 164 m, and varied alluvial soils with sand, granite, and clay.
Warm climate and low rainfall require irrigation. New research and investment focus on heat-resistant varieties and vine stress assessment technology.
The most planted varieties are Chardonnay, Shiraz, and Semillon.
📍Murray Darling
It is the third-largest wine-growing region in Australia after Riverland, and Riverina.
It has a hot, semi-arid climate, irrigation is required.
It is mostly flat, with 16,000 ha total vineyard area at altitudes between 30 and 80 m, and has calcareous soils, ranging from brown to red-brown loamy sand, sandy loam or loam.
Boutique wineries are on the rise, making the region a popular tourist destination.
It is mainly known for its Chardonnay and Shiraz. Recently, new, heat-resistant varieties such as Nero D’Avola, Vermentino, and Durif (also grown in Rutherglen) are planted, resulting in high-quality wines.
🔎Did you know?
As one of the world’s largest, longest and most significant river systems and a backbone of local viticulture, the Murray River has been described as a ‘slow-moving serpent’.
The CropWatch initiative was established in 1980 by scientists at the Loxton Research Center in Riverland to advance research on vine health and to develop monitoring technology systems (weather, rot, and mildew alerts, etc.)
Riverina is associated with the Yellow Tail Winery. Founded in 2000, the winery represents affordable Australian wines widely available in foreign markets.
A ‘critter wine’ is a term used to describe affordable Australian wines with animals on their label.
The first botrytis Semillon was produced in Riverina by Noble by De Bortoli winery in 1982, when no one else in Australia was making such a style.
Murray Darling hosts annual food and wine festivals, including the popular Jazz Food & Wine Festival in November.
🎓Want to learn more?
Review Riverland regional snapshot including the latest vintage reports.
Review Riverina regional snapshot including the latest vintage reports.
Review Murray Darling regional snapshot including the latest vintage reports.
Visit Riverina’s regional association website.
Visit Riverland’s regional association website.
💬Share your thoughts!
Have you noticed if any of the Australian wines broadly available in European supermarkets come from one of these regions? Have you ever tried botrytised Semillon from Riverina? Do you know the Yellow Tail brand? Share your thoughts!
All resources, maps, images, and data courtesy of Wine Australia.