Swan District
An Australian wine region located in the Greater Perth Zone of WESTERN AUSTRALIA, situated just north of Perth around the Swan River and its tributaries, primarily in the Swan Valley. This area’s VITICULTURAL history dates back to the 1830s with the establishment of Olive Farm, believed to be Australia’s oldest continuous use winery. The very hot climate and the valley’s flat plain provide an ideal grape-growing environment. In fact, the Swan Valley was the most important winegrowing area in Western Australia over a hundred years, growing both table grapes and grapes for FORTIFIED WINES. Unfortunately, as the demand for fortified wines waned, so did the demand for the region’s other wines. Today the Swan District is adapting to the changing times, choosing grapes that thrive in this environment and sourcing fruit from other areas like MARGARET RIVER. Almost 75 percent of the grapes grown here are white VARIETIES— CHENIN BLANC leads production with about half of that total. It’s followed by VERDELHO, CHARDONNAY, SÉMILLON, MUSCADELLE, and SAUVIGNON BLANC. The top red grape is Shiraz (SYRAH), followed by CABERNET SAUVIGNON, GRENACHE, and MERLOT. Area wineries produce some very interesting Chenin Blanc wines, even though the climate is far different from that of the cool LOIRE, home to the grape. Dominating this region’s winemaking in both quantity and quality is Houghton, owned by BRL Hardy.
Related Links:
Western Australia, Blackwood Valley, viticultural area
© Copyright Barron's Educational Services, Inc.
1995 based on THE WINE LOVER'S COMPANION,
by Ron Herbst and Sharon Tyler Herbst.
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