An Australian wine region located in VICTORIA’S Central Victoria Zone. It’s situated about 90 miles north and slightly west of Melbourne, around the town of Bendigo. This area’s wine history dates to about the time gold was discovered in 1851. In the late 1800s, however, PHYLLOXERA ended the wine industry’s efforts, and it wasn’t until the late 1960s that Bendigo began to revive. The recovery here is riding the reputation of the rich, minty Shiraz (SYRAH) and CABERNET SAUVIGNON wines. CHARDONNAY, PINOT NOIR, CABERNET FRANC, MERLOT, and SÉMILLON are also grown. There are over 1,000 planted acres and over twenty wineries in the Bendigo region.