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Pyrenees (Victoria)

Coordinates: 37°6′59.49″S 143°18′48.82″E / 37.1165250°S 143.3135611°E / -37.1165250; 143.3135611
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37°6′59.49″S 143°18′48.82″E / 37.1165250°S 143.3135611°E / -37.1165250; 143.3135611

The Pyrenees ranges, as seen from Avoca

The Pyrenees is a wine region centred on the Pyrenees ranges located in Victoria, Australia near the town of Avoca.

The altitude of the ranges is 300 to over 750 m (approximately 980–2460 ft). Main peaks in the range include Mount Avoca (747 m) and Mount Warrenmang (537 m).

Exploration

The explorer and surveyor Thomas Mitchell was the first European recorded to have traveled through the district on his 1836 journey of exploration. The ranges reminded him of the Pyrenees in Europe where he had served as an army officer, hence the name he gave them. He found the area more temperate in climate and better watered than inland New South Wales, and he encouraged settlers to take up land in the region he described as "Australia Felix".

Wine

Vineyards near Avoca, viewed from the Pyrenees ranges

Vines were first planted in the region in 1848[citation needed]. Several wine growers produced and sold wine in the region in the late 1800s and early part of the twentieth century.[1] The pioneer of the region Edwin Horatio Mackereth had his vineyard sold to a dairy farmer in 1929 by his descendants. Another early producer Kofoeds survived until 1947.[1] The 1960s saw the re-establishment of vineyards in the area with the French Cognac producer Rémy Martin planting grapes in the mid 1960s. Since the 1970s the region has been a significant producer of full-bodied red wines based on Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon grape varieties.

The main eight wineries of the region in the 1970s and 1980s included: Chateau Rémy (since renamed Blue Pyrenees Estate), Dalwhinnie Vineyard, Mount Avoca Vineyard, Mountain Creek, Summerfield Vineyards, Redbank Winery, Taltarni Vineyards and Warrenmang Vineyard.

Wineries of the region now number almost twenty with a second wave of plantings and investment in the 1990s. The varieties planted now include many white varieties such as include Sauvignon blanc, Chardonnay and Viognier, while the main varieties of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon well supported by a range of other varieties from France such as Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Grenache, Italy for Sangiovese and Nebbiolo and Spain for Tempranillo.

Tourism is a very significant part of the appeal of the region with many wineries including cellar-doors where wines can be tasted (usually free of charge) and several also including accommodation and restaurants as part of their business.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Wines and Winemakers of the Pyrenees The Natuaral Garden of Victoria, Pyrenees Vignerons Association.
  • "Pyrenees, Victoria". Wine Regions. Wine Australia. Retrieved 2007-11-07.
  • Thomas Mitchell Three Expeditions into the Interior of Eastern Australia, Volume 2
  • Pyrenees Tourism website
  • Wineries of the Pyrenees website
  • Australian Wine Regions Map of the Pyrenees region
  • Pyrenees Gold Field Victoria Geol. Survey, 1904, WM Bradford; discusses Geology of Pyrenees area and Gold Field.
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