Australian wines have been a power house for the past couple decades, producing consistent and reliable house hold names such as Lindemans, Yellowtail and De Bortoli to icons such as Penfold’s “Grange”, Chris Ringland’s “Three Rivers” and Henschke’s “Hill of Grace”, which fetches hundreds of dollars per bottle at current release. Ranked as 4th largest wine exporter, Australian wines are wines to be reckoned with. However, like most good things, they usually start with humble beginnings, and Australia is without exception.
The first vine plantings came in the 1700’s with the immigration of settlers from Europe. Beginnings were challenging and only in the 1800’s did Australian growers manage to start producing fruit suitable for winemaking, with the importation of French grape varieties by James Busby. The industry was dominated by sweet and fortified wines that lend to the perception of Australian wines being sweet and cheery. A devastating louse known as phylloxera (which nearly wiped out the entire global wine production) arrived on Australian shores and nearly diminished most of the plantings. Vines had to be ripped out and lands scorched to avoid the spread of the pest and avoid another massive invasion. With this, came a change in winemaking style which rapidly put Australian wines into the forefront of new world wines. Sweet and fortified wine productions declined and producers a started to focus on quality over quantity along with gaining knowledge in varietal expression. Vines that survived the louse attacks were gaining quality with age and were being used to produce small quantities of highly concentrated wines, of which most were Shiraz plantings.
Today Australian wines dominate most of Jakarta’s wine shelves, with a vast range to suit all palates. You will be able to find the accessible DB range from De Bortoli, affordable and “bang for your buck”, comes in both white and red styles. Nothing short or shy, these wines are great for those looking for a good introduction to Australian wines. If red, rich and muscular is more to your liking, grab yourself something from the Barossa or Mclaren Vale regions such as Cats Among the Pigeons or Mollydooker. These guys makes nothing but high octane, teeth staining, mind altering full bodied reds which if these wines won’t give you a lasting impression then perhaps nothing will. For most people, these wines are the epitome of Australian Shirazes. With a little effort, collectables are also gaining ground in the Jakarta wine scene. Age worthy and prized wines such as Penfold’s Grange, Greenock Creek or Clarendon Hills “Astralis” have hit the scene creating significant buzz and following. Definitely keep your eyes peeled for this space, mate!
Wines mentioned are available in the following wine establishments:
Vin+ Arcadia
Vin+ Kemang
Cork and Screw
Cheese and Caviar
