History of Australian Wine

When thinking of the production of wine, you would be forgiven for thinking that that Australia was fairly new in the industry. However, you could not be farther from the truth. When looking back through the history of Australian wine, it has been noted that the earliest settlers planted vines in Australia in 1788. Although these wine making attempts failed, it was only a few years later that the first grapes were successfully grown. In the 200 or so years since then, Australia has been growing bigger and bigger in it's wine-producing industry and is now the second largest importer of wine to the United States, Italy being the largest importer.

In the history of Australian wine, you can see that the country started exporting it's produce from an early time. It was in 1822 that the first shipment of wine traveled from near Sydney to London and the quality was recognizable, even then. That exact batch of wine that was shipped won an award for it's quality in the following year!

It was during the reign of Queen Victoria that the industry really began to set off, when gold was discovered in Melbourne in the 1840's. Currently Australia employs 16,000 people in the production of wine and also another 5,000 in selling it. In one twelve month period, it was recorded that the wine sales generated in that year was around 354 million litres and in the year after that, 250 million litres of it was exported to generate a worth of around $1.2 billion.

Due to this impressive exportation rate that grew 22% in value, and 12% in volume in a period of two years alone, it has been predicted that Australia will soon become one of the world's greatest wine producers. Not bad for a "late bloomer!" There are roughly 40 wine growing regions in Australia, the best of which are New South Wales, South Australia, Victoria, and Western Australia.

In 1990 Australia put into effect the Label Integrity Program (LIP), which regulates the vintage, varietal, and geographical indications of wines produced in Australia.

If you were to ask yourself why this impressive country has grown so much in it's wine-producing industry, you would have to look at two main factors. One of these would be the great climate it has to offer to grow the grapes in, and the other being the lack of "prohibition" on the industry. The country has faced a few hard times over the years in it's wine making but has overcome these and managed to grow more impressively by the year!

Wine, it's what's for dessert

There aren't many things that can make my mouth water more than wine and chocolate. Dessert wines and pairing everyday wines with desserts are becoming more popular, and for good reason. Sweet wines can even replace those decadent calorie rich dishes as dessert all on it's own!

As you are preparing your next meal think about finishing with one of these choices:

Port - The perfect compliment to dark chocolate, cheesecake or Stilton cheese
Madeira - Creme caramel, milk chocolate or coffee flavored desserts will fuse effortlessly
Asti Spumante or Moscato - Fresh fruits and biscotti
Sauterne - Fruits, creme brulee or Roquefort cheese

Of course if you are serving chocolate you can also pair your favorite Merlot, Zinfandel or Pinot Noir for a decadent ending.

When pairing dessert wines it's important to make sure the wine is sweeter than the dessert so it doesn't taste harsh or too acidic. And remember, sweet wines aren't only for dessert, they can be used as an aperitif as well, so don't be shy, greet your guests with a glass!

History of Italian Wine

Italian wine is very often described as one of the best wines in the world. From the cheapest bottle to the most expensive, every mouthful is one of enjoyment and you will find it a struggle to find a bottle of Italian wine that is not up to scratch. There are over two thousand different wine labels produced in Italy from twenty regions and 96 provinces.

For many generations, it has been known for wine to play a very important part of the society. From the poorest, to the richest, all Italian's loved a glass of wine, even that long ago. The first wine started as people juicing the grapes to drink the juice out of them. Obviously, as the juice sat there, waiting to be drunk, it fermented and became alcoholic and therefore you have your glass of wine. From that very first idea of wine, it has evolved into a massive industry and has become what it is today.

Italy is known as one of the oldest wine regions in the world and was believed to have started around 4000-3000BC with the Romans. Back then, the alcohol was incredibly strong, with none of the additives and ingredients that we use today. To make this wine more palatable, the Romans would dilute it with water and even add other ingredients which to use may seem a bit odd. Honey was used quite often as were other herbs and spices, and even chalk was used to reduce the bitterness of the taste! The white wine was also more prized and still is known as the better of the three - Red, Rose and White, even today.

In the nineteenth Century, the old Italian wine makers learned better processes to make the wine taste better and more palatable and even learned how to bottle the wine. Before very long, it was shipped all over Europe and other parts of the world and thus started the reputation it has developed for being the nicest regions of wine making. It was also learned, even before the nineteenth Century, that keeping the wine in very tightly closed containers improved the taste and quality of the wine.

In 1963 the Denominazione di Origine Controllata (the DOC), similar to the French AOC took over control of the production and labeling of Italian wine to ensure production quality. Unlike the AOC, the DOC has aging requirements. The current top three producing regions are Veneto, Piedmont and Tuscany, which many of you will recognize.

From the very first bottle of wine until now, the quality of Italian wine has never really been disagreed with and even though the country is now split in to different regions of wine making, the country is still very much renowned for making the best bottle of wine in the world! This reputation, I'm sure will remain for many years to come!