Great Western Victoria | |
---|---|
The Western Highway at Great Western | |
Coordinates | 37°09′0″S142°51′0″E / 37.15000°S 142.85000°E |
Population | 425 (2021 census) [1] |
Postcode(s) | 3377 |
Location | |
LGA(s) | Shire of Northern Grampians |
State electorate(s) | Ripon |
Federal division(s) | Wannon |
Great Western is a town in the east of the Wimmera region of Victoria, Australia. The town is located on the Western Highway, in the Shire of Northern Grampians local government area, 225 kilometres north west of the state capital, Melbourne. The town has a population of 425.
The first European settlers in the Great Western area were sheep graziers in the 1840s and closer settlement began with the discovery of gold during the Victorian gold rush, the Post Office opening on 1 June 1858. [2] . The first vineyards in the Great Western area were established by two Frenchmen who met at the gold diggings at Daylesford. Following their example, Joseph Best and his brother Henry established vineyards in 1865. Following Joseph's death in 1888, the property was purchased by Hans Irvine. Irvine imported staff from France and dedicated himself to establishing a sparkling wine of comparable quality of French champagne. In 1918, Irvine sold the winery to his friend and Australian wine pioneer, Benno Seppelt. [3] For decades Seppelt's "Great Western" and Penfolds' "Minchinbury" were strong contenders for Australia's premier Champagne-style sparkling wine. [4]
Today, Great Western is the wine and food village of the Grampians. Wineries are still producing quality sparkling wines including Seppelt Salinger at the Seppelt winery, now owned by Treasury Wine Estates. [5] [6] The Ahchow Family have been custodians of the Seppelt Great Western estate since 2016. The Seppelt cellars include over 3 kilometres of labyrinthine tunnels ("drives") originally constructed by out of work gold miners. The underground cellars were used to allow the sparkling wine to rest and develop. [3] Sparkling Shiraz was first made at the now Seppelt site in Great Western. The other major vineyard in the area is the Concongella vineyard, operated by Best's Wines, producing a wide variety of wine types. [7] Table shiraz, including some from pre-phylloxera root stocks, is also produced by wineries in the area. [8] The development of a water recycling program transferring waste water from nearby Ararat to wineries at Great Western has allowed recent expansion of the wine industry in the area. [9]
The horse racing club, the Wimmera Racing Club, holds the Great Western Cup meeting on Australia Day (26 January), [10] and a rodeo is also held annually.
The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Mininera & District Football League. [11]
For more information on Great Western, please visit here,
Sparkling wine is a wine with significant levels of carbon dioxide in it, making it fizzy. While it is common to refer to this as champagne, European Union countries legally reserve that word for products exclusively produced in the Champagne region of France. Sparkling wine is usually either white or rosé, but there are examples of red sparkling wines such as the Italian Brachetto, Bonarda and Lambrusco, and the Australian sparkling Shiraz. The sweetness of sparkling wine can range from very dry brut styles to sweeter doux varieties.
Ararat is a town in south-west Victoria, Australia, about 198 kilometres (120 mi) west of Melbourne, on the Western Highway on the eastern slopes of the Ararat Hills and Cemetery Creek valley between Victoria's Western District and the Wimmera. Its urban population according to 2021 census is 8,500 and services the region of 11,880 residents across the Rural City's boundaries. It is also the home of the 2018/19 GMGA Golf Championship Final.
E & J Gallo Winery is a winery and distributor headquartered in Modesto, California. It was founded in 1933 by Ernest Gallo and Julio Gallo of the Gallo family, and is the largest exporter of California wines. It is the largest wine producer in the world, producing over 3% of the world's entire annual supply of 35 billion bottles with an annual revenue of $5.3 billion it is also the largest family-owned winery in the United States. Gallo provides about 3,500 jobs to Modesto residents and 2,500 jobs in other parts of the state, country, and world.
The Australian wine industry is one of the world's largest exporters of wine, with approximately 800 million out of the 1.2 to 1.3 billion litres produced annually exported to overseas markets. The wine industry is a significant contributor to the Australian economy through production, employment, export, and tourism.
Bollinger is a French Champagne house, a producer of luxury sparkling wines from the Champagne region. They produce several labels of Champagne under the Bollinger name, including the vintage Vieilles Vignes Françaises, Grande Année and R.D. as well as the non-vintage Special Cuvée. Founded in 1829 in Aÿ by Hennequin de Villermont, Paul Renaudin and Jacques Bollinger, the house continues to be run by members of the Bollinger family. In Britain, Bollinger Champagnes are affectionately known as "Bolly".
The glossary of wine terms lists the definitions of many general terms used within the wine industry. For terms specific to viticulture, winemaking, grape varieties, and wine tasting, see the topic specific list in the "See also" section below.
Brown Brothers Milawa Vineyard is a family-owned wine company based in Milawa, Victoria, Australia. Brown Brothers was founded in 1889 by John Francis Brown and continues to be owned and operated by his descendants on the original property. Brown Brothers makes wine from a wide range of grape varieties and into a range of styles.
The Pyrenees is a wine-producing region centred on the Pyrenees ranges located in Victoria, Australia near the town of Avoca.
California wine production has a rich viticulture history since 1680 when Spanish Jesuit missionaries planted Vitis vinifera vines native to the Mediterranean region in their established missions to produce wine for religious services. In the 1770s, Spanish missionaries continued the practice under the direction of the Father Junípero Serra who planted California's first vineyard at Mission San Juan Capistrano.
Victorian wine is wine made in the Australian state of Victoria. With over 600 wineries, Victoria has more wine producers than any other Australian wine-producing state but ranks third in overall wine production due to the lack of a mass bulk wine-producing area like South Australia's Riverland and New South Wales's Riverina. Viticulture has existed in Victoria since the 19th century and experienced a high point in the 1890s when the region produced more than half of all wine produced in Australia. The phylloxera epidemic that soon followed took a hard toll on the Victoria wine industry which did not fully recover till the 1950s.
The Grampians is an Australian wine region located in the state of Victoria, west of Melbourne. It is located near the Grampians National Park and the Pyrenees hills. The area is dominated by red wine production, particularly Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon.
Hans William Henry Irvine was an Australian vigneron, winemaker, and politician.
Elderton Wines is an Australian winery in Nuriootpa, in the Barossa Valley. The company was founded by Neil and Lorraine Ashmead in 1979. The Elderton wines are made from grape varieties including red grapes Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot as well as white grapes Riesling and Chardonnay.
Seppeltsfield, one of Australia's oldest wineries, was founded in 1851 by Joseph Ernst Seppelt. The Seppeltsfield winery is well known for its signature wine, the 100-year-old Para Tawny.
Giaconda is an Australian winery in Beechworth, Victoria.
Schramsberg Vineyards is a winery located in Calistoga, California in the Napa Valley region. The vineyard, which was founded in 1862 by the German immigrant Jacob Schram, produces a series of sparkling wines using the same method as champagne. Schramsberg is considered one of the premium brands in the production of sparkling wine in California and the first U.S. wine to "match the style and quality of the best French Champagnes".
Mount Avoca Vineyard is an organic vineyard and five red star rated winery located in the Pyrenees Wine Region of Victoria, Australia near the town of Avoca producing high quality Australian wine for both the domestic and international markets. Established by John and Arda Barry in 1970 it is now owned by Lisa and Matthew Barry. Accommodation includes the 4 star rated eco-luxe lodges and the winery has been host to various events including road and mountain bike races, car rallies and musical concerts, it was also awarded 2011 Sustainable Winery of the Year.
Bird in Hand is a winery located near the town of Woodside in the Adelaide Hills wine region of South Australia.
Rutherglen is a wine-producing area around the town of Rutherglen in North East Victoria zone of the state of Victoria in Australia. The area is particularly noted for its sweet fortified wines.
Grampians Grape Escape is one of the longest running food and wine festivals in Australia and a hallmark event for Victoria. It was launched in 1992.