WINE REGIONS OF THE WORLD
Australia
Australia has
a well-established wine industry, and its people consume more
wine than those of any other English-speaking nation. Less
than two per cent of the world’s wine comes from Australia,
yet its wine industry has established an international reputation
for creativity and experimentation – and some of the
world’s most interesting wine “styles.”
And Australian wines are rapidly growing in popularity –
according to one source, Aussie exports to the U.S. have doubled
in the past few years.
Best-known for reds
like Shiraz, Australia has recently garnered international
praise for its improvement in the quality of its whites, notably
Chardonnay, Sémillion and Riesling. Over the past several
years, the tiny town of Rutherglen has attracted wine lovers
interested in sampling two excellent dessert wines, a Muscat
and a Tokay, nicknamed “stickies” by the locals.
New South Wales,
Victoria and South Australia (which produces about
60 per cent of the country’s wine) are some of the better
known wine regions, while areas like Tasmania have begun to
develop vineyards in recent years. There are about 50 registered
wine regions on the continent, most clustered around its cooler
southwestern and southeastern fringes.
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