Alternative Varieties
Beechworth vigneron grows grape varieties in Australia for the first time
An award-winning Beechworth vigneron has reaped success with two new exciting grape varieties grown in Australia for the first time. Fighting Gully Vineyard’s Mark Walpole has grown Petit Arvine and Cornalin, white and red respectively, from the Aosta Valley in mountainous region in Italy’s far northwest with the region bordering Switzerland.
Trousseau
Smallfry Wines is a partnership in business and life between Suzi Hilder and Wayne Ahrens.
From Pinot G to Picolit
In its homeland in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, in northeast Italy, Picolit is commonly made into a dessert wine either from semi-dried or late-harvested grapes. Kevin McCarthy, who together with his wife Kathleen Quealy pioneered Pinot G in Australia, admits to sipping “a lot” of these dessert wines during his travels across northern Italy while researching local Pinot Grigio production in the late 1990s.
A serendipitous tale of Savagnin in the Adelaide Hills
It all started with a case of mistaken identity, followed by an identity crisis, a struggle to be seen and understood, but ultimately ended happily with an underdog finding a place to put down roots and call home. Whilst this might sound like the plot line of a Hollywood movie, the main character in this story is actually the little-known white variety Savagnin – a master of disguise, until it wasn’t. It’s introduction to Australia is a tale of serendipity and mistaken identity and whilst its eventual identity reveal caused headaches for many in the industry, we will be forever grateful that it found a home in our Western Branch Vineyard in the Adelaide Hills.
Grillo
Andy Coppard in Grillo vines Grillo takes the heat to produce fresh, crisp white in McLaren Vale By Andy Coppard, Lino Ramble, McLaren Vale,
Schioppettino
The Schiopettino vines that provide the fruit for Billy Button Wines varietal. The vines were initially set up for spur pruning but it was felt
