Shiraz the Hero of Barossa Valley Wines

Barossa Valley is probably the most well-known region of Australia. Wine is the synonym of Barossa since 1842. The Barossa is an area that unites both Barossa Valley and Eden Valley, and without any doubts we can say that is one of the few Australian areas that distinguish with warm and cool climate growing conditions.

Nowadays, the Barossa area has more than 750 growing families that supply quality grapes to more than 170 wine companies. And when it comes to wines, wine experts say that the best Barossa wines can be compared with the best world wines. Barossa Shiraz and the Eden Valley Riesling are among the most popular Barossa Valley wines along with Cabernet Sauvignon, Viognier, Grenache, Mataro, Semillon and Tawny. But there is no doubt that Shiraz and its blends are the principal ingredients of Barossa's regional brand. It is a genuine wine region specifically for Shiraz. It seems to have abundant sunshine and because of the soil the flavours are extremely concentrated with a lot of characteristics that make the Shiraz the Australia's famous. Particularly, the full-bodied style is the thing that everybody loves.

Recently Shiraz can be divided into two categories: a low-yielded, dry and heavily winery-worked style, with oak, ripeness and tannin; and a finer, medium-bodied style, with low ripeness, new oak. The latter is also more fragrant and floral in composition. Nowadays, both of these styles can be found in the Barossa with its stylistic parameters. Whichever style you choose is up to you, but one thing is certain this is a must-try wine as it is the Country’s signature expression.

Shiraz's Modern Evolution

In 1970 and 1980 the most dominant Shiraz blend was the Shiraz-Cabernet blend or also referred as “claret”. In 1990, Shiraz found its way with the Rhone-style blends along with Mataro and Grenache, while in the beginning of the 2000's, the most popular Shiraz blend was Shiraz – Viognier because of the heady, aromatic lift of the white grape.

Nowadays, we can see Shiraz matched with more adventurous grapes like Malbec, Tempranillo, Sangiovese, Touriga and more.

Wine Styles

Barossa Valley is renowned for its Shiraz, but the Barossa is much more than Shiraz. Cabernet Sauvignon, Mataro or also known as Mourvedre, Merlot and Grenache are among the most popular Barossa Valley wines. As to the wine styles, the Barossa Valley is recognized by its GSM Rhone style blends. These years, Barossa winemakers have introduced some new varieties like Marsanne, Zinfandel and Tempranillo, but the Viognier has become the Barossa's specialty, both as a stand-alone variety and blended with Shiraz.