Geographical positioning
The Yarra Valley is an Australian geographical designation for wine within the Port-Phillip zone of the state of Victoria. The region covers around 3,130 square kilometres and extends from the lower valley up into higher-lying areas of the surrounding mountain ranges in Australia.
Landscape and climate
A region shaped by watersheds in connection with the Great Dividing Range shows large differences in altitude and orientation. The vineyard elevations range from 17 to 1,338 metres. The Yarra Valley is one of the cool-climate wine regions; the average January temperature is 18.9 °C, and rainfall during the growing season is 559 millimetres.
Soils and grape varieties
In the north there are grey-brown sandy loams with stony clayey subsoils from old sandstone. The south has younger red soils of volcanic origin. The vineyard area is around 2,837 hectares. The most important grape varieties include Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon; in addition, Pinot Gris and Pinot Grigio are grown.
History and wine styles
In 1838, the Ryrie brothers planted the first officially documented vines in Yering. After expansion in the 1860s and 1870s, wine production declined again during the economic depression and largely ended by the 1930s, before new vineyards were established from the late 1960s onwards. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir show cool-climate expressions; Cabernet Sauvignon ranges from medium-bodied to full-bodied wines to aromatic, floral and herb-accented styles. Shiraz responds strongly to the site and is sometimes fermented with a small portion of Viognier.
