Canberra District

Introduction

It had always struck me as a wry commentary on the unreality of the political hothouse of Canberra that none of the Canberra District vignerons should actually have had a vineyard in Canberra, and even more appropriate that none is a politician. The reason for the territorial exclusion was essentially a pragmatic one, however much the concept might have pleased Lewis Carroll: freehold does not exist within the Australian Capital Territory, and land used for anything other than housing, commerce or industry is liable to be rezoned (and the lease terminated) at short notice.

In 1997 BRL Hardy showed there was a solution to the problem: simply enter into an agreement with the Territory Government for the erection of a 2000-tonne winery and the establishment of a 250-hectare vineyard, an enterprise which will dwarf all the others. But one has to have the clout of Australia's second largest wine company to achieve an outcome such as this. The winery was duly opened in 2000.

So the remaining, much smaller, vignerons cluster just outside the Territory's borders in two groups: in the Yass Valley around Murrumbateman, and along the shores of Lake George. It was indeed within a few hundred yards of the edge of Lake George that Dr Edgar Reck planted the first vines in 1971, and others - mainly from the scientific community, most with Doctorates of Philosophy to their credit - quickly followed in his wake. By 1974 the Canberra District Vignerons Association was founded, and now has over 20 members.

Overall, growth has been steady rather than spectacular, and the general quality of the wines has been equally modest. This has been due to three main reasons: first, the virtual absence of qualified winemakers; second, initial lack of understanding of the particular problems posed by the Canberra climate and terroir; and third, the inherent difficulty of small-scale winemaking of white wines.

The lack of technical expertise has been partially overcome by the use of consultants, partially by skills learned on the winery floor (for example at Lark Hill, Clonakilla and Kyeema Estate), although supplemented by external studies at Charles Sturt University, and partially by the acute intelligence and high scientific qualifications of many of the winemakers who - strictly speaking - are unqualified.

It hardly needs be said the arrival of BRL Hardy has acted as a major catalyst for change in the early years of the next century as wines from its development start to come onto the market. In the interim, it is an emphatic vote of confidence in the ability of the region to produce first class table wine.

The climatic question has already been addressed: it took a long time for the vignerons to realise to what extent the summer drought made irrigation essential, and - having recognised the problem - to do something about it. The other learning curve was with respect to the danger of spring frost in sites with poor or non-existent air drainage. Taken together, these problems reduced yields to subeconomic levels without providing any compensating benefit in the form of increased quality.

The third problem is in some ways an extension of the first, but is by no means unique to Canberra. It is a simple fact of life that white wine is much harder to make in small quantities than is red wine: it requires much greater discipline and attention to detail, and requires much more sophisticated plant and equipment.

For all that, the overall quality and range of the Canberra District wines has improved greatly in the last twenty years, and the best wines - though few in number - can acquit themselves with honour in open competition with those of the rest of Australia's small wineries. How far they can go in the future is anyone's guess, but it is a fair bet BRL Hardy will provide the answer and an equally fair bet it will come through the agency of Chardonnay, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. It may also come through the expansion of vineyards away from the tight cluster surrounding Canberra. There are some first-class viticultural sites in the broader region simply waiting to be developed. Lastly, there is the certainty of greater tourism; the planting by BRL Hardy in the centre of the Canberra racecourse is an intriguing recognition of that fact.

Region Summary

Location and Elevation
Southern New South Wales Zone
35°0'S, 149°20'E
500 m

Subregions
Canberra, Lake George, Murrumbateman, Queanbeyan and Yass, (but no Geographic Indications registration so far applied for).

Climate
With its extremely continental climate, the Canberra District shows just how inadequate a single index of climate can be. If one looks purely at the heat summation (HDD) of 1410 it would lead one to believe that this is a genuinely cool region, but it is not - or at least, its wine styles do not suggest it is. A hot dry summer (but with cool nights) gives way to a cool autumn, with harvest not infrequently interrupted by significant rain. The major viticultural limitation lies in the very dry spring and summer months. Spring frost has been a problem too, but can be largely avoided with appropriate site selection.

Statistics
Heat degree days: 1410
Sunshine hours per day: NA
Annual rainfall: 630 mm
Growing season rainfall: 360 mm
Mean January temperature: 20.2°C
Harvest: Mid-March-end April

Soil
The soils are principally in the hard red duplex group, with brownish clay loam surface soils which are usually shallow. The subsoils are not particularly water-retentive, adding to the need for irrigation.

Principal Grape Varieties
Chardonnay: 150 ha
Riesling: 26 ha
Sauvignon blanc: 25 ha
Semillon: 5 ha
Total white: 206 ha

Cabernet sauvignon: 150 ha
Shiraz: 80 ha
Pinot noir: 50 ha
Merlot: 20 ha
Total red: 300 ha

Principal Wine Styles

Riesling
For many of the wineries, vies with Chardonnay as the most important white wine, and arguably has more personality and typicity. The majority are made in a crisp, gently toasty, dry style, with sweeter styles less favoured than they once were. Botrytis is not a significant factor; in the warmer years, more tropical characters do appear, however. Modest yields ensure that the wines age well in bottle for up to a decade. Helm and Lark Hill do particularly well with the variety.

Chardonnay
The ubiquitous chardonnay does well enough in the region, producing wines of good quality and complexity. Achieving both physiological and technical ripeness is seldom a problem, and botrytis is fairly easily controlled. Soft fig and stone fruit flavours are achieved, which comfortably support reasonably generous use of new oak. Doonkuna, Kyeema Estate, Lark Brindabella Hills are among the leaders.

Sauvignon Blanc Semillon
Attractive, moderately herbaceous wines are made from these varieties, frequently blended, but sometimes with Sauvignon Blanc appearing on its own. The wines have good structure, with the best flavours appearing in the cooler vintages. Brindabella Hills is a winery to follow with the style.

Cabernet Sauvignon
Sometimes made as a single varietal wine, but increasingly blended with Merlot; as with all the wines of the region, the varied climatic conditions which prevail from one vintage to the next (and differing approaches in the winery) make generalisations about style more than usually hazardous. Overall, the weight and extract varies from light, leafy and minty to rich, concentrated and chocolatey. Brindabella Hills, Helm, Kyeema Estate and Lark Hill stand out.

Shiraz
A variety which is starting to come into its own as part of the general resurgence of interest, with several wineries producing spectacularly good examples, redolent of spice, black cherry and liquorice. It would not surprise to see plantings of the variety increase significantly over the years. Clonakilla's shiraz (with a touch of Viognier, Rhone-style) stands out like a beacon.

Pinot Noir
Much against the run of play, Lark Hill has had considerable success since the latter part of the 1990s with Pinot Noir, both under its label and as contract maker for Pankhurst Wines. It seems probable that the best results will come in the cooler years, for the style is nothing if not robust, and in the warmer vintages may lose varietal character.

by James Halliday