In 1788, Capt. Arthur Phillip of the Royal Navy sailed into Sydney Harbor and planted grapevines that he brought with him from South Africa and Brazil. Phillip's experiment in viticulture at a site that is today close to the city's botanical gardens, marked the birth of Australian wine. Sydney's heat and humidity, however, proved too much for the fragile vines, so settlers moved farther inland to plant vines and seek their fortune. In time, New South Wales became Australia's most important winegrowing region.

Over the next 80 years, grape growing spread, and by the 1860s, European immigrants were planting vines in the Barossa Valley, a few hours northeast of Adelaide, South Australia's capital city. By 1980, the Barossa Valley was recognized worldwide as the soul of Australian wine and the main engine driving the expanding international market for premium Australian wines.

Unlike New South Wales, which was settled primarily by convicts exiled to Australia from England, South Australia and the Barossa Valley attracted farmers, merchants and fortune hunters mainly from Germany who flocked to Australia during the gold rushes of the late 19th century. Observing their homeland custom of drinking wine with meals, the settlers planted grapevines. Winemaking during this era was rudimentary, however, and many of the wines were heavy and tannic, or heavy, sweet and fortified.

By the 1970s, the demand for red wines was growing stronger, but there was a shortage of premium red grapes, so Australian wine drinkers turned to "cask wines" or bag-in-box wines. Large Barossa wineries like Orlando began producing huge quantities of cask wines, mostly white. And to meet the demand for more reds, a major replanting was undertaken, shifting the market from white to red and from blended wines to varietals.

Today there is a new shift. Brian Walsh, chief winemaker for Yalumba, says that regional expression, rather than the varietal approach, is becoming popular in the Barossa Valley and elsewhere in Australia.

"In recent years, Australia has discovered its terroir," Walsh says. "We've moved from an emphasis on technology in the winery out to the vineyard, where we're now paying growers by the hectare, not the ton. One of the exciting things about regionality [at Yalumba] is we are breaking away from a strictly varietal line, placing emphasis on Yalumba Signature wines." Yalumba has not abandoned varietal wines, however, especially Riesling and Sémillon, and Walsh sees great promise for Viognier as well.

Total vineyard plantings in the Barossa Valley exceed 15,000 acres, while California's Napa Valley, which is often compared to the Barossa, has approximately 36,000 acres under vine. For now, the region's leading variety is shiraz, followed by riesling and sémillon. Chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon are planted more or less equally with grenache close behind.

At the 1998 Barossa Wine Show, the Yalumba 1996 Octavius Shiraz and the Leo Buring 1984 Eden Valley Maturation Reserve Riesling won major awards, confirming their strengths as the Barossa's important varietals.

Comparisons between the Barossa and Napa valleys are significant because they give us a sense of context for a region that American wine drinkers know very little about. Interestingly, both valleys are considered the premier wine regions of their respective countries. They are known mainly for red wines and were settled by European immigrants. Additionally, both were dominated for years by large wineries, but now see a surge in smaller establishments. They are undergoing an upscale gentrification, and both are just a few hours from a major city, making wine country tourism a primary business.

The Barossa Valley's climate is very warm, but the region enjoys a wide daily temperature range, not unlike that of Bordeaux. Humidity and rainfall are relatively low, making it an ideal location for full-bodied red wines, fortified wines and big, gutsy white wines. Soils are relatively low in fertility and vary from the lighter soils in the hills to heavier, sandy-loamy soils on the valley floor.

Such climatic and soil differences have stimulated an ongoing discussion about the virtues of hillside wines compared with those grown on the valley floor. Proponents of the hillside character, such as Henschke in neighboring Eden Valley, produce more robust wines, especially reds that are more concentrated than those made from grapes grown on the valley floor.

Barossa winemakers are equally passionate about the distinct flavors derived from old vines. It is not uncommon to find vines, especially shiraz, that are 60 to more than 100 years old, many of which survived from the 1840s, when German immigrants settled in the valley and planted the first vineyards. Some say because phylloxera did not ravage the Barossa in the late 19th century, that the old Barossa shiraz vines impart a unique style that stands out from other Australian regions such as nearby McLaren Vale.

Wondrous Reds

Sometimes described as "glowering," Barossa Shiraz is typically deeply colored, rich in ripe fruit flavors (mainly blackberry); intense and concentrated, with a lot of muscle and firm tannins. Variations on this theme range from the lighter valley-floor wines to the bigger, more concentrated, fuller-bodied wines that hail from old vines and hillside vineyards.

One of the pioneers of Barossa Shiraz and a leading producer of a range of Shiraz styles today is Penfolds, founded in 1850 by Dr. Christopher Penfolds at Magill, a small settlement on the outskirts of Adelaide. Known then mainly for fortified wines and brandy, Penfolds set its sights on table wines, and by the 1950s, had made its mark with no less than the renowned Grange Hermitage (now known as Grange).

In 1950, Chief Winemaker Max Schubert had visited Europe and was impressed by the long-lived reds of Bordeaux. A year after his return from Europe, Schubert made the first Grange Hermitage from shiraz. Schubert's decision to go with shiraz and not cabernet sauvignon was an easy one - he had plenty of good shiraz and no cabernet.

The early vintages of Grange were from shiraz grown at Magill and Morphett Vale, south of Adelaide. Today Grange is a multi-district blend from first-rate Barossa vineyards such as Kalimna, which provides the core of the Grange blend, with small measures from Clare Valley and McLaren Vale. Although mainly a shiraz-based wine aged in American oak, Grange does occasionally include small amounts of cabernet sauvignon. Penfolds also produces a Magill Estate Shiraz, as well as other Barossa-based Shiraz including St. Henri and Kalimna Bin 28.

When Schubert made the first experimental Grange Hermitage from Barossa shiraz in 1951, the die was cast for a concentrated fruit and American oak style that would, a decade later, capture the attention of the worldwide wine community and put Australia on the international wine map.

While Grange at its best is the equal of most Rhône Valley syrah-based wines, it wasn't the only big Barossa red of note being made at that time. Schubert shares the shiraz legend with such pioneers as Cyril Henschke, founder of Henschke winery and Peter Lehmann, founder of Peter Lehmann Wines. Later, others would join the club -the Hill-Smith family of Yalumba, Wolf Blass and, more recently, the St. Hallett team of Bob McLean and Stuart Blackwell, and Grant Burge to name just a few shiraz specialists.

Peter Lehmann built his reputation on shiraz in the late 1950s by relying on dry-farmed bush vines that were approaching the century mark. The first Lehmann Shiraz wines were fermented in open-top containers and then aged in large American oak casks for up to three years. Richness, concentration and longevity were hallmarks of Lehmann's wines and, indeed, all Barossa Shiraz of that period.

Today Lehmann's Chief Winemaker Andrew Wigan selects the best shiraz from some of the top Barossa vineyard regions such as Greenock, Marananga and the legendary Kalimna and Stonewell. His concentrated Stonewell Shiraz harkens back to the 1950s and 1960s when Peter Lehmann made the wines. A recent tasting of the 1989, 1993 and 1994 Lehmann Stonewell Shiraz at the winery showed Barossa Shiraz at its most focused; of particular note for its lush fruit, strength and lingering finish was the 1993 vintage.

Since 1988, St. Hallett Winemaker Stuart Blackwell and Bob McLean, who handles the winery's marketing, have been a team to be reckoned with when it comes to Barossa Shiraz. The irrepressible McLean never tires of talking about St. Hallett's famed Old Block Shiraz. "We have the best shiraz fruit in Australia," McLean beams. "Our old, non-irrigated bush vines behind the winery are between 70 and 100 years old and yield between one to three tons per acre. For the Old Block Shiraz, we blend estate grapes with grapes from 15 to 20 Barossa growers," he explains.

Blackwell ferments the shiraz for Old Block in wax-lined cement tanks, employs pump-over of the must for more color extraction, followed by a soft pressing, then racks the free-run juice and pressings into small oak casks. "For the first year, the wine is in new American oak," he says, "then we rack it into 3- to 4-year-old French oak to finish it off."

Old Block, St. Hallett's flagship wine, is known for its richness and density of flavor, long, refined tannins and great longevity. A tasting at the winery of the 1991 through 1996 Old Block Shiraz was an eye-opener. The 1993 and 1995 were knockouts with richly textured chocolate and ripe cherry flavors, elegant structure, firm tannins and great length. Also of note were the 1991 Old Block for its texture and layered fruit, and the 1996 Old Block, which will be released sometime late this year.

A more youthful, open and fruity version of the Old Block Shiraz is St. Hallett's Faith Shiraz, made from 20-year-old vines, then aged for 12 to 14 months in American oak. For a more concentrated version, St. Hallett offers Blackwell Shiraz, made entirely from old-vine grapes that show the Barossa character of chocolate and soft, ripe berry fruit, and aged for 26 months in small oak barrels.

Charles Cimicky, along with his wife, Jennie, runs Cimicky Wines near Lyndoch at the entrance to the Barossa Valley. He is another advocate of rich, robust Barossa Shiraz. Cimicky farms 60 acres of estate vineyards, many planted in 1973 by his father, Karl, a Czechoslovakian immigrant. Cimicky is aiming his 15,000-case production mostly at reds, concentrating on Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

The Cimicky 1995 Merlot, tasted at the winery, showed bright flavors, good texture, firm tannins and a long, fruity finish. The winery's 1995 Shiraz was dense with concentrated fruit, hints of anise, firm tannins and a lingering finish, while the 1996 Signature Shiraz was showing lovely, ripe raspberry flavors melded with toasted oak. Loaded with inviting fruit, the '96 is only now beginning to show its full potential.

With each new vintage the list of excellent and distinctive Barossa Shiraz continues to grow. At the 1998 Barossa Wine Show, where I served as the international judge, a quintet of exceptional Barossa Shiraz earned gold medals: Yalumba 1996 Octavius, Grant Burge 1996 Meshach, Wolf Blass 1996, Basedow 1996 Reserve and Saltram 1995 No. 1 Shiraz.

In terms of planted acreage and popularity, shiraz is acknowledged as the leading variety in the Barossa Valley, with cabernet sauvignon, grenache and mourvèdre fleshing out the complement of red grapes. Giving the demand for shiraz a run for the money are grenache and mourvèdre, especially from old vines. Formerly used mainly for making fortified wines, both Rhône red varieties are now responsible for proprietary blends and such noted varietals as Yalumba Growers Bushvine Grenache, Bethany Grenache Pressings, Cimicky Grenache and Jenke Vineyards Mourvèdre, all winners at the 1998 Barossa Wine Show.

Stylistically, Barossa Cabernet Sauvignon is similar to the region's Shiraz - full-bodied, ripe and luscious with firm, fine tannins and excellent aging potential. Barossa winemakers believe that Cabernet Sauvignon shows its best when blended with fruit from other regions such as Coonawarra, McLaren Vale and the nearby Eden Valley. Some noted examples are Penfolds Bin 707, a blend of Barossa and Coonawarra grapes. Regional Barossa Cabernet Sauvignons of note, especially from the excellent 1996 vintage, include St. Hallett, Leo Buring, Penfolds, Wolf Blass, Yalumba, Peter Lehmann and Elderton Wines.

Weighing the Whites

Because growing conditions in the valley are better suited to red wines, such as Shiraz, white winemaking in the Barossa is not as clear-cut. At the forefront of Barossa's best whites are Sémillon and Riesling.

Unlike the fabled Sémillons of Australia's Lower Hunter Valley, which are reminiscent of honey-toasted nuts, Barossa's are all about ripe figs and spicy oak, and are made in a big, distinctive, oaky style with the weight and texture of a light red wine. Sémillon is on the rise in the Barossa and the potential for the wine is encouraging, thanks to the efforts of Grant Burge, Basedow Wines, Penfolds, Peter Lehmann, St. Hallett and Rockford.

Barossa Rieslings are often ripe and tropical with a wonderful thread of zingy lime playing off the excellent acidity and long, dry finish. Yet while riesling is the most widely planted white grape in the Barossa Valley, many Riesling producers prefer the tropical fruit-lime juice character of riesling grapes sourced from outside the valley, mainly from the Eden Valley. Much of the Barossa-grown riesling goes into cask wines and white blends.

Barossa Chardonnay has yet to make its mark, and perhaps it never will. The wines, especially those from grapes grown on the valley floor, are often big and overripe, lacking the kind of varietal character and excitement found in Barossa Sémillon. Fact is, many Barossa wineries, such as Penfolds, are turning their attention to chardonnay from the Adelaide Hills in an effort to attain cooler climate flavors and more distinct chardonnay characteristics such as apple and pear.

Sweet Success

Australian winemakers have met with sweet success when it comes to fortified wines, especially the seductive liqueur Muscats and Ports. Thus, no article on the Barossa Valley would be complete without mention of the region's outstanding fortified wines.

In Seppeltsfield, the team of James Godfrey and Jonathan Ketley carry on the fortified winemaking tradition of Seppelt's truly amazing Para Liqueur Port, Show Tawny Ports and excellent Sherry. The Para must be tasted to be believed, and any attempt at describing its concentrated complexity and layers of flavor falls short.

Other noteworthy Barossa Ports are produced by Yalumba (especially its Clocktower and Museum Reserve), Krondorf, Saltram, Penfolds, Grant Burge and Yaldara.

Envisioning the Future

Australia's ambitious visualization for the future of its wines reaches far beyond the vineyards. "Vision 2025," part of the Australian wine industry's Strategy 2025, was announced in 1996 at the first Wine Australia trade gathering. The Australian wine industry has set for itself the goal of achieving annual wine sales of A$4.5 billion by the year 2025 by becoming "the world's most influential and profitable supplier of branded wines."

The authors of Strategy 2025 predict that worldwide wine consumption will fall over the next 25 years, and that consumption will shift from traditional European markets to emerging markets, including the United States. Australia's visionaries see their country as being in a prime position to take advantage of these changes.

There is no doubt that Barossa Valley winemakers will be leading the way.

Contributing Editor Gerald D. Boyd is the staff wine writer for The San Francisco Chronicle, and regularly contributes to several national and international publications on the subjects of wine and spirits.