The stuff of legend
Victoria’s rural and rustic Glenrowan wine region stands out for its bold, intensely flavoured wines and fascinating bushranger history. It’s where Ned Kelly, Australia’s most infamous bushranger, was eventually captured by police in 1880. According to folklore, in the years leading up to that historic event he was helping the Bailey family establish their vineyard.
The Baileys are believed to have planted one of the earliest vineyards in north-east Victoria, after initially setting up a general store in Glenrowan to supply miners in the nearby goldfields. The family faced setbacks early on, but determinedly replanted, and today you can taste wine made from Shiraz vines planted in 1904. Baileys of Glenrowan remains the region’s largest vineyard, which is now farmed organically, and most prominent winery, and the cellar door houses a heritage museum.
Glenrowan’s wineries are renowned for their potent red wines and opulent fortified styles. This dynamism is reflected in the region’s intriguing history, eclectic local characters and hot, bright summer days. Orchards heavy with seasonal fruit add extra colour – from cherries and figs to pomegranates, peaches and plums.
Glenrowan is a compact wine region, surrounded by the Warby Ranges and Mount Glenrowan, and home to the stunning Warby-Ovens National Park and bird-filled wetlands. Enjoy sweeping views to the horizon and a more relaxed pace of life, while you indulge in the rich array of food and wine on offer.
Quality over quantity
There’s an emphasis on quality in this boutique wine region, so while the wines are typically powerful and robust, they’re also complex and sophisticated. Shiraz is the signature variety, producing full-flavoured, earthy wines that promise to age gracefully for many years. Chardonnay produces some of the region’s best whites.
The wines that really set Glenrowan apart are its luscious fortified styles. Glenrowan’s Muscat and Topaque wines are internationally acclaimed and good enough to rival those of nearby Rutherglen. Muscat is a uniquely Australian wine renowned for its intensity, complexity and rich raisin and chocolate flavours. Sweet, honeyed Topaque is made from Muscadelle grapes. Topaque was initially called Tokay, but its name in Australia was changed to avoid confusion with Hungary’s Tokaji wines, so the wine community decided on the name Topaque.
Despite the passing of time and the technologies available today, the winemakers of the Glenrowan wine region take a hands-on approach to making wines, using age-old tools and techniques to craft small batches of high-quality drops. It’s an iconic region steeped in history, which only makes the present-day Glenrowan even more inviting.
