How did the King Valley wineries change Australian wine?

In north-eastern Victoria, Italian-run King Valley wineries have diversified Australian wine away from standard cabernet sauvignon and shiraz. Wineries such as Pizzini Wines have introduced Italian varietals such as Sangiovese, Nebbiolo, Friuliano and Verduzzo.

The King Valley in north-eastern Victoria is one of the Australia’s more appealling wine and food regions, and that’s largely due to the large King Valley Italian community.

There are several big Italian-flavoured chunks of Australian cities. It’s Carlton in Melbourne and around Leichhardt in Sydney. But it’s more unusual to discover such an Italian feel in rural areas.

King Valley wineries near Milawa

A drive through the King Valley and neighbouring Milawa region reveals lots of signs with Italian names on them. Many of these are wineries – the King Valley wineries have a reputation for making proseccos that compete with Italy’s finest.

In these parts, if a business has a sign outside, then chances are it’s a winery. The King Valley is growing a strong reputation for making proseccos that rival Italy’s finest. The regions has a similar climate and soils to parts of Italy, meaning Italian grapes do well in the King Valley.

But the original 1960s King Valley Italian immigrants came to work as tobacco farmers. Tobacco is a notoriously horrible crop to grow, however, and it strips the land it’s grown on of nutrients. So the King Valley Italians switched to agriculture and grape vines.

King Valley wineries: Pizzini Wines in Whitfield

The Pizzini Winery on King Valley Road in Whitfield brought out its first wines in 1996. Pizzini Wines’ founder, Alfredo Pizzini worked on the principle that once you know how to grow tobacco, you can grow anything.

The Pizzini Winery, opened by one of the King Valley Italians — The Pizzini winery is a great example of how the King Valley Italians have change the Australian wine scene. Photo by David Whitley/ Australia Travel Questions

Pizzini initially concentrated on better-known Australian standards, such as cabernet sauvignon and Shiraz. These can be found all over Australia, in wine regions such as the Swan Valley and the sometimes eccentric McLaren Vale.

But he also had a bold addition rarely seen in Australia at the time – Sangiovese. It was occasionally used in blends by winemakers elsewhere, but Pizzini gambled on going single varietal. It worked, and since then several other Italian grapes have been introduced.

Pizzini winery cellar door tastings

At the Pizzini winery’s cellar door, a handy map of Italy shows which wines are traditionally grown. Sangiovese is something of an all-rounder – it grows from Liguria in the north to Basilicata in the south.

But the other varietals now made at Pizzini are more focused. Some usually grow in areas with similar, rocky soils to the King Valley – such as the Nebbiolos and Barberas from Piemonte.

Other varietals are from the northerly regions with a similar climate to the King Valley. Prosecco from the Veneto region is the obvious one here, but there’s also a Friuliano from Friuli-Venezia-Giulia, and a Verduzzo from Trentino.

Trentino is where the Pizzini family originally comes from, and the Verduzzo is their big hope for bringing something new to the Australian white wine market. It’s the sort of white wine that red wine drinkers end up liking.

King Valley wineries as part of a road trip

The King Valley isn’t well known, although it’s a good detour on the journey from Sydney to Melbourne. It provides not just tasty wines, but an indication of how immigration has changed Australia for the better. The Wines of the King Valley website has more information on other cellar doors worth visiting, including Brown Brothers, Politini and Dal Zotto.

Other Victorian High Country hotspots include Glenrowan, scene of Ned Kelly’s infamous siege. More Ned Kelly history unfurls just south of the King Valley at Stringybark Creek, while you can take in the views from Powers Lookout.