Hunter Valley is warm and humid, and rain sometimes arrives at harvest. Semillon is picked early for low alcohol. With bottle age, it can take on citrus, lemon-curd and toasty notes while keeping steely acidity. Young Shiraz is medium-bodied, berry-fruited and spicy, with soft tannin. Chardonnay can be lean and mineral or richer and full-flavoured. The Hunter Valley zone contains the Hunter region and the Upper Hunter Valley, Broke Fordwich and Pokolbin sub-regions. Shiraz, Semillon, Chardonnay and Verdelho are its principal grapes.
Continue through the region
Elsewhere in New South Wales
- Canberra DistrictNo producers listed yetCanberra District has warm, dry days and cold summer nights. Most of its vineyards are in New South Wales. Shiraz commonly shows spice, black cherry and liquorice, while Riesling is often crisp and dry and can develop toasty complexity.
- Central Ranges1 producerCentral Ranges is an Australian geographical indication in New South Wales. Cowra, within its wine zone, is associated with warm days and cool nights that support ripening.
- Riverina1 producerRiverina sits on the flat southwestern plains around Griffith, in a low-rainfall inland setting. Chardonnay, Shiraz, Semillon and Cabernet Sauvignon are the main grapes. Its alluvial soils contain sands and gravels embedded in clay.
Producers in Hunter Valley
Producer profiles
- Brokenwood WinesHunter Valley producer founded by three solicitors in 1970, known for single-vineyard Semillon and Graveyard Shiraz from Pokolbin.
- De Bortoli WinesFamily winery founded in 1928 in New South Wales by Italian immigrants Vittorio and Giuseppina De Bortoli, best known for Noble One Botrytis Semillon, one of Australia's most awarded dessert wines.
- Rawson's RetreatA Treasury Wine Estates range whose origin can vary by market: Shiraz–Cabernet brings very fruity red fruit, spice, oak and tannin.