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Great wine drives: King & Alpine Valleys, Victoria

It’s one of Ross Brown’s – CEO of Brown Brothers – favourite lines. “Have you ever met a skier who doesn’t like a glass of wine?” It’s a fact he’s acutely aware of, having seen first-hand the mammoth influx of visitors to his Milawa cellar door – smack between the King and Alpine Valleys, in north-east Victoria – over the past few decades. When the snow falls, cars pour in from around Victoria, South Australia and NSW, heading for the snowfields. It’s invariably a crowd that is keen on both good food and lovely wine. It helps explain why these neighbouring regions are so well kitted with both.

Though, of course, there’s more to it than that. Brown Brothers isn’t Australia’s most visited cellar door on the back of a couple of heaving months.

The wider truth is that the King and Alpine Valleys are hugely popular almost all year round. They’re a couple of hundred kilometres inland (hugging the folds between the northern sides of the Great Dividing Range) and so the weather tends to be predictable. Cold winters, hot summers, a long, dry autumn and cool nights pervade. These regions are as renowned for their spectacular autumn displays as they are for their vast tracts of national park bushlands and alpine rivers. If you like fishing, hiking, canoeing, skiing and, most particularly, cycling (hard-core on-road, mountain off-road, or easy, flat family fun) then the chances are that these regions are something of a Mecca for you. As a bonus, big, blue, rock-strewn mountains rear around every corner. These are great regions to get lost in – and find yourself a superb wine in the process.

The King Valley is as you’d expect (it’s the valley that follows the King River, from the mountains down to the regional city of Wangaratta); the Alpine Valleys take some explanation. Alpine Valleys is the official term; many will know this region as the Ovens Valley, made famous (in wine terms) by the classic old Wynns Coonawarra Estate Ovens Valley Shiraz wines. The Alpine Valleys tag ropes in the Kiewa Valley, meaning that the region stretches from the town of Mount Beauty through the town of Bright, then along the Ovens River to Myrtleford. This is a narrow valley with a claustrophobic feel; in parts it seems you could grab bunches of grapes and pitch them from one side of the valley to the other. There are warm valley-floor vineyards but most vineyards (and olive and chestnut groves) rise up the valley’s ridges.

That’s why these regions can grow so many different grape varieties so well – as you move up and down the mountain ridges, the average temperatures change. The fact is, different temperatures suit different grapes. There’s a lot of merlot grown in these parts because in the mid-1990s it was deemed to perform well here, but sangiovese, nebbiolo, riesling, arneis, tempranillo, shiraz and sparkling prosecco – and probably many other varieties – have since matched or even outperformed it.

Interestingly – as an aside – Mudgee-based Robert Oatley Wines will soon release a single-vineyard wine from the Ovens Valley – a sign that this region is being noticed from the outside. There’s a history of real wine quality here – though today’s producers are in the process of rewriting it.

Both the King and Alpine Valleys have a 60-year history of Italian immigration. The farming communities of these regions are largely composed of Italian-Australian families. Once they farmed tobacco; now they farm wine. And, increasingly, the wine they farm is Australian wine made with Italian grape varieties.

Because of this, Joel Pizzini – of leading King Valley producer Pizzini – reckons that the region’s wines are of a style that “prepares your mouth for food”. They have a savoury tanginess which make your mouth water, in a way, in the process encouraging your mouth to anticipate the next bite, rather than overcrowding or overwhelming it. Given that wine has taken a major leap onto the everyday dining tables of Australians, any region naturally suited to food-friendly styles has an ongoing advantage.

It seems consumers agree. “I know a lot of people are hurting in the wine industry,” says Christian Dal Zotto, of the King Valley’s Dal Zotto winery. “But we had our biggest Easter ever this year, and we’re having an amazing run in the King Valley at the moment. There’s just so much interest in the Italian varieties and what producers here are doing with them. We’re putting the quality in the bottle now and it seems that the prices are right. I think the word has got out there that north-east Victoria is a great place to come and eat, too. Put those factors together and, as I say, we couldn’t be happier.”

Indeed, in wine terms (and food, for that matter), these regions have come a long way in the past five years. The star of both Brown Brothers and Pizzini has long been on the rise, but it has continued to soar, and is now joined by a swag of others. Chrismont, Dal Zotto, De Bortoli, Sam Miranda, Mayford, Ringer Reef, Feathertop and King River Estate are in career-best form, in terms of the quality of their wines. Complementing this – five years ago the café and restaurant scene in the region was patchy at best; now there is a wealth of excellent options, in both regions, and at well-spaced geographical intervals. Wine always tastes better in situ, and after a day’s trout fishing, skiing or cycling, the food-wine options make it worth hanging around for a few extra days.

But to really understand the breadth of what these regions have to offer, you simply have to take the road to Whitlands in the upper reaches of the King Valley. It’s nearly a full kilometre above sea level. The time I went I was lucky enough to be escorted by a helpful guide from Brown Brothers, and got to see a very cool vineyard (it gets blanketed with snow in winter) featuring a large number of prosecco vines. When I saw it – on a mountain top, high up among the peaks of the Alps – I couldn’t help but think: welcome to the future of Australian wine. Or words to that effect. The investment in prosecco vines on this high-altitude vineyard (and on others like it in the area) is significant – in size and in symbol. It speaks loudly both of what these regions are capable of and where they are headed. In the blink of an eye, these north-east Victorian regions will ‘own’ Australian sparkling prosecco – if they don’t already – and as with sangiovese, it will become a beloved, mainstream tipple. It will be because those Italian immigrant farmers just happen to have moved into a landscape eminently suited to the growing of cool, crisp, Italian-styled white wines and savoury, spicy, tannic reds. For both alternative varieties and mainstream – though, of course, when you do them effectively, the difference between the two soon vanishes – these regions have them completely covered.

Is it any wonder things are going well?

DAY 1: KING VALLEY AND MILAWA
Head for the King Valley first and drive straight down the valley floor, the hills and mountains rising on either side. My policy is to aim for the depths of the valley first, then work my way back so that I’m at least in the Whitfield area for lunch – if not all the way back to Oxley, Milawa or Wangaratta.

This takes me to Chrismont (251 Upper King Valley Rd, Cheshunt, (03) 5729 8220) first, and it’s an excellent place to start. This is the authentic King Valley wine experience – the last time I dropped in, Arnie Pizzini himself, the estate’s proprietor and winemaker, was serving the wines. Truth is that Chrismont’s wines have never tasted so good, especially the Italian-accented reds. And with cellar doors at each of Cheshunt and Milawa (on the Snow Road, on the way to Bright and Myrtleford) you have no excuse not to visit one or the other. The wine range covers the inexpensive to the deluxe.

Close by is Ciccone Estate (King Valley Rd, Cheshunt, (03) 5729 8211). The wines are well priced and the setting – think rolling hills roped by vines – is delightful. Wines range from sauvignon blanc and pinot grigio to merlot blends – they also have a sweet red on offer. If you’ve started in the morning, this is a great spot to pick up a coffee.

Drive back up the valley – it’ll only take you a few minutes – to Dal Zotto Wines (Main Rd, Whitfield, (03) 5729 8321). Whitfield is the ‘hub’ of the King Valley and Dal Zotto is a leading light. It is the chief pioneer of prosecco – Italian-styled sparkling wine – and you can taste both dry and slightly sweet versions as well as excellent sangiovese and barbera. The trattoria (weekends only) attached has a great vibe – bookings are most definitely advised. The view out of the back of this cellar door is green fields and blue mountains. The Dal Zotto folks – they’re related to the Pizzinis – are always quick with a joke.

So if you go to Dal Zotto, you must also visit Pizzini (175 King Valley Rd, Whitfield, (03) 5729 8278). It would be rude not to. Besides, Pizzini has long been the King Valley’s best cellar door to visit, and recent (significant) upgrades have made facilities better than ever. This is a gem of a place. You can taste everything from sauvignon blanc to arneis (an Italian white wine); from cabernet sauvignon to sangiovese and nebbiolo. There’s a strong Italian theme (I have a degree in stating the obvious) and that’s a big part of its charm. This is a high-quality producer.

That’s not a lot of stops, but given the number of wines on offer at each – it’s likely taken more time than you think. You’ll be feeling hungry, so I’d start heading out of the valley proper. Along the way stop at King River Estate (Wangaratta-Whitfield Rd (C521), Edi (03) 5729 3689). They’ve started to run the vineyards along organic and biodynamic lines and, combined with sensitive winemaking, the wines are getting better and better. Merlot and lagrein grape varieties are the stand-outs, though the verdelho can also be very good.

You can’t miss the Sam Miranda (1019 Snow Rd, Oxley, (03) 5727 3888) cellar door – whether you go straight through to Wangaratta, or turn towards Oxley/Milawa. It’s on the corner of the two main roads and its modern, ‘underground’ cellar door with the wooden tower (it looks like an old box periscope – except larger) sits pretty in the landscape. There’s a stylish collection of wines available for tasting. It’s a very smart place to grab a coffee or a picnic hamper or a piece of cake. And to seal the deal, you can taste the Symphonia and Snow Road ranges.

Of course, no trip to this region is complete without a visit to the exceptionally popular Brown Brothers (239 Milawa Bobinawarrah Rd, Milawa, (03) 5720 5500). You can taste a vast array of wines (please either spit, or assign a designated driver), from sweet to semi-sweet to dry to sparkling, and then on to fortifieds. There are sweet/fruity reds, including new and old varieties. Absolutely everyone is catered for. This place never skips a beat, even when it’s flat-out.

From there, either head straight to the Milawa Cheese Factory or go on towards Myrtleford.

DAY 2: ALPINE VALLEYS
If you’ve driven the Snow Road through Milawa en route to Bright, you come to the great Alpine Road. Turn left and a couple of hundred metres along you’ll find Gapsted Wines (3897 Great Alpine Rd, Gapsted, (03) 5751 1992).

The wines seem less aspirational than they were a handful of years ago – it’s more about value than quality nowadays – but this still makes for a good visit. There’s a large range of wines available for tasting – everything from merlot and shiraz to something completely different, like saperavi or petit manseng. There’s often excellent value to be found here.

Continue on to the town of Myrtleford and you’ll find Michelini Wines (Great Alpine Rd, Myrtleford, (03) 5751 1990) located in the main street of the town itself. The building looks outrageously cosmopolitan – with its pink pillars and all – but it’s a fun place to stop, especially if you enjoy some fruit sweetness in your wine.

Just out of Myrtleford is the ‘town’ of Ovens (it’s a pub, and that’s about it). Turn left and a couple of kilometres along is Souter’s Vineyard (Happy Valley Rd, Rosewhite, (03) 5752 1077). This valley, to locals at least, is referred to as the Happy Valley. Souter’s is one of the oldest vineyards in the region though it’s taken extensive work to get it back on track over the past five years. Cabernet sauvignon and white wine are its strongest points. It is open on weekends but it’s worth phoning ahead to make sure.

And then you head for the tourist town of Bright – where the Valley narrows, and the Ovens River comes more obviously into play. At Porepunkah (just short of Bright) is Boynton’s Winery – Feathertop (6619 Great Alpine Rd, Porepunkah, (03) 5756 2356). Its charms are obvious: great view, stunning rock wall, impressive restaurant (in the warmer months). And wines that have come on in leaps and bounds in recent years. The sauvignon blanc and pinot gris are particular favourites.

A hop, skip and jump along you’ll find Ringer Reef (6835 Great Alpine Rd, Porepunkah, (03) 5756 2805). It’s a delightful place to visit, for the hospitality, wine and unparalleled view of Mount Buffalo. This is a dry-grown, hillside, meticulously run vineyard. The wines are very good – sangiovese, sauvignon blanc, merlot and sparkling red and white – and the cellar door often wafts with the smell of freshly baked bread. If you’re in the area, you must pull into this driveway.

It’s a fair hike to Annapurna Estate (217 Simmonds Creek Rd, Tawonga, (03) 5754 4517) – you go through Bright, and then over the mountain to the Mount Beauty area (in the Kiewa Valley). It’s a good way to spend another day in the region – depending on how ambitious you want to make your schedule. Annapurna serves delicious food at the café-restaurant – mention lunch and I’m there – and good cool-climate wines are available for tasting and/or drinking (I particularly like the sparkling). Victoria’s tallest mountain, Mount Bogong, rears up nearby to provide the view – if you’re lucky it’ll be snow-capped.

Ceccanti (285 Bay Creek Ln, Mongans Bridge, (03) 5754 5236) is in the Kiewa Valley. It’s worth visiting if you’ve made the trip over the mountain. It’s a rustic setting and delightful in nice weather; they serve food on weekends and the wines are very reasonably priced.

TEXT CAMPBELL MATTINSON PHOTOGRAPHY GAPSTED WINES

This article is from the June/July 2010 issue of Gourmet Traveller WINE.