The Alpine Valleys wine region is a relatively new wine region in the North Eastern Victoria Zone. Like the nearby King Valley and Beechworth wine regions, there is a variety of climates from the relatively warm valley floors to quite cold areas further up the slopes.

So with careful site selection grape growers can select from a large number of wine varieties which they can cultivate successfully. And, as we shall see, there are some innovative producers here who are at the cutting edge of the varietal revolution taking place in the Australian wine industry.

The region consists of the valleys of four rivers, namely the Buckland, Buffalo, Keiwa and Ovens. As the name suggests the valleys are part of the Australian Alps and are close to the ski resorts of Mt Hotham, Mt Buffalo and Falls Creek.

The wine industry is no doubt helped by the steady stream of tourists all year using the Great Alpine Road connecting NE Victoria to the Gippsland Lakes region.

There are plenty of reasons to visit the Alpine Valleys wine region in all four seasons. In winter the area provides the gateway to the Victorian snow resorts. In spring and summer there are opportunities for bushwalking and sightseeing in the alpine forests and high plains meadows. The townships of Bright and Harrietville are busy tourist resorts which are particularly popular in the autumn when the deciduous trees are showing their glory.

This means that whenever you visit the region you will have a great choice of accommodation and tourism related activities.

The wine industry is one that has benefited from the winding down of the the tobacco industry centred around Myrtleford. The influence of the Italian heritage of some of the grapegrowers and wineries shows up in the use of Italian varieties.

Of particular note are two varieties which are quite rare in Australia, the red variety Saperavi from Russia and the white Petit Manseng from South Western France.

The following wineries in the Alpine Valleys are using alternative varieties

The Alpine Valleys wine region features in the Victorian Wine Regions Showcase Series