Thirsty In Australia

There is an old Australian joke that goes a seven course Australian meal is a meat pie and a six pack of beer! Although Australians do love their beer they also enjoy the value of good wine. There are approximately 10,000 different Australian wines to choose from, alcoholic lemonade made from Australian lemon crops and another alcoholic drink made from rhubarb. Imported wines, beers and spirits are also available, but it is always suggested that you but Australian. Of course there are also a variety of non alcoholic drinks, for those of you who prefer not to drink or you are the designated driver for the evening.

White Wine: When Australians first adopted table wine sin the 1960s and 1970s,their preference was for a sweet,Moselle type wine - Riesling and Gewurztraminer.Later,they embraced drier styles of wine such as Semillon,Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, the worlds leading white wine grape. They also began to show a passion for wood-matured wines. Today other varieties, such as Marsanne, have been successfully planted. Australian winemakers also use noble rot to make luscious desert wines.

Red Wine: The Grange Hermitage brand is the benchmark for Australian red wine. It was created in the late 1950’s by Max Schubert and he believed that wines needed decades of cellaring before they are at there optimal taste. At the other end of the spectrum, Wolf Blass, became popular with the make it and drink it now approach, with quickly maturing wines.

Beer: Beer in Australia is vat fermented real ale or lager, and are meant to be consumed chilled. A full strength beer has an alcohol content of 4.8% while a light beer has less then 3% alcohol content. Although beer was traditional heat stylized, cold filtration has now become increasingly popular. Some of the more popular beer names and originating regions are: James Boag and Cascade from Tasmania,Castlemain XXXX from Queensland, Fosters and Victoria Bitter (VB) from Victoria, Tooheys red and blue labels from New South Wales and Coopers Sparkling Ale (known locally as lunatic soup) from South Australia.

Spirits: Dark and white rums are produced from Queensland sugar cane plantations. Some the the more notable labels include Bundaberg and Beenleigh. Domestic brandies are produced from some of Australia’s finest grape vintage. Popular brandy labels include St. Agnes and Hardy’s.

The one thing to remember is that it is okay to enjoy yourself but you must not drive after drinking EVER! Please designate someone as the driver for the evening or hire a car service. It’s the only way to keep a happy and fun evening safe as well.