The Hunter Valley is one of the oldest wine-growing regions in Australia, with vines first planted around 1823. These early growers knew little about making wine and their grapes were intended for the table, not the bottle. It wasn’t until James Busby, a Scotsman with a passion for viticulture, immigrated to Australia in 1824 that the wine industry in the Hunter Valley began to develop and grow.
Busby wrote a number of important books about viticulture, the most useful of which was titled, “A Manual of plain directions for planting and cultivating vineyards and for making wine in New South Wales.” He also collected a wide variety of grape vines from wine-growing regions of Europe, including France and Spain, and planted them at Kirkton, his Hunter Valley property. Cuttings from these vines were shared with many vineyards in the valley, playing a crucial role in the early development of the wine industry here.
Since those early days, viticulture has exploded and today the Hunter is one of the premier wine-growing regions in Australia. Its winding roads, eucalypt woodlands, vast vineyards, and distant mountain ranges are also very pretty.
View across the valley of the Brokenback Mountains
We are lucky enough to live just one hour from the Hunter Valley and have spent many a lovely day exploring its beautiful byways, restaurants, and vineyards, buying a bit of happiness.
Australians love a glass of wine with a good meal (they would say “a good feed”) which means that the valley is also full of fantastic restaurants.
The people in the Hunter, like everywhere in Australia, are very friendly and personable. We have had many interesting conversations with the locals about winemaking while tasting great wine and even meeting a friendly dog or two.
Chardonnay aging in new French oak barrels. The heat
helps bring out the buttery flavors from the oak.
Baxter the wine dog
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